News & Updates
trafficking victims legal program
For the final installment of Volunteer Lawyers for Justice’s Summer 2024 intern spotlight series, we are thrilled to welcome Debora Perez to the team. Bringing excitement and energy with her, Debora will support VLJ’s Divorce Program, New Jersey Human Trafficking Survivors Legal Assistance Program, and Tenancy Program. A rising 3L at Cardozo School of Law, Debora earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Miami.
Newark, NJ – January 12, 2022 – As New Jersey celebrates National Human Trafficking Prevention and Awareness Month, Governor Murphy signed a new law that expands access to vacatur for survivors of human trafficking. The bill, A5322, will help survivors of human trafficking build new lives by expanding the existing list of crimes that can be cleared from their records beyond just prostitution convictions. This will result in real and immediate relief for survivors of both sex and labor trafficking who have been unfairly stigmatized as a result of their convictions. The bill also streamlines the process for survivors pursuing this relief and ensures enhanced privacy protections of the petitions filed in court.
VLJ is pleased to recognize Daniel D’Alessandro as our January Volunteer of the Month. Dan is a partner with McCarter & English, where he is a commercial and securities litigator. January is National Slavery and Trafficking Prevention Month, and given Dan’s extensive volunteerism with VLJ’s NJ Human Trafficking Victims’ Legal Assistance Program, it is very fitting he receive this distinction this month.
Volunteer Lawyers for Justice is pleased to recognize Jason Scott Camilo as October’s Volunteer of the Month. Jason is the founder of the Law Offices of Jason Scott Camilo, LLC, a law practice focusing on immigration and nationality law. For Jason, pro bono work is part and parcel of his work as an attorney, simply explaining, “everyone deserves decent legal representation. As an attorney, doing pro bono work is one of the ways we can ‘stand up.’”
Volunteer Lawyers for Justice (VLJ) is pleased to announce it has received a grant from the Investors Foundation to support the New Jersey Trafficking Victims' Legal Assistance Program (Trafficking Program).
The Trafficking Program began in 2015 to provide an array of legal services to victims of human trafficking, including the criminal record clearing of arrests and convictions that resulted from having been trafficked. Despite great strides made in addressing this crisis, survivors continue to face significant barriers as they attempt to rebuild their lives post-trafficking.
Volunteer Lawyers for Justice (VLJ) is honored to recognize Nora Wolf as our October Volunteer of the Month. Nora has volunteered with VLJ for three years, becoming one of the most committed pro bono attorneys for VLJ’s Human Trafficking Victims’ Legal Assistance Program. She has successfully resolved outstanding warrants, dismissed municipal matters, and petitioned for vacatur and expungement relief for survivors under NJ’s Human Trafficking Prevention, Protection, and Treatment Act.
Volunteer Lawyers for Justice is honored to recognize Tim Law as the February 2019 Volunteer of the Month for his work with our New Jersey Human Trafficking Victims’ Legal Assistance Program (Trafficking Program). Tim recognizes the pivotal role a skilled and dedicated attorney can play in changing the lives of human trafficking survivors with criminal records, and he exemplifies the zealous champion for survivors’ rights.
Tim is a Partner in the Philadelphia office of Reed Smith, where he represents corporations, non-profits, and universities in liability insurance coverage litigation, arbitration, and mediation.
Victims of human sex trafficking face not only the private trauma of coercion and exploitation, but also, all too often, a very public record of their ordeal in the form of a criminal history if they have been forced into prostitution and related offenses. Having a criminal record wrongly stigmatizes trafficking victims and survivors and can prevent them from finding employment, stable housing, and the other basic services that are necessary to move on with their lives. But, as attorney Meredith Walsh has experienced firsthand, that’s where a lawyer can step in to help. By helping trafficking victims use a state law passed for the express purpose of vacating their criminal records, Meredith and other pro bono attorneys give their clients a fresh start.
