PRO BONO LEGAL SERVICES FOR REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS,
HEALTH + JUSTICE.

OUR MISSION

Our mission is to guide, strengthen, and defend reproductive rights, health, and justice organizations who promote laws and policies that empower people to have control over their bodies and make decisions on whether or not to have children; access affordable health care, including birth control, abortion, and maternal health services; and parent children in safe, sustainable communities with quality affordable childcare, free of environmental hazards.

SOME OF OUR CLIENTS

JOIN US AT THE FOREFRONT

MEET OUR STAFF

 
 

“I’m here to help repro groups get to yes!”

DAREN GARSHELIS

DIRECTOR

Daren directs The Forefront Project in collaboration with the Advisory Board. He is a firm believer in people’s right to have control over their own bodies, including the power to decide whether and when to have children or get an abortion, with over a decade of experience working as an attorney for nonprofit organizations—primarily 501(c)(3) public charities and private foundations, 501(c)(4) social welfare groups, political organizations, and organizational families. Daren previously advised and represented tax exempt organizations at Adler & Colvin, guided policy and political campaigns at Sierra Club, and trained and educated nonprofits with the Bolder Advocacy initiative at Alliance for Justice. He also previously served on the Board of Directors and as President at La Raza Centro Legal, a community legal aid provider, in San Francisco’s Mission District. Daren holds a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center and is licensed to practice law in California and New York.

 
 
 
Forefront Project Staff Attorney Summer Burnley

SUMMER BURNLEY

STAFF ATTORNEY

Summer Burnley is a multi-passionate advocate for both bodily autonomy and well-run operations. She brings a blend of business strategy and legal experience to The Forefront Project, along with a commitment to reproductive justice. Her prior experience includes helping entrepreneurs manage multiple small and midsize businesses, and advising business owners on effective brand protection strategies through her boutique trademark and business strategy law firm. She previously served as a Board Member of The Missing Link of Jacksonville and as the President of VOX (Voices for Planned Parenthood) at University of Alabama at Birmingham, where she graduated with a B.A. Originally from Alabama, she currently resides in Savannah, GA. Summer holds a J.D. from Florida Coastal Law School and is licensed to practice law in Florida.

 
 
 

CARRIE SOPHIA ZOUBUL

STAFF ATTORNEY

Carrie Sophia Zoubul joins The Forefront Project as a Staff Attorney from C.A. Goldberg, PLLC, where she helped abortion providers, patients, and allies take steps to protect themselves and fight back against online and offline harassment and privacy violations. She brings a background in legal services, clinical bioethics, and healthcare advocacy to her work, and is devoted to working within the movement to restore and broaden access to reproductive health, rights and justice. She has held positions at The Vera Institute of Justice, The New York State Task Force on Life and the Law, Lenox Hill Hospital, and the Community Service Society of New York, and served as an adjunct professor at Benjamin Cardozo School of Law and Sarah Lawrence College. Carrie has an M.A. in bioethics from Case Western Reserve University, a J.D. from Brooklyn Law School, and completed her undergraduate education at University of California, Los Angeles. She is licensed to practice law in New York. 

 
 

OUR ADVISORY BOARD

Keely Monroe

Keely Monroe

Keely is an experienced and passionate advocate for reproductive rights, health, and justice. She has worked at IfWhenHow: Lawyering for Reproductive Justice, National Women's Health Network, and has served on the Advisory Board for Women Engaged, and as Board Chair of the National Board of Directors for Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS). Previously, as Counsel with the Bolder Advocacy initiative of Alliance for Justice, she supported nonprofits and foundations on rules and strategies for legal and effective advocacy. Keely holds a B.A. from Fordham University and a J.D. from University of California, Hastings College of the Law.

Nayantara Mehta

Nayantara Mehta

Nayantara is Strategic Partnerships Director with the National Employment Law Project. She previously worked as Senior Counsel with the Bolder Advocacy initiative of Alliance for Justice where she helped strengthen the capacity of nonprofits to influence public policy. Nayantara also spent two years as a fellow with the Women's Policy Institute where she advocated on economic and reproductive justice issues in the California legislature. She also served on the Board—including two years as Board Chair—of the Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APEN) and on the Executive Board of the Bay Area lawyer chapter of the American Constitution Society. Nayantara is licensed to practice law in California and holds a J.D. from The University of California, Berkeley School of Law.

Holly Ratliff

Holly Ratliff

Holly is a nonprofit and political law attorney dedicated to building power within the progressive community. She currently works as Deputy General Counsel of the League of Conservation Voters (LCV), an environmental advocacy organization that works collaboratively with a network of over thirty state affiliates. At LCV, Holly advises on conducting effective advocacy and electoral campaigns, and general risk management. Her prior experience includes work with the Federal Election Commission and with a boutique nonprofit law firm. She holds a J.D. from the Duke University School of Law.