Partners for Justice
Partners for Justice is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that trains non-attorney Client Advocates and embeds them within U.S. public defender offices to deliver wraparound social services — covering housing, employment, health, and family needs — to low-income people facing criminal charges. The organization operates in 20+ states with 45 service locations.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2018
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Partners for Justice does
Partners for Justice (PFJ) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2018 by Emily Galvin-Almanza that trains and deploys non-attorney Client Advocates as embedded case navigators within public defender offices across the United States. The organization's core function is to provide wraparound social services — across health and benefits, housing, employment, family, property, and mitigation categories — to low-income people facing criminal charges, who make up approximately 80% of those accused of crimes in the U.S. PFJ serves both the public defender agencies (its direct B2G counterparties) and the justice-involved individuals they represent, with embedded Advocates functioning as de facto employees of the host defender offices.
PFJ's product surface centers on the Collaborative Defense Framework, a six-tenet methodology (Have Vision, Ask the Right Questions, Empower the Client, Connect with Social Services, Access Legal Expertise, Change the Narrative) that structures client-led representation. The primary delivery vehicle is the two-year Client Advocate fellowship program, in which new professionals are recruited through a competitive process, intensively trained, and placed inside public defender offices. PFJ also offers a Collaborative Defense Toolkit (a free resource bank co-developed with Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and American Bar Endowment), customizable Training Programs, Capacity Building Services for offices adopting collaborative defense, an annual Collaborative Defense Conference (over 200 attendees in 2025), and a series of Evidence Briefs supporting policy and practice reform. There is no underlying software platform or proprietary technology stack — the "technology" is codified methodology, training curriculum, and a distributed field workforce.
PFJ's revenue model is hybrid nonprofit funding: tax-deductible individual donations, foundation grants (notably Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and American Bar Endowment, plus Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation grants totaling approximately $250K across 2019-2022), and government contracts/partnerships with state and local public defender agencies. The organization reports $8.6M in government revenue secured since 2021 across new wraparound service hubs, with bipartisan support. Distribution is exclusively direct-to-government via enterprise partnerships with county-run offices, statewide public defender systems, and nonprofit defender organizations — there is no consumer-facing channel. As of 2025, PFJ operates in over 20 states with 45 service locations and approximately 100 embedded Client Advocates, having served 34,000 people since founding.
Partners for Justice firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Partners for Justice
- Legal name
- Partners for Justice
- Website
- https://partnersforjustice.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2018
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Partners for Justice is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that trains non-attorney Client Advocates and embeds them within U.S. public defender offices to deliver wraparound social services — covering housing, employment, health, and family needs — to low-income people facing criminal charges. The organization operates in 20+ states with 45 service locations.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Partners for Justice industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Public Defense Services
- NAICS
- Legal Services (5411), Other Legal Services (54119)
- SIC
- Services-Legal Services (8111)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Public Defense & Legal Aid Services (BPAIAFAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Legal Aid & Client Advocacy Services (BPAGAEAM), Criminal Justice Reform & Legal System Advocacy (BPAGAFAI)
Keywords
Where Partners for Justice is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices5 records
Markets served
Partners for Justice business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Donations and Charitable Contributions: PFJ is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Tax-deductible donations support hiring, training, and supporting Advocates in the field. Funding comes from individual donors and supporters.
- Foundation Grants: PFJ receives support from foundations. Notable funders include Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and American Bar Endowment for the Collaborative Defense Toolkit.
- Government Funding: PFJ partners with state and local government to secure funding. Since 2021, PFJ has partnered with defenders to secure $8.6M in government revenue for new wraparound service hubs. Bipartisan support from both Republican and Democrat administrations.
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels8 records
Partners for Justice product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Partners for Justice recruits, trains, and embeds non-attorney Client Advocates within public defender offices across the United States to deliver case navigation and wraparound support services (housing, employment, health, benefits, family, mitigation) to people facing criminal charges. Its work is structured around the proprietary Collaborative Defense framework, operationalized through the Client Advocate Program, the free Collaborative Defense Toolkit, Capacity Building Services, Training Programs, and the annual Collaborative Defense Conference.
Product overview
Partners for Justice is a national nonprofit organization offering a unified suite of public defense transformation services centered on its Collaborative Defense framework. The core offering is the Client Advocate Program—a two-year fellowship placing trained non-attorney advocates within public defender offices to provide wraparound social services. Complementing this are the Collaborative Defense Toolkit (free resource bank), Training Programs, Capacity Building Services, the Annual Collaborative Defense Conference, and Evidence Briefs. All offerings are designed to help public defenders practice client-led representation and reduce incarceration.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Client Advocate Program A two-year fellowship program that recruits new professionals, trains them in the Collaborative Defense methodology, and places them as employees inside public defender offices across the United States to provide case navigation and wraparound support services (housing, employment, health, benefits, family, mitigation) to people facing criminal charges.
