Rachel Rossi on Judicial Appointments, Nonprofits, & More!

I had the pleasure and privilege of welcoming a pivotal leader at the intersection of law, policy, and progressive advocacy to The Legal Lens Podcast: Attorney Rachel Rossi. For those of us in Los Angeles, Rachel’s name is likely well-known from her valiant race for Los Angeles County District Attorney, the same race that ultimately resulted in former Los Angeles County District Attorney Gil Gascon winning the seat. Still, during this race, Rachel left an indelible mark on Los Angeles and put her name on the map. Now, she serves as the President of the Alliance for Justice (AFJ), an organization that has been at the forefront of the fight to build a fair and representative judiciary for over 46 years.

Rachel’s powerful background, from her time as a public defender in LA to her leadership role in the President JoeBiden Administration, gives her a rare and comprehensive view of how the law, from local courthouses to the Supreme Court, impacts every American. Her insights provide an essential look at the strategy behind judicial nominations, the attack on nonprofits, and the sobering reality of racial profiling in our highest courts.

For a deeper, more convenient dive into these topics, I encourage everyone to listen to our 35-minute discussion on the Legal Lens Podcast. You can find us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Simplecast, and everywhere you get your podcasts for free. Alternatively, you can also listen in the player below:

Inside the Alliance for Justice: Attorney Rachel Rossi on Judicial Appointments, Supporting Nonprofits, and Coalition-Building

It was a true pleasure to welcome Rachel Rossi back home, so to speak, in her current, critically important role. Her candid discussion with me reveals the vital work being done by AFJ to ensure the justice system works for everyone. Here are relevant timestamps and topics covered:

3:20 – The Parallels Between Marathon Running and Advocacy Work
7:35 – The Two Major Focus Areas of the Alliance for Justice
11:10 – Opposing Dangerous Judicial Appointees & The Loyalty Test
22:00 – SCOTUS Shadow Docket Ruling on Racial Profiling in LA
28:30 – AFJ’s New Nonprofit Legal Defense Network
32:50 – A Message of Hope & Call to Action from Attorney Rachel Rossi

The Parallels Between Marathon Running and Advocacy Work

I began our conversation by asking Rachel about something her loyal Instagram followers likely already know, which is her background as a marathon runner – she even ran the LA Marathon! She discussed how that intense discipline informs her challenging advocacy work today.

Her answer provides a crucial framework for any long-term movement fighter. Rachel tied her love of long-distance running to her work in three essential lessons:

It’s a Long Game: “When you’re running a marathon, you really have to kind of hunker in and just be like, this is gonna take some time, I’m going to be committed, and it’ll be hard, but we will get there. A lot of people are tired, and a lot of people have been fighting for justice for quite some time, so it’s important to remind ourselves that it’s okay to feel those emotions and take it slow and steady in some moments,” said Rossi.
Find Your People: “When you’re training for a race, if you have run clubs full of your favorite people you enjoy getting together with, it makes it so much more enjoyable. The same is true when it comes to movements. We have to find our people. We have to connect to our people. We have to realize that we’re stronger when we work together,” said Rossi
Be Prepared: “I remember my first marathon and learning about the kind of race belt that you would wear and stash it full of all the electrolyte drinks and different goo packets and everything. The same is true when it comes to advocacy. You have to be connected with the right resources, especially now when anyone who’s fighting for justice could be under attack. You have to dot your I’s, you have to cross your T’s, and you have to make sure that when you are bold, you are prepared and have the right resources, knowledge, information, and team.”

The Two Major Focus Areas for the Alliance for Justice

We wasted no time getting into the work that Attorney Rachel Rossi has been doing with the Alliance for Justice, which she began after her work with the Biden Administration as the third president of the organization. This historic organization has been around since 1979.

“I would say coming out of the Biden Administration, I really wanted to find a place to be on the front lines in the fight for democracy – I really wanted to find where I can have a voice in these areas where we are seeing the attack on the power of the people and the attack on justice, so I am incredibly privileged and thrilled to get to be the President of the Alliance for Justice because that’s what we do,” said Rossi.

Rossi explained that the AFJ has two major focus areas and programs – fighting for an independent, progressive judiciary at the state and federal levels and supporting nonprofit organizations.

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Opposing Dangerous Judicial Appointees & The Loyalty Test

We then dove right into the work that Attorney Rachel Rossi is doing with the AFJ core that focuses on fighting for a fair, independent, progressive judiciary at both the state and federal levels.

Rossi said that they fight against bad nominees and candidates, but they also align with and support good, professionally diverse movement lawyers to be on the bench. She highlighted the troubling trend in current federal appointments, which AFJ is working diligently to oppose.

