Charlotte Goodenow ’24 Awarded Equal Justice Works Fellowship
Many Americans will face legal issues at some point in their life. Yet, across the nation, a persistent access to justice gap exists. Individuals with significant financial resources are often the only people who can hire attorneys, and a large class of people struggle to access a lawyer at all. Charlotte Goodenow ’24 is one Colorado Law alumni working to close the access to justice gap. Goodenow was named an Equal Justice Works Fellow this past spring, and will spend the next two years working at Community Economic Defense Project, a Denver-based non-profit.
“Starting a career in public interest legal work isn’t easy,” Goodenow said. “By my last year of law school, I knew that I wanted to work on economic justice issues and had an interest in exploring how technology can promote access to justice, but had few practical ideas about how to pursue this work.”
“My fellowship project [sponsored by the Henry Geller Memorial Fellowship] is focused on building apps designed to remove barriers to housing justice,” Goodenow explained. “My goal is to work directly with communities of renters across the state to create resources that respond to their most pressing needs. I am especially interested in finding ways to address the specific needs of immigrant renters.”
Goodenow shared that she is looking forward to aspects of the project that will allow her to create practical solutions to serious problems. Even more so, she is excited to build meaningful relationships with folks who are working to improve their communities.
“My hope is that this fellowship will provide me with many opportunities to listen, learn, and co-create.”
With its strong emphasis on the importance of public service, Colorado Law proved to be an excellent launch point to help catalyze Goodenow’s passion for public interest work
“As a law student, I had many opportunities to explore careers in public interest law, meet and work with attorneys (and non-attorneys) in these fields, and develop the skills and the understanding necessary to become a thoughtful and effective attorney and movement member,” Goodenow said. “Internships, clinical programs, coursework, and student organizations each gave me new experiences and perspectives.”
More than 2,700 postgraduate fellowships have been awarded by Equal Justice Works to public service leaders over the past three decades. This opportunity has an enormous impact on the trajectory of new attorneys’ careers, with 85% of Equal Justice Works Fellows remaining in public service positions.
“When 92% of people's civil legal needs are going unmet, public interest lawyers play a critical role in representing intentionally marginalized communities and pursuing equal access to justice for all,” said Verna Williams, CEO of Equal Justice Works. “We are thrilled to support Charlotte's Fellowship at the Community Economic Defense Project to fight for economic security of immigrants and to continue working with the University of Colorado Law School to kickstart more careers in public interest law.”
We are proud to have alumni like Goodenow working to promote access to justice. This work is essential to addressing unmet legal needs and can have a profound effect on the individuals served. Congratulations again, Charlotte, on this exciting opportunity!