chosenfamilylawcenter

We’re here for you! In these intense times, one way you can protect yourself and your family is by getting your legal paperwork in order. Read more about what you should do & share this information with your queer community: chosenfamilylawcenter.org/protectyourfamily (link in bio) Chosen Family Law Center is proud to provide FREE legal services for low-income LGBTQIA+ New Yorkers. Get your name change documents in order to reflect your name and gender. Get your Will, power of attorney, and Advance Medical Directives in order. Start your Judgment of Parentage to protect your relationship to a non-biological child. We offer all these services for free to eligible clients. Learn more about eligibility & sign up here: chosenfamilylawcenter.org/request-services (link in bio) If you aren’t financially eligible or in our service area, we’d be happy to give you a referral to affordable paid services. Our community is deeply in need, and if you have support to offer, your donations will help us provide desperately needed security to those who are at risk: chosenfamilylawcenter.org/donate (link in bio)

It’s reasonable to be anxious that a second Trump term will mean the end of gay marriage. We have received so many emails from community members asking some version of: What does this mean for my marriage? Our Senior Legal Director Andy Izenson has shared helpful insight here: chosenfamilylawcenter.org/same-sex-marriage (link in bio) We will continue to support our LGBTQIA+ community through legal services, information, & advocacy. We’re fighting back by providing tools & information to help you be as well informed as possible. We are here to support you! Find out if you’re eligible for our free legal services (link in bio). Consider donating to help others access this life-saving legal support (link in bio)!

As we enter this holiday giving season, we invite you to consider making a year-end tax-deductible donation to support the Chosen Family Law Center. Check out our full year-in-review report to see how far we’ve come and learn about how we plan to grow next year: chosenfamilylawcenter.org/year-end-report-2024 (link in bio) We’re poised to amplify our impact, and with your generous support, we will be able to serve more clients with essential direct services, expand our educational programs for professionals and the public, and draft and pass legislation advocating for inclusive families. Your contributions can help us turn our goals into reality! Together, let’s create a brighter future for every family. www.chosenfamilylawcenter.org/donate (link in bio)

Professional Education Offering for NY Lawyers: Supporting LGBTQIA+ Parents & Families in NY Monday December 16 from 1-2pm ET Register here (link in bio): https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0qde-tqz8oHtdbYhiR1ra_ERv205GFVJW4 Free to register and offers 1 CLE credit to lawyers who are working in NY legal services. If you are seeking CLE credit and are working outside of the NY not-for-profit sector, there is a $25 fee per credit for receiving CLE. Chosen Family Law Center’s attorneys Diana Adams and Andy Izenson will join Amy Schwartz-Wallace, Esq. of Empire Justice Center for a professional education class on Monday December 16th from 1-2pm that focuses on “Supporting LGBTQIA+ Parents & Families in NY”. We look forward to sharing information about the state of New York law with civil legal services practitioners who need to provide anxious clients with some direction. This class is geared toward lawyers in NY, especially those employed in (free) legal services, though all supporters interested are welcome.

Since the election, Chosen Family Law Center has received a deluge of requests for help - over 4X the usual number of inquiries for our FREE legal services! We need your help! Our small team has been working hard, but we urgently need to hire at least one or two more staff members to keep up with the intensity, which we don’t expect to abate in the next few years. www.chosenfamilylawcenter.org/donate (link in bio) If you and your loved ones are safe, and you have capacity to give this holiday season, your tax-deductible donations to the Chosen Family Law Center would make a huge impact in our ability to provide desperately needed security to those who are at risk. Our clients who are transgender, nonbinary, or gender non-conforming are understandably terrified for their safety. Our clients who are same-sex couples with children are understandably terrified about losing their rights as parents. We are expediting name changes, Judgments of Parentage, and more, to provide clients with as much legal stability as possible. In this moment of uncertainty and precarity, we are doubling down to prepare for the long years ahead by ramping up our services, advocacy, & infrastructure so that we can support more of the LGBTQIA+ and polyamorous individuals and families who need it most. Join us in this fight! Please consider making a donation today!

