Deborah Lolai

Deborah Lolai is a Clinical Instructor and Lecturer on Law at Harvard Law School’s LGBTQ+ Advocacy Clinic. She brings nearly two decades of experience in community organizing, policy-making, direct legal services, and education on a broad range of social justice issues. Her expertise centers on policing, mass incarceration, gender, and sexuality. Deborah is widely recognized as a leading expert in representing LGBTQ+ individuals in the criminal justice system and advocating for improved conditions of confinement for TGNCNBI (Transgender, Gender Non-Conforming, Non-Binary, and Intersex) individuals.

Before her current role, Deborah served as a public defender at The Bronx Defenders for almost a decade, where she represented thousands of clients. As the Founding Director of the LGBTQ Defense Project—the first initiative of its kind at a public defense organization nationwide—Deborah provided direct legal representation to LGBTQ+ clients, drove policy reforms impacting criminalized LGBTQ+ communities, and delivered training and technical assistance to organizations and legal practitioners. Her commitment to systemic change was further solidified when she was appointed to the NYC Board of Correction Task Force on Issues Faced by TGNCNBI People in Custody in 2019. Deborah co-authored the Task Force’s first report, published in August 2022, which has contributed to legislative and policy reforms aimed at improving the conditions for TGNCNBI people in custody.

In addition to her legal practice, Deborah has been an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Columbia University School of Social Work since 2019. She teaches three courses on Advocacy, Contemporary Social Issues, and LGBTQ+ Communities, empowering students with the knowledge and tools to advocate for marginalized populations. Her contributions to the field have been recognized by the Community Excellence Award from the LGBT Bar Association of Greater New York in 2021, the New York State Bar Association’s Award for Outstanding Achievements in Promoting Standards of Excellence in Mandated Representation in 2020, and the New York Law Journal’s Trailblazers Award in 2019.