• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
DONATE
DONATE
MENU
The L.G.B.T.Q. + Bar

  • Lavender Law

    Annual Conference


  • Membership

    Join Us!


  • DEI

    Consulting Practice


  • Education

    Series

    • About
    • About Us
    • Need a Lawyer?
    • Bar News
    • Leadership
    • Volunteer
    • Careers & Internships
    • Organization Financials
    • Contact Us
    • Programs
    • Advocacy
    • Allies
    • Awards
    • Bar Affiliates
    • Carceral Housing Resource
    • DEI Consulting Practice
    • Educational Series
    • Get Out the Vote
    • Job Board
    • Law Schools
    • Law Students
    • Member Practice Area Groups
    • Mental Health Resources
    • Pride Month 2023 - A Special Project
    • Prospective Judges
    • Racial Justice Resource Library
    • Events & Sponsorship
    • Annual
    • Upcoming Events
    • Out & Proud Corporate Counsel Receptions
    • Event Photos
    • Virtual Career Fair and Diversity Program for Small & Mid-Size Firms
    • Donate
    • Donate Now
    • Justice Council
    • Ways to Give
    • Lavender Law
    • Success Story Blog
    • Become a Sponsor
    • Membership
    • Become a Member
    • Renew Membership
    • Member Log In
    • Member Spotlight Blog
  • Membership

    Connect, Share Knowledge, and Succeed Within the LGBTQ+ and Ally Legal Community.

    • Become a Member
    • Renew Membership
    • Member Log In
    • Member Spotlight Blog

    Member Spotlight

    Meg York

    July 12, 2023

    Striving to Give Everyone a Seat at the Table

    Ms. York is the Director of LGBTQ+ Family Law and Policy and Senior Policy Counsel at Family Equality. She advocates for LGBTQ+ individuals and families who have been denied a seat at the table, living true to her original motivation to pursue a career in law. From a young age, Ms. York recognized both the pervasive influence of the law on various aspects of life and its inaccessibility to most people. This realization drove her to support marginalized communities who are often prevented from navigating the legal system and who struggle to access adequate representation or to have basic legal needs recognized and met.

    Throughout her career, Ms. York has been committed to offering pro bono assistance to LGBTQ+ individuals, advocating for animal rights, serving as a public defender representing victims in cases of child abuse and neglect, and working at the family law clinic at the Vermont Law and Graduate School. Each of these choices has been motivated by her desire to aid those in dire need. Currently, she continues her impactful work at Family Equality, channeling her passion for family law towards addressing the historical and current marginalization faced by various groups, including those affected by socioeconomic disparities, LGBTQ+ status, and racial inequality. Ms. York’s objective is to empower and amplify the voices of these individuals by advocating for  better and more inclusive family and LGBTQ+ law and policy as well as actively fighting proposed laws that harm the LGBTQ+ community.

    One of Ms. York’s primary criticisms of the existing legal environment lies in its inaccessibility to the average person. She firmly believes in eliminating convoluted and exclusionary legalese, which functions as a barrier between people in need and an understanding of the laws that can help them. Ms. York remains optimistic that the increasing adoption of plain language within the legal field will enhance accessibility for the general public. Furthermore, she actively supports the use of user-friendly platforms and techniques to bring the law closer to everyone. In fact, her organization, Family Equality, is currently developing an app with this very purpose.

    Ms. York’s work primarily revolves around family formation and protection. She tirelessly advocates for laws that make family formation possible and accessible, and works to ensure that LGBTQ+families can access important legal protections. To that end, Ms. York largely focuses on updating parentage laws across the country, streamlining the process for LGBTQ+ parents to secure enduring legal relationships with their children. Beyond her advocacy work, Ms. York’s contributions extend to her role as a professor at the Vermont Law and Graduate School, where she established and supervised an LGBTQ+-specific program within the family law clinic. Her efforts within and outside this role have led to significant achievements, including securing parentage rights for LGBTQ+ clients and even obtaining the first initial birth certificate in Vermont with an X gender marker.

    In summary, Ms. York’s unwavering dedication stems from her commitment to providing a voice for marginalized communities and addressing the systemic barriers that hinder their access to justice. She actively strives to make the law more accessible, pushing for plain language and user-friendly tools. Ms. York emphasizes the need for updated parentage laws so that LGBTQ+ people can form and protect their families. Through her work at Family Equality and her involvement in family formation and protection, Ms. York continues to make a lasting impact in the field of family and LGBTQ+ law. All of us with the National LGBTQ+ Bar are thankful for all the hard work she is doing.

    Filed Under: Member Spotlight

    Primary Sidebar

    Recent Member Spotlight

    • Maxime Matthew (September 12, 2023)
    • Anya Marino (August 9, 2023)
    • Meg York (July 12, 2023)
    • Kate Mozynski (They/Them) (June 14, 2023)
    • Candelario Saldana (March 20, 2023)
  • THE LGBTQ+ BAR

    1701 Rhode Island Ave NW, Washington, DC 20036 | Phone: (202) 637-7661 | E-mail: info@lgbtqbar.org

    • About
    • About Us
    • Need a Lawyer?
    • Bar News
    • Leadership
    • Volunteer
    • Careers & Internships
    • Organization Financials
    • Contact Us
    • Programs
    • Advocacy
    • Allies
    • Awards
    • Bar Affiliates
    • Carceral Housing Resource
    • DEI Consulting Practice
    • Educational Series
    • Get Out the Vote
    • Job Board
    • Law Schools
    • Law Students
    • Member Practice Area Groups
    • Mental Health Resources
    • Pride Month 2023 - A Special Project
    • Prospective Judges
    • Racial Justice Resource Library
    • Events & Sponsorship
    • Annual
    • Upcoming Events
    • Out & Proud Corporate Counsel Receptions
    • Event Photos
    • Virtual Career Fair and Diversity Program for Small & Mid-Size Firms
    • Donate
    • Donate Now
    • Justice Council
    • Ways to Give
    • Lavender Law
    • Success Story Blog
    • Become a Sponsor
    • Membership
    • Become a Member
    • Renew Membership
    • Member Log In
    • Member Spotlight Blog
    Privacy Policy
    © Copyright 2022 The National LGBTQ+ Bar Association. All rights reserved.
  • This website stores data such as cookies to enable essential site functionality, as well as marketing, personalization, and analytics.
    By continuing to browse this website you indicate your consent to our Privacy Policy.
    To change your settings, .

    The National LGBTQ+ Bar Association and Foundation
    Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

    Strictly Necessary Cookies

    Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

    If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.

    3rd Party Cookies

    This website uses Google Analytics, WebLeads, Facebook Pixel, LinkedIn, and AdRoll to collect anonymous information such as the number of visitors to the site, and the most popular pages.

    Keeping this cookie enabled helps us to improve our website.

    Please enable Strictly Necessary Cookies first so that we can save your preferences!