Lawyers For Children

What Lawyers For Children does

Lawyers For Children is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal services organization founded in 1984 in New York City that provides free legal representation and social work services to children and young adults involved in foster care, juvenile justice, custody, and other Family Court proceedings. The organization operates a distinctive holistic model in which every child client is assigned both an attorney and a licensed social worker, supplemented by Youth Advocates with lived experience in the foster care system. Specialized practice areas include the Youth Justice Project, LGBTQIA+ Rights Project, Aging Out Program, Domestic Violence Project, Education Advocacy, Mental Health & Developmental Disability Services, Immigration Services, and the Child Sexual Abuse & Exploitation Project. The organization serves more than 3,000 children annually through 6,000+ court proceedings and has represented over 100,000 children since its founding, with a single Manhattan office at 110 Lafayette Street staffed by approximately 70 attorneys, social workers, paralegals, and youth advocates.

The organization is funded through a mix of charitable donations, foundation grants, and government funding for Attorneys for Children (AFC) programs, with all services provided free of charge to clients. Beyond direct representation, Lawyers For Children operates a Public Policy & Special Litigation Project (established 2001) that pursues impact litigation and policy advocacy to drive system-wide reform in child welfare. The organization is actively engaged in coalition advocacy with the Legal Aid Society and Children's Law Center, including a 2024 push for a $60 million statewide budget increase for AFC providers. Leadership comprises founder Karen Freedman (now serving as President following a 2025 transition), Executive Director Glenn Metsch-Ampel (appointed in 2025 to the NY State Permanent Commission on Justice for Families), Director of Policy & Special Litigation Betsy Kramer (30-year tenure), Director of Development Dyane McMahon, and Director of Communications Jeffrey Chang. The organization has earned recognition as a Top Workplace by City & State NY and multiple 2025 awards for its leadership, including a New York Law Journal Lifetime Achievement Award.

Name

Lawyers For Children

Legal name

Lawyers For Children

Website

https://lawyersforchildren.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Lawyers For Children is a NYC-based nonprofit legal services organization founded in 1984 that provides free legal and social work representation to over 3,000 children annually in foster care and Family Court proceedings, with specialized programs spanning youth justice, LGBTQIA+ rights, aging out, and immigration.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Child Welfare Legal Services

NAICS

Offices of Lawyers (54111), Child and Youth Services (62411)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Legal Aid & Client Advocacy Services (BPAGAEAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Child Protection & Child Rights (BPAGABAG), Protection Services (GBV, Child Protection, Legal Aid) (BPADADAH), Juvenile Justice System (Courts & Detention) (BPAIAFAF)

Keywords

• Child welfare legal services
• Foster care advocacy
• Family court representation
• Children's rights law
• Social work services

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grants: Funded through charitable donations, foundation grants, and government funding for legal services to children in foster care

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Lawyers For Children provides free legal representation and social work services to children and young adults in foster care, juvenile justice, custody, and other New York City Family Court proceedings, with every child assigned both an attorney and a social worker. The organization also pursues system-wide child welfare reform through impact litigation and policy advocacy under its Public Policy & Special Litigation Project, and runs specialized practice areas covering Youth Justice, LGBTQIA+ rights, Aging Out, Domestic Violence, Education, Mental Health & Developmental Disability, Immigration, and Child Sexual Abuse & Exploitation.

Product overview

Lawyers For Children is a nonprofit legal organization that provides free legal and social work services to children and young adults in foster care and family court proceedings. The organization operates as a single unified service offering, combining legal representation with social work support. Every child represented is assigned both an attorney and an LFC social worker. The core service is complemented by specialized practice areas including the Youth Justice Project, LGBTQIA+ Rights Project, Aging Out Services, Domestic Violence Project, Education Advocacy, Mental Health & Developmental Disability Services, Immigration Services, and the Child Sexual Abuse & Exploitation Project. The organization also conducts system-wide reform through its Public Policy & Special Litigation Project, which advances impact litigation and policy advocacy to achieve lasting changes in the child welfare system.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Public Policy & Special Litigation Project: Impact litigation and policy advocacy initiative focused on system-wide reforms in child welfare
• LGBTQIA+ Project
• Youth Justice Project
• Aging Out Program

