Civil Rights and Ethics Firm to be Honored at 2026 Joining in Justice
We are proud to announce that esteemed law firm Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP (ECBAWM) will be honored at our 2026 Joining in Justice reception.
ECBAWM is a nationally-recognized litigation boutique that focuses on civil rights, commercial, criminal, and ethics matters. Their civil rights practice includes wrongful convictions, sexual harassment and assault, police and prison misconduct, children’s and disability rights, housing rights, election law, and more. Their commercial practice includes complex commercial litigation, partnership disputes, real estate and land use, ethics and discipline, and appeals.
Over the last year, ECBAWM has become a vital partner to support the ever-changing needs of our legal clients. Critically, ECBAWM—along with the New York Civil Liberties Union, American Civil Liberties Union, and Make the Road New York—is representing The Door and African Communities Together in a federal lawsuit challenging Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) cruel, unlawful policy that allows ICE agents to arrest and detain people who show up to immigration court and prevent them from pursuing their immigration cases. More on that case can be read in the NYCLU’s announcement online.
ECBAWM has also supported our team as amicus counsel in support of a habeas petition to seek release of a teenager unjustly held in detention and drafted a template amicus brief on the harms of immigration detention on children that will be shared nationwide. Prior to 2025, The Door rarely if ever utilized habeas petitions; they’ve now become an essential tool for us and other legal providers to gain release of our clients.
Both of these initiatives have been crucial to ensuring that our teens and young adults have access to due process and a fair chance to fight for a better future.
“This partnership with Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel has really helped us rethink what pro bono work means and can look like, especially in this new, chaotic climate,” shared Meena Shah, Managing Director of our Legal Services Center. “When so many of the traditional avenues have been closed to us, ECBAWM is helping us find creative solutions so we can still support our clients. They share an ethos with us, and a commitment to justice.”
“ECBAWM is honored to partner with The Door and proud to support The Door’s outstanding work defending and empowering young New Yorkers,” said Sam Shapiro, Partner at ECBAWM.
We are so grateful to ECBAWM for their support, and look forward to celebrating them on March 26, 2026, at Joining in Justice.