“Where we are at this moment right now is opposing some of these really dangerous appointees from this administration to the bench. Under this current administration, we have seen 26 federal judicial nominees, and six of those are for our circuit courts, and 20 of them are for the district court. So, a lot of what we do is deep research on their background and a lot of advocacy on the Hill to oppose these nominees,” said Rossi.

Rossi noted that many nominees are younger, less experienced, and more extremely ideological than in the past, and they are receiving lifetime appointments.

The most troubling factor, Rossi said, is the shift to unwavering, blatant loyalty to the current president, creating an imbalance. She also noted that these nominees’ past ethical violations, which would have disqualified them in the past, do not apparently have the same effect today.

Rachel touched on this new standard for judicial appointments and the potential for danger. That standard, she said, is a deep loyalty to the current political administration and goes beyond ideological alignment and becomes an active disregard for the law.

“I think what even gets even more troubling is not just loyalty to the same views as this administration should. But just to whatever this administration wants them to do, whether it’s in violation of the law or not,” reflected Rossi.

SCOTUS Shadow Docket Ruling on Racial Profiling in LA

As AFJ serves as a watchdog for the judiciary, Rachel shared her insight into a recent development that she considers deeply disturbing, particularly for Los Angeles residents: the Supreme Court’s use of the shadow docket to temporarily allow racial profiling by immigration agents.

The case, Vasquez Perdomo v. U.S., involved a district court and the Ninth Circuit ruling that the current administration’s patrols in LA were illegal racial profiling. The Supreme Court, using the opaque, non-transparent shadow docket, issued an order halting the prohibition on those patrols.

“The shadow docket is one of the more troubling factors because here, you have a trial court and an appellate court that said, ‘You can’t do this. It’s illegal racial profiling.’ And then the shadow docket, without briefing or oral argument, resulted in the Supreme Court ruling in September to grant the emergency request from the current administration to halt that order that prohibited the roving patrols. At least temporarily right now, it is fine for immigration agents to stop people based on how they look, the language they speak, and if they have low-wage jobs,” stated Rossi.

As the child of immigrant parents (Dominican and Greek), Rachel noted the immense chilling effect this has on the critical immigrant community, saying that she fears this will have a chilling effect and cause negativity and hate to continue spreading across our country.

“Our highest court in the land essentially just said that racial profiling of Hispanic populations in LA is okay,” lamented Rossi in a sobering assessment.

AFJ’s New Nonprofit Legal Defense Network

In addition to their work on the courts, AFJ leads the Boulder Advocacy program, supporting the nation’s nonprofit organizations that are stepping in where the government fails. Rossi said that approximately 135 nonprofit organizations are members of the AFJ.

She beamed with pride discussing the work that she has the privilege to do with this organization in being a vital lifeline to organizations doing indispensable work.

“I love that we get to be in this space defending nonprofit organizations that feel like they are under attack – they’re fearful and not sure of what they can and can’t do, so the Alliance for Justice has a program we call Boulder Advocacy, where in this program, we have trainings, online resources, webinars, a hotline any nonprofit organization can call with questions about advocacy and ensuring they’re in compliance with tax laws and other regulations,” said Rossi.

Rachel announced AFJ’s partnership with We The Action (an organization with 50,000 pro bono lawyers) to create the Nonprofit Legal Defense Network.

A Message of Hope & Call to Action from Attorney Rachel Rossi

As always, we ended this riveting discussion on a note of hope, with Rossi sharing impassioned and rousing words of encouragement.

“There is hope, and I would say what brings me hope in this moment is seeing folks across this country continuing to stand up and continuing to use their voice and call out wrongful, illegal, harmful actions. We also, in this moment, have to remember our collective power. A lot of times, we forget. We think as individuals, we don’t have the ability to do anything, but collectively, we have power,” said Rossi.

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The conversation with the inimitable Attorney Rachel Rossi offered a powerful reminder that our justice system is constantly shaped by the people appointed to its benches, and that every citizen has a stake in that process. The work of the Alliance for Justice is vital, and we strongly encourage all of our listeners to learn more about AFJ’s mission and the Nonprofit Legal Defense Network by visiting their website. Rossi’s poignant insights are a profound reminder that progress is possible when we organize, engage, and ensure that our courts reflect the diversity and values of our society.

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This communication is not legal advice. It is educational only. For legal advice, consult with an experienced employment law attorney in your state or city.

Attorney Rachel Rossi Joins the Legal Lens Podcast to Discuss Judicial Appointments, the Importance of Supporting Nonprofits, Coalition-Building, and More!