Innovation Lab Lab

What Innovation Lab Lab does

Innovation Law Lab is a Portland, Oregon-based nonprofit legal organization founded in 2014 by Stephen W. Manning that uses law, technology, and community organizing to advance immigrant and refugee rights. The organization serves detained and non-detained immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers, providing free legal representation, habeas petitions, bond hearings, and asylum claims, while also pursuing systemic public interest litigation against immigration enforcement practices. Core programs include Defend Community, Know the Law, Innovate in Community, Use the Law, and Justice Bus mobile legal services.

The organization's technology infrastructure centers on the LawLab case management system and the BorderX remote mass representation platform, which together enable a documented 10X capacity scaling for individual attorneys and throughput of up to 85 requests per week (4,500 annually). Centers of Excellence in Atlanta, Charlotte, Portland, and Kansas City connect trained attorneys, social scientists, forensic specialists, and partner organizations (including UC Hastings Center for Gender and Refugee Studies and Catholic Legal Immigration Network) to represent detained individuals in hostile jurisdictions. BorderX technology-enabled collaboration produces court-ready legal packets within 5-21 days for detained noncitizens nationwide.

Innovation Law Lab operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit funded entirely by private foundation grants and individual donations, explicitly declining federal government funding to maintain advocacy independence. The organization does not charge clients for services and does not publicly disclose revenue. Its go-to-market is community-led, leveraging coalition partnerships (Oregon For All, Oregon Ready, Integrated Rural Strategies Group), earned media through high-profile litigation, and a partner network model where local field organizations at detention sites collaborate with the remote BorderX team. The organization has been notably active in 2025-2026 litigation, securing a federal preliminary injunction against warrantless ICE arrests in Oregon and filing multiple lawsuits challenging DHS detention, re-detention, and surveillance practices.

Name

Innovation Lab Lab

Legal name

Innovation Law Lab

Website

https://innovationlawlab.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Innovation Law Lab is a Portland-based nonprofit founded in 2014 that uses proprietary case management technology (LawLab and BorderX) and a four-city Centers of Excellence network to provide free legal representation to immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers, while pursuing systemic litigation against immigration enforcement practices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Immigration Legal Services

NAICS

Offices of Lawyers (541110), Offices of Lawyers (54111), Legal Services (5411)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Immigration Law (BPAHAAAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Immigration Legal Services & Representation (Law Firms) (THACAKAF), Immigration Law Literacy & Rights Education (EDAAADAB)

Keywords

• Immigration legal services
• Nonprofit public interest law
• Technology-enabled legal representation
• Asylum advocacy programs
• Community legal organizing

Headquarters

HQ city

Portland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Private Foundation Grants: Supported by contributions and grants from private foundations. The organization publishes financial statements and IRS Form 990s, indicating institutional grant funding.
2. Individual Donations: Gifts from individual donors directly fund public interest litigation and public education initiatives. The organization maintains a donate page for public contributions.
3. No Federal Government Funding: The organization explicitly states it does not receive any federal government funding, maintaining independence in its advocacy work.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Innovation Law Lab is a nonprofit legal organization that provides free immigration legal representation, public interest litigation, and community education programs for immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. Its core delivery model combines proprietary technology (LawLab case management and BorderX remote representation) with a Centers of Excellence network in Atlanta, Charlotte, Portland, and Kansas City to scale mass representation for detained noncitizens.