- Collaborative Defense Framework Proprietary framework for client-led public defense representation built on six tenets (Have Vision, Ask the Right Questions, Empower the Client, Connect with Social Services, Access Legal Expertise, Change the Narrative) that confronts the underlying causes and prevents the dire consequences of criminal legal involvement.
- Collaborative Defense Toolkit A free, publicly accessible resource bank of adaptable materials and strategies — including case-management handbooks, community-resource guides, and assessment tools — that helps defense providers incorporate Collaborative Defense into their offices. Developed with Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and American Bar Endowment.
- Training Programs Customizable training for public defense leadership, attorneys, social workers, advocates, navigators, investigators, and other staff on transitioning to client-led, collaborative practices, delivered through webinars, multi-day intensives, and curriculum development.
- Capacity Building Services Technical assistance working with individual public defender offices to assess current practices and implement Collaborative Defense — including training staff, designing intake questionnaires, creating referral structures, and developing data dashboards.
- Annual Collaborative Defense Conference A three-day annual conference welcoming defenders from across the country to engage in curated workshops and networking, with sessions on building trust with clients, mitigating impacts of detention, and enhancing collaborative defense practice. The 2025 edition drew over 200 attendees.
- Evidence Briefs Published research and evidence briefs on what lowers crime, housing, health, economic mobility, family impacts, and defense practices, intended to support policy reform and public defense advocacy.
Quantifiable outcome
- 87% of people receiving both services and mitigation ended their cases without prison or jail time
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use Partners for Justice
Customer profileNamed customers10 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Partners for Justice technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Partners for Justice partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
22 partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.
- New Jersey Office of the Public DefendercorePFJ and NJOPD announced partnership to enhance collaborative, holistic representation across Atlantic, Hudson, and Monmouth counties. Client Advocates are placed in NJOPD offices to connect individuals with community resources and guidance. PFJ trains NJOPD staff on trauma-informed approaches and collaborative defense best practices.
- San Diego County Public Defender's OfficeflagshipPFJ invited by San Diego County's Racial Justice Commission to partner exclusively serving children and young people involved in the criminal legal system. Under Andrew Strong's guidance, San Diego became the only county among PFJ's 45 service locations to bring PFJ team through direct community engagement. Advocates have worked with over 300 young people.
- Los Angeles County Public Defender's OfficeflagshipPFJ's largest partnership with 27 Client Advocates embedded across LA County working alongside the public defender's office. In 2024, Advocates assisted over 2,800 individuals with over 90% successfully completing court-ordered requirements.
- Harris County Public Defender's OfficecorePartnership began in 2019. Since August 2022, 21 Advocates have served 1,613 people with 2,900 matters. Advocates support attorneys with case management, mitigation, reentry plans, document obtainment, benefits access, and treatment/housing assistance. Home to PFJ's Holistic Services Division.
- Delaware Office of Defense ServicescorePFJ Client Advocates placed with Delaware ODS including Latoya White and Ryan Cieslukowski. Advocates helped organize community resource fairs with Food Bank of Delaware and Delaware Department of Justice.
- Colorado State Public DefendercorePFJ announced new partnership with Colorado State Public Defender to expand PFJ's reach through new partnerships in 2024.
- San Mateo County, CaliforniacorePFJ launched new Client Advocate partnership in San Mateo County, California in 2024.
- MississippicorePFJ launched new Client Advocate partnership in Mississippi in 2024, including Hinds County Public Defender in Jackson.
- VirginiacorePFJ launched new Client Advocate partnership in Virginia in 2024.
- Tribal Defenders Office for Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (Montana)coreMontana tribal defender office, recipient of PFJ Legacy Award for commitment to collaborative defense.
- Alameda County Public Defender's Office (California)coreEarly PFJ partner. Public Defender Brendon Woods called advocates 'game changers.'
- Cumberland County, PennsylvaniacoreChief Public Defender Michael Halkias leads office that has had client advocates for nearly a year. Emphasizes holistic defense giving clients agency and autonomy.
- Hinds County Public Defender (Jackson, Mississippi)coreSpecial project called FOR THE DEFENSE places 2 Client Advocates within the office with a fund for expert testimony. Public Defender Gail Wright Lowery praised the partnership.
- New Jersey Public Defender (Atlantic, Hudson, Monmouth counties)corePublic Defender Jennifer Sellitti leads offices that have helped clients access treatment programs faster than traditional routes. Client advocates bridge communication gap between lawyers and clients.
- Linn County (Iowa)corePFJ Client Advocates in Linn County featured on KCRG news. Marked one year of bringing different approach to public defense in eastern Iowa.
- Stanislaus County Public Defender (California)corePartnership helped revamp Client Social Services role and unit to expand service provision in this unique socio-political jurisdiction.
