Sixth Amendment Center

What Sixth Amendment Center does

The Sixth Amendment Center (6AC) is a Boston-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2013 to evaluate and improve indigent defense systems in the United States. It is the only nonprofit in the country that exclusively examines the root causes of the indigent defense crisis, and it operates on a nonpartisan basis with board and staff reflecting the full political spectrum. 6AC's core work consists of two service lines: independent, objective Evaluations of state and local indigent defense systems, and tailored Expert Services (technical assistance, task-force staffing, legislative testimony, and public education). These services are provided only at the request of federal, state, or local jurisdictions and are delivered free of charge.

6AC's product portfolio extends beyond bespoke evaluations into a formalized educational suite under the Discovery umbrella — ABCs of the Sixth, Hows of the Sixth, History of the Sixth, Paying Attorneys of the Sixth, and Qualifying for the Sixth — together with the State of the Sixth interactive map (covering all 50 states, 5 inhabited territories, and D.C.) and the Pleading the Sixth blog. The Law Student Network (LSN), launched in 2020, has trained more than 50 law student interns drawn from 24 partner law schools including Harvard, Georgetown, Boston University, the University of Virginia, and Northwestern. The organization does not develop commercial technology products; its deliverables are research, analysis, and human expert services.

6AC is funded by tax-deductible donations (one-time and recurring) and by grants such as a documented U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance award supporting its Illinois statewide evaluation. It maintains offices in partnership with Holland & Knight in Boston. Notable documented outcomes include South Dakota leaving the nation's "no state funding" list, Guam gaining defender independence, Colorado enacting the Fairness & Transparency in Municipal Court Act, Illinois leaving the "no state oversight" list, and an Oregon Supreme Court ruling on unrepresented defendants. Leadership transitioned in May 2025 with Aditi Goel as Executive Director and Founder David Carroll as President.

Name

Sixth Amendment Center

Legal name

Sixth Amendment Center

Website

https://6ac.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Sixth Amendment Center is a Boston-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that exclusively evaluates and helps fix U.S. indigent defense systems, serving federal, state, and local policymakers through on-request evaluations, expert testimony, and educational resources, funded by donations and grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Legal Policy Research and Indigent Defense Services

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Human Rights Organizations (813311)

akta.pro primary industry

Criminal Justice Reform & Legal System Advocacy (BPAGAFAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Civil Liberties & Constitutional Rights Advocacy (BPAGAFAA), Public Defense & Legal Aid Services (BPAIAFAC)

Keywords

• Indigent defense evaluation
• Public defense policy
• Right to counsel
• Legal policy research
• Criminal justice reform

Headquarters

HQ city

Boston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: The organization is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization under EIN: 45-3477185. Donations are tax-deductible to the fullest extent allowable under the law. The organization accepts one-time and recurring donations (daily, monthly, yearly).

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Sixth Amendment Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides independent evaluations of indigent defense systems and expert technical assistance to government policymakers. The organization focuses on the Sixth Amendment right to counsel and works to improve how jurisdictions provide criminal defense services to people who cannot afford an attorney.

Product overview

The Sixth Amendment Center is a national nonprofit organization that exclusively examines, uncovers, and helps fix deficiencies in indigent defense systems. Its portfolio is organized around two core service lines — Evaluations and Expert Services — supported by a suite of educational resources under the Discovery umbrella: the ABCs of the Sixth, Hows of the Sixth, History of the Sixth, Paying Attorneys of the Sixth, and Qualifying for the Sixth. The organization further publishes the Pleading the Sixth blog for news and commentary, maintains the State of the Sixth interactive map covering all U.S. states and territories, and operates the Law Student Network (LSN) internship program. The organization does not offer a commercial software product.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Independent Evaluations of Indigent Defense Systems Independent evaluations of indigent defense systems provided to government jurisdictions to assess compliance with the Sixth Amendment right to counsel.
• Expert Services for Government Jurisdictions Expert technical assistance provided to government jurisdictions on the Sixth Amendment right to counsel and indigent defense systems.
• State of the Sixth Interactive Map Interactive map providing policy information on the state of the Sixth Amendment right to counsel across U.S. jurisdictions.
• Pleading the Sixth Blog Public blog covering the indigent defense crisis and the Sixth Amendment right to counsel, with research and policy commentary.
• Law Student Network (LSN) Internship Program Internship program providing law students with practical experience in indigent defense work, coordinated by Brandon Heath.

Quantifiable outcome

• South Dakota passed groundbreaking legislation leaving nation's 'no state funding' list following 6AC evaluation
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• 24 Law Schools (Law Student Network)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2025The Law Student Network (LSN) is 6AC's internship program. Since LSN's launch in 2020, the program has hosted over 50 law student interns from 24 law schools nationally. Partner law schools include Harvard Law School, Georgetown University Law Center, Boston University School of Law, University of Virginia School of Law, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law, and others.
• Holland & KnightminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2025Holland & Knight partnered with 6AC to provide office space for the internship program. The first five weeks of the Summer 2026 internship program are hybrid, with interns required to live in or near the Boston area for in-person meetings at Holland & Knight's office.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• National Legal Aid & Defender Association (NLADA): The leading national membership organization for civil legal aid and public defense in the U.S. NLADA works on indigent defense standards, training, and federal policy — overlapping most directly with 6AC's mission of improving public defense systems.
• National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL): The primary bar association for criminal defense attorneys, with sustained programs on indigent defense quality, public defense systems, and Sixth Amendment standards. Overlaps directly with 6AC's policy and standards work for defense systems.
• Justice Management Institute: A nonprofit that provides technical assistance, training, and system evaluations to courts and justice agencies, including indigent defense and pretrial programs. Closely comparable to 6AC's evaluation and expert services model.

Broad incumbents

• American Bar Association Standing Committee on Legal Aid and Indigent Defense (SCLAID): The ABA entity charged with supporting legal aid and indigent defense delivery nationally, including the Ten Principles of a Public Defense Delivery System. Comparable as a standards-setting and capacity-building peer in 6AC's exact niche.
• Equal Justice Initiative: A leading nonprofit focused on criminal justice reform, poverty, and racial justice, including advocacy on indigent defense and over-incarceration. Comparable as a criminal-justice advocacy peer with overlapping reform objectives.
• Vera Institute of Justice: A longstanding criminal justice research and reform organization that does direct technical assistance to jurisdictions on public defense and pretrial justice — closely comparable to 6AC's evaluation/technical-assistance model at larger scale.
• National Center for State Courts: The primary institution supporting state court systems, with programs touching indigent defense, case processing, and judicial administration. Comparable as a justice-system technical-assistance provider to state and local officials.
• Brennan Center for Justice: A major national think tank and advocacy organization with substantial criminal justice reform programming, including indigent defense and right-to-counsel work. Comparable as a criminal justice policy/advocacy peer but operates across many other issue areas as well.
• The Sentencing Project: A national criminal justice research and advocacy organization working on sentencing, incarceration, and indigent defense policy. Comparable as a criminal-justice reform advocacy peer addressing overlapping defendant-rights issues.

Emerging players

• The Justice Center (Council of State Governments): A nonprofit focused on state-level criminal justice policy and technical assistance to government officials, including indigent defense reform. Comparable as a state-government-facing policy and TA organization that overlaps with 6AC's customer base.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/6ac
• Xx.com/6thAMD
• Facebookfacebook.com/SixthAmendmentCenter

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

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 Sixth Amendment Center