Product overview

Innovation Law Lab is a nonprofit legal organization that operates a multi-product technology and advocacy infrastructure for immigrant and refugee justice. The core technology platform consists of LawLab (case management system), BorderX (remote mass representation technology), and Centers of Excellence (legal representation hubs in hostile jurisdictions). These are complemented by community programs including Defend Community, Know the Law, Innovate in Community, and Use the Law, as well as the Justice Bus mobile legal services. The organization leverages technology, law, and community organizing to scale impact for immigrant advocacy.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• LawLab Case Management System Case management system that serves as the central database for the BorderX initiative, aggregating substantive information about claimants, claims, and transactional information about the immigration court process and enabling remote collaboration with local partners and tracking of case outcomes.
• BorderX Technology-enabled collaboration between local field partners and Innovation Law Lab's remote team that uses LawLab technology to produce court-ready legal documents for detained noncitizens seeking release, enabling single lawyers to scale representation capacity up to 10X.
• Centers of Excellence Designated jurisdictions where Innovation Law Lab partners with local organizations and pro bono attorneys to represent detained individuals, currently operating in Atlanta, Charlotte, Portland, and Kansas City.
• Justice Bus Mobile immigration legal services bringing legal assistance to underserved communities, allowing organizations to request visits.
• Defend Community Program focused on defending rights through legal advocacy and community empowerment for immigrants and refugees, using constitutional rights defense and community organizing.
• Know the Law Educational program that puts the power of legal knowledge into the hands of community members through Know Your Rights education, toolkit resources, and rapid response coordination.
• Innovate in Community Program powering the future of immigrant justice with human-centered design and technology, focusing on technology-enabled representation and innovation.
• Use the Law Program ensuring everyone has access to quality legal representation regardless of circumstances, covering habeas petitions, bond hearings, asylum claims, and release requests.

Quantifiable outcome

• 85 requests per week throughput capacity for BorderX
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Center for Gender and Refugee Studies, U.C. HastingscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides support team for Centers of Excellence alongside vulnerable populations project, contributing legal expertise for refugee and gender-based asylum cases
• Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerContributes vulnerable populations project support to the Centers of Excellence support team, enhancing representation capacity
• Centers of Excellence - Atlanta, Charlotte, Portland, Kansas CitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFour Center of Excellence locations partnering with local NGOs, private immigration attorneys, non-immigration attorneys, big law, and in-house counsel to represent detained individuals
• BorderX CollaboratorscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEligible nonprofit organizations and consortia working at underserved detention sites that collaborate with BorderX for remote mass representation delivery
• Oregon For All CoalitionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition partnership for safeguarding organizations toolkit and broader immigrant advocacy coordination
• Oregon Worker ReliefminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity-led program that distributed over $60 million to immigrant Oregonians excluded from federal pandemic relief
• Oregon Ready CoalitionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoalition calling on immigration authorities to prioritize health and well-being of communities during COVID-19 pandemic
• Integrated Rural Strategies GroupminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with Law Lab to host Freedom To Thrive webinar in support of the Anticarceral Legal Organizing program

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• The Florence Immigrant Rights Project: Arizona-based nonprofit providing free legal services to adults and children in immigration detention — directly comparable detention-focused representation model.
• Kids in Need of Defense (KIND): National nonprofit providing pro bono legal representation to unaccompanied immigrant children — directly comparable to Innovation Law Lab's mission, pro bono model, and reliance on attorney networks.
• HIAS: Jewish-American refugee resettlement and legal services organization serving refugees and asylum seekers — comparable refugee-focused legal aid mission.
• Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC): National nonprofit network providing immigration legal services and capacity-building — comparable in legal-aid delivery, training, and network-of-affiliates model (and a current strategic partner of Innovation Law Lab).
• National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC): Heartland Alliance-affiliated nonprofit providing direct legal representation, policy advocacy, and impact litigation for immigrants — closely comparable scope, including asylum and detention work.
• National Immigration Law Center (NILC): National advocacy organization using impact litigation, policy analysis, and communications to advance immigrant rights — comparable litigation-heavy advocacy posture and California base.
• Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES): One of the largest immigration legal services nonprofits in the U.S., providing representation, advocacy, and bond services for immigrants and refugees — directly comparable in service mix, scale ambition, and detention focus.

Emerging players

• Justice Action Center: Nonprofit launched in 2018 using impact litigation to protect immigrant rights — comparable litigation-first posture and organizational form, but smaller and earlier-stage.

Others

• American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA): National bar association of immigration attorneys — comparable ecosystem role (training, amicus, advocacy), but a membership association rather than direct legal services provider.
• Immigration Advocates Network: Collaborative network of immigration legal services organizations providing curated resources and pro bono tools — adjacent ecosystem enabler with overlapping constituency but no direct representation services.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/innovation-law-lab

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Innovation Lab Lab