About
Lambda Legal (Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, Inc.) is a national civil rights organization dedicated to achieving full recognition of the civil rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) people and everyone living with HIV. Headquartered in New York City, it is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit (EIN 23-7395681) that never charges its clients for legal representation or advocacy and accepts no government funding, relying entirely on donor support.
Mission
Lambda Legal works to achieve the full recognition of the civil rights of LGBTQ+ people and everyone living with HIV through three strategic approaches: impact litigation that challenges discriminatory laws and policies in the courts, public education, and policy advocacy for legislative protections and reforms.
What they do
- Impact litigation: courtroom battles challenging discriminatory laws and policies, including landmark cases on employment, marriage, military service, healthcare access, and protections for transgender people.
- Education: public awareness and knowledge-building initiatives about the rights of LGBTQ+ people and people living with HIV.
- Policy work: advocating for legislative protections and reforms at the federal, state, and local levels.
History
Lambda Legal began in the early 1970s, started by volunteer lawyers with $25 in the bank; co-founder Bill Thom taped the organization's name to his apartment mailbox with a Band-Aid. Its first client was itself: when New York rejected its nonprofit application on the grounds that gay rights advocacy was neither benevolent nor charitable, Lambda Legal appealed and won in the 1973 case In re Thom, establishing that advocacy for LGBTQ+ people is a legitimate public good. Milestones since include developing state-court strategies to dismantle sodomy laws after the 1986 Bowers v. Hardwick loss; the 2003 Supreme Court victory in Lawrence v. Texas, which overturned Bowers and invalidated sodomy laws nationwide; serving as co-counsel in Obergefell v. Hodges (2015), which made marriage equality the law of the land; and groundwork contributing to Bostock v. Clayton County (2020), in which the Supreme Court affirmed that federal employment law protects LGBTQ+ people nationwide.
Scale and impact
Over more than five decades, Lambda Legal has grown from a volunteer effort into a national organization with a staff of more than 100, headquartered in New York City with regional offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C.
Financials
Per ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, for fiscal year 2025 Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund reported revenue of $49,825,428, expenses of $30,544,931, and net assets of $101,181,605. The IRS granted its tax exemption in July 1974.