Products and services

• Legal and Social Work Services Free, holistic legal and social work representation provided to children and young adults in New York City foster care, abuse and neglect, permanency hearings, termination of parental rights, adoption, custody, guardianship, visitation, and juvenile delinquency proceedings, with every child assigned both an attorney and an LFC social worker.
• Youth Justice Project
• LGBTQIA+ Rights Project Advocacy services ensuring access to affirming health care and safe home environments for LGBTQIA+ youth in foster care.
• Aging Out Services
• Domestic Violence Project
• Education Advocacy
• Mental Health & Developmental Disability Services
• Immigration Services
• Child Sexual Abuse & Exploitation Project
• Public Policy & Special Litigation Project

Quantifiable outcome

• 3,000+ children served annually, 6,000+ court proceedings per year
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered major, core and minor.

• Loeb & Loeb LLPmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 October 2025Major law firm partner hosting and sponsoring LFC's 2nd Annual Pro Bono Awards Breakfast. Multiple attorneys from firm received recognition, including Greg Schwed who received inaugural Seth Gelblum Honorary Award and worked with LFC for eight years on appellate cases.
• Latham & Watkins LLPmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner Arlene Chow recognized for leadership on amicus brief in NY Court of Appeals case defending rights of children in foster care proceedings across the state.
• The Legal Aid SocietycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint advocacy coalition for Attorneys for Children (AFC) providers calling for $60 million budget increase. Joint white paper on Family Court crisis. Collaborate on impact litigation and policy reform.
• Children's Law CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint advocacy coalition for AFC providers. Co-authored white paper on chronic underfunding and caseload crisis in Family Court representation.
• Legal Aid SocietycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on advocacy for children in foster care, including joint statements on Social Security benefits policy and broken adoptions legislation.
• YouthNPowerminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAdvocacy collective of young people with child welfare system experience. Member Christine Joseph shared personal story supporting adoption subsidy reform legislation.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Bronx Defenders: NYC holistic public defense organization pioneering interdisciplinary legal-plus-social-work representation. Strong methodology comparison to Lawyers For Children's integrated model, though primarily adult/criminal defense focused.
• The Legal Aid Society: NYC's largest legal services organization, also providing civil legal aid and joint advocacy for AFC funding alongside Lawyers For Children. Directly comparable as a coalition partner and a fellow high-volume NYC legal aid provider serving low-income populations including children in foster care.
• Center for Family Representation: NYC nonprofit delivering holistic interdisciplinary legal and social work representation in family court — the same model Lawyers For Children is built around. Direct peer on integrated practice model, target population, and Family Court jurisdiction.
• Children's Rights (organization): National nonprofit focused on child welfare impact litigation and system reform, with a major New York presence. Comparable on the impact litigation and class action advocacy axis that distinguishes Lawyers For Children's Public Policy & Special Litigation Project.
• Sanctuary for Families: NYC-based nonprofit providing legal and social services to survivors of domestic violence and sex trafficking, including children. Comparable on the legal-plus-social-work integrated service model and on serving vulnerable NYC youth populations that overlap with LFC's client base.
• Children's Law Center: NYC-based nonprofit legal services organization for children, co-authoring joint AFC coalition white papers with Lawyers For Children. Comparable mission, geography, and funding model, with overlapping caseloads in foster care and family court representation.

Broad incumbents

• Casey Family Programs: National child welfare foundation operating its own direct-service programs and funding AFC-style providers nationwide. Comparable mission around foster care outcomes and aging-out youth, though operating at foundation rather than direct legal services scale.
• Safe Horizon: Larger NYC victim-services and social services umbrella organization with programs touching child abuse, DV, and trafficking survivors. Comparable on client population overlap (children exposed to violence and exploitation) and integrated social work services in NYC.
• The Children's Defense Fund: National child welfare advocacy organization with policy, research, and program arms addressing children in poverty and foster care. Comparable on child welfare advocacy and policy reform scale, though broader in scope than LFC's direct legal services focus.

Emerging players

• Juvenile Law Center: Philadelphia-based national nonprofit focused on juvenile and child welfare law, including impact litigation and policy advocacy. Comparable on juvenile justice litigation and child welfare reform mission, though operating from a different geography.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/LFC_nyc
• Facebookfacebook.com/LawyersForChildren
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lawyers-for-children

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Lawyers For Children