2021 was the inaugural year of the LGBTQ+ Bar’s Legal Services Justice Award. This award recognizes a Legal Services practitioner whose work on behalf of low-income, marginalized members of the LGBTQ+ and HIV+ communities has advanced the cause of justice and equity with excellence and compassion.
2024 Winner
Michelle Garcia (she/hers/ella) is a graduate of Loyola University who is admitted to the New Mexico Bar, the Navajo Nation Bar, the State Bar of Louisiana, the Pueblo of Pojoaque and the Federal District Court of New Mexico. After graduating from law school, Michelle worked as a prosecutor and law clerk for the State of New Mexico. After joining New Mexico Legal Aid in 2018 she became the managing attorney for Safe to Be You, New Mexico’s LGBTQ+ legal access program for rural and indigenous communities and serves as Deputy Director for New Mexico Legal Aid. She works in the area of civil rights related to tribal law, violence, rural accessibility and LGBTQ+ discrimination.
Past Winners:
2023 | Lavender Law - Chicago
Tina Luongo – The Legal Aid Society
2022 | Lavender Law - Los Angeles
Allison J. Rice – Duke Law School
2021 | Lavender Law - Virtual
Vickie Neilson – The Catholic Legal Immigration Network