- Missouri State Public DefendercoreImplemented statewide Holistic Defense Services Unit as part of collaborative defense framework.
- Chicago Defenders (Illinois)corePFJ helped launch two new community defense centers in Chicago as part of capacity building expansion across Illinois in 2024.
- University of Pennsylvania (Quattrone Center)coreStudy by Dr. Paul Heaton found Client Advocates in Delaware County, PA increased cases resolved without conviction by nearly 50%. Partnership to deepen evidence base.
- StanfordcorePartnership with Stanford Impact to deepen evidence base for PFJ's work.
- Food Bank of DelawareminorPartnered with PFJ Client Advocates to host Summer Community Resource Fair in Milford, Delaware.
- Delaware Department of JusticeminorPartnered with PFJ Client Advocates to host Summer Community Resource Fair.
Scale indicators17 records
Recent moves11 records
Expansion highlights7 records
Partners for Justice competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- The Bail Project: National nonprofit focused on pre-trial bail reform and supporting people impacted by cash bail. Comparable to PFJ in mission of reducing incarceration and supporting justice-involved individuals, though focused on a narrower intervention point.
Direct peers
- The Bronx Defenders: Pioneer of the holistic defense model that integrates civil, criminal, and social work services within a public defender office. Directly comparable to PFJ because it employs non-attorney advocates in defender settings to address underlying needs, validating the same client-led approach PFJ promotes.
- Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem: Community-based holistic public defender office serving Harlem with integrated social work and advocacy services. Closely comparable to PFJ's model of embedding non-attorney advocates within defender offices to provide wraparound support and improve case outcomes.
- Gideon's Promise: Nonprofit that trains and supports public defenders, particularly in under-resourced Southern jurisdictions. Directly comparable to PFJ in its training-and-capacity-building approach for public defense, though focuses on attorney development rather than non-attorney advocacy.
Others
- Measures for Justice: Nonprofit that builds data infrastructure to measure criminal justice system performance at the county level. Comparable to PFJ in its evidence-building mission and outcome validation focus, but operates as an enabling data and analytics layer rather than direct service provider.
- National Legal Aid & Defender Association (NLADA): National membership association for legal aid and public defender organizations. Functions as an ecosystem convener rather than direct service provider, but shares PFJ's mission of strengthening public defense and supports similar policy reform agendas.
Broad incumbents
- Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC): Large civil rights organization with significant criminal justice reform litigation and advocacy portfolio. Operates at much greater scale and broader scope than PFJ but pursues overlapping reform goals including public defense investment and decarceration.
- Equal Justice Initiative (EJI): Founded by Bryan Stevenson, EJI provides legal representation to people facing harsh sentences and pursues criminal justice reform. Comparable to PFJ in public defense advocacy and outcomes focus, though operates broader litigation and policy campaigns.
- Vera Institute of Justice: Major national criminal justice research and reform organization operating across many justice system domains. Comparable to PFJ in mission (criminal justice reform) but broader in scope, with substantial resources to develop and disseminate holistic defense and public defense models.
- Center for Court Innovation: National nonprofit that develops pilot programs in courts and defender settings, including problem-solving courts and community-based justice initiatives. Adjacent to PFJ's work in reshaping how public defense is delivered and how courts address underlying client needs.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Partners for Justice social profiles
Digital presencePartners for Justice financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Partners for Justice leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Partners for Justice funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds4 records
Investors1 record
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Partners for Justice M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Partners for Justice
What does Partners for Justice do?
Partners for Justice recruits, trains, and embeds non-attorney Client Advocates within public defender offices across the United States to deliver case navigation and wraparound support services (housing, employment, health, benefits, family, mitigation) to people facing criminal charges. Its work is structured around the proprietary Collaborative Defense framework, operationalized through the Client Advocate Program, the free Collaborative Defense Toolkit, Capacity Building Services, Training Programs, and the annual Collaborative Defense Conference.
Is Partners for Justice a public or private company?
Partners for Justice is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Partners for Justice founded?
Partners for Justice was founded in 2018. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Partners for Justice based?
Partners for Justice is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Partners for Justice make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Donations and Charitable Contributions are the primary driver. The others are foundation Grants and government Funding.
Who are Partners for Justice's main competitors?
The Bail Project is listed as an emerging player. Direct peers are The Bronx Defenders, Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem and Gideon's Promise. Others are Measures for Justice and National Legal Aid & Defender Association (NLADA). Broad incumbents are Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), Equal Justice Initiative (EJI), Vera Institute of Justice and Center for Court Innovation.
Does Partners for Justice have an API?
No public API is recorded for Partners for Justice.
What industry is Partners for Justice in?
Partners for Justice's product category is Public Defense Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAIAFAC, Public Defense & Legal Aid Services, with a secondary code of BPAGAEAM, Legal Aid & Client Advocacy Services. Its NAICS code is 5411 and its SIC code is 8111.