LawsuitSvitlana Doe v. Noem
Defending humanitarian programs to restore status and prevent instability and removals.
Strategic Litigation
Using the law to defend democracy, protect refugees, and hold abusers accountable.
At Human Rights First, we bring strategic, high-impact cases that protect constitutional freedoms, safeguard people seeking refuge, and ensure that governments and private actors are held accountable when they abuse power.
Our litigation program sits at the intersection of Democracy Protection, Refugee and Immigrant Rights, and International Human Rights. We represent individuals and organizations whose rights are under attack. In moments of democratic backsliding and escalating attacks on human rights, the courts remain a critical safeguard.
While our cases bring justice for individual clients, they also constrain abuses of power more broadly, and preserve the democratic values on which the United States was founded.
Active Cases
Lawsuit
LawsuitEl Sammak v. Egypt
Challenging Egypt’s assault on protesters, seeking accountability for violence on U.S. soil.
LawsuitWESPAC SLAPP Lawsuits
Defending our First Amendment Rights.
LawsuitUT v. Bondi
Challenging expansion of asylum transfers to unsafe third countries without protections.
LawsuitDVD v. DHS
Challenging DHS deportations to third countries without notice or protections.
LawsuitYunseo Chung v. Trump Administration
Defending a lawful permanent resident from arrest for protected political expression.
LawsuitSvitlana Doe v. Noem
Defending humanitarian programs to restore status and prevent instability and removals.
LawsuitEl Sammak v. Egypt
Challenging Egypt’s assault on protesters, seeking accountability for violence on U.S. soil.
LawsuitWESPAC SLAPP Lawsuits
Defending our First Amendment Rights.
LawsuitUT v. Bondi
Challenging expansion of asylum transfers to unsafe third countries without protections.
LawsuitDVD v. DHS
Challenging DHS deportations to third countries without notice or protections.
LawsuitYunseo Chung v. Trump Administration
Defending a lawful permanent resident from arrest for protected political expression.
Select Closed Cases
International Human RightsIverson v. Trump
When the Trump administration sanctioned ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan, U.S. Army veteran Eric Iverson, who works for the ICC as a prosecutor, was forced to halt his work investigating atrocities in Darfur. We sued, arguing that applying sanctions in this way violated Iverson’s First Amendment rights and unlawfully interfered with accountability for war crimes. In May 2025, the administration conceded the case by issuing a Treasury license allowing Iverson to fully resume his work.
U.S. Democracy ProtectionPatriot Front Civil Suit
Human Rights First joined co-counsel in filing a federal civil lawsuit against the neo-Nazi extremist group Patriot Front and its leader following a violent 2022 assault on Charles Murrell III along Boston’s Freedom Trail. The suit sought accountability for the organized, racially motivated attack and sent a clear message: extremist violence will be met with legal consequences. In January 2025 Human Rights First and partner Foley Hoag secured $2.7 million in compensatory and punitive damages for Charles Murrell.