The Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia was founded in 1974 by the Philadelphia Bar Association and is one of eight local affiliates of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. The Lawyers' Committee was established in 1963 by the leadership of the American Bar Association at the request of President John F. Kennedy.

The Law Center's mission is to advance the Constitutional promise of equal citizenship to all persons irrespective of race, ethnicity, national origin, disability, gender or poverty through the provision of legal and technical assistance. We use public education, continuing education of our clients and client organizations, research, negotiation and, when necessary, the courts to achieve systemic reforms that advance the central goals of self-advocacy, social justice and equal protection of the law for all members of society.

The Law Center believes that full and equal participation in our social, economic and political systems is possible only when all members of the community have access to the full resources of the legal system so that they have the power to deal on equal terms with public and private institutions.

A principal focus of our work is to secure systematic reforms through impact litigation. Towards this goal, we primarily represent individuals and organizations in Philadelphia and throughout the nation in civil rights cases that will benefit significant numbers of persons. The victories we secure in the courtroom result in policy changes and reforms that end abusive and discriminatory practices against thousands of minorities, children, persons with disabilities and other historically disenfranchised groups.

We focus our efforts in the areas of: the delivery of health care services to children, education funding and quality, the rights of persons with disabilities, environmental health and justice, fair housing, equal employment discrimination and urban policing.

The Law Center's representation and collaboration with premiere local, national and international organizations have allowed us to maximize our impact and earned us a stellar reputation in the field of civil rights. Such organizations have included: the Guardian Civic League, NAACP, ARC (and its affiliates in several states), ASPIRA of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Home and School Council, Parents United, South Camden Citizens in Action, Inclusion Japan, Clean Air Council of the Delaware Valley, PHILAPOSH, Delaware Valley Toxic Coalition, Chester Residents Concerned for Quality Living, Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, American Academies of Pediatrics and Pediatric Dentists, Autism National Committee, People First of Tokyo, Japan Assembly of Disabled Persons' International, National Parent Training and Information Organization, Black Clergy of Philadelphia & Vicinity, Philadelphia Citizens Concerned for Youth (PCCY), California Rehabilitation Association, Disabled in Action, National Down Syndrome Congress, Autism Society of Los Angeles, People First of Tennessee (and with local People First affiliates in several states), Speaking for Ourselves, Easter Seal Society of Southern California, Epilepsy Foundation of Eastern Pennsylvania, TRASH Ltd. and the United Cerebral Palsy Association of Los Angeles.

We have filed more than twenty-five briefs with the U.S. Supreme Court and argued before the court five times. Each year we have scores of requests for representation that the Law Center cannot respond to because of our limited resources.