@dianaadamsesq, our favorite poly lawyer and Executive Director of Chosen Family Law Center, explains why queer and especially trans folks need to get their documents in order now. From episode 943—coming out Tuesday 11/25 on Savage.Love #lawyer #samsexmarriage #gaymarriage #gaycouples #lgbtqia #lgbtqiarights

This #PolyamoryDay, we’re reflecting on how polyamory and consensual non-monogamy are part of the fight for global self-determination and bodily autonomy. Project 2025 advocates for a patriarchal vision of a “nuclear” family, and we know that polyamory is a powerful act of opposition to this forced image of family. Authoritarian control of family structure is reproductive control, and the right to family autonomy is part of the right to body autonomy. The liberation of polyamorous people and our right to live our lives free of government repression is directly tied to the liberation of our trans, nonbinary, and gender non-conforming community. If you’re poly, we encourage you to see yourselves as part of a broader movement towards justice for all - and please join us in the fight to stand up for our trans and nonbinary community right now. Chosen Family Law Center’s Executive Director and Senior Legal Director are not only part of polyamorous families themselves, but helped co-found the Polyamory Legal Advocacy Coalition @polyamorylegal to advance the civil and human rights of polyamorous individuals, communities, and families through legislative advocacy, public policy, and public education across the U.S. We’ve passed relationship structure non-discrimination and multi-partner domestic partnership laws in MA and CA, and are about to present to the New York City Council on how to bring these laws to NY. We are proud to be the first legal services organization to provide legal protection documents for low-income polyamorous and chosen families in New York. Learn more about eligibility and how to apply for services (link in bio): chosenfamilylawcenter.org/request-services During this holiday season filled with uncertainty and intensity, we wish you and your family, in whatever shape it may take, solidarity and resistance!

It’s Trans Day of Remembrance, which is a day to honor and grieve and love the trans community members who have left us in the last year, and to recommit ourselves to putting everything we have into creating and defending a future that will uplift and celebrate trans lives. This year, that future seems far away and hard to reach for, but we know that the harder it is, the more crucial it is. When we speak the names of our fallen siblings, we are promising them that we won’t give up, that our eyes and our hearts are focused on avenging them through creating a world that would have loved them as much as we do, that would have kept them safe, that would have given them everything they needed and allowed them to thrive. Keep loving. Keep fighting. 🏳️‍⚧️ #TDOR

The risk of an X gender marker under a new Trump administration is the risk of being visibly trans, rather than going stealth. If you are otherwise at risk for state violence, such as Walking While Trans arrests, being assaulted or mishoused while in custody, denied services, or held up at borders, it’s important to consider the impact that the markers on your identity documents might have on increasing those risks. 🏳️‍⚧️Read more about X gender markers here (link in bio): https://chosenfamilylawcenter.org/x-gender-markers We’re here for you! We will continue to support our transgender, nonbinary, & gender non-conforming community through legal services, information, & advocacy. We’re fighting back by providing tools & information to help you maintain your agency. We are here to support you in whatever decisions you make. #TransAwarenessWeek #TransRightsAreHumanRights

What a fantastic Autumn Benefit! 🍂 Thank you for your incredible support! Last week, we gathered for a beautiful night of resistance, community and connection, honoring the amazing @katebornstein. Her messages of hope were a much-needed balm during these challenging times. A heartfelt thank you to our hosts @andrewsolomon6028 & John Habich Solomon for opening their home, and to our partners, including Chef Dilara Erbay of @abracadabramagicdeli, @canopy_wines, and @humanflowerproductions for making the evening special. If you missed it, it’s not too late to contribute to the Chosen Family Law Center (link in bio). ✨ Chosen Family Law Center is a groundbreaking grassroots nonprofit led by transgender nonbinary attorneys, providing essential direct services while advocating for legislative change and cultural transformation. Together, we stand strong for families of ALL kinds, committed to supporting our queer community regardless of the political outcome. Join us in making a difference! 💖

“As Audre Lorde wrote, “There is no such thing as a single-issue struggle because we do not live single-issue lives.” The policies proposed in Project 2025 will not only affect our community members because of their membership in the LGBTQIA+ community, but also in ways that are complex and deeply entangled.” Read the full article written by our Senior Legal Director Andy Izenson at www.chosenfamilylawcenter.org/project-2025 (link in bio)

We’re thrilled to announce that the esteemed psychotherapist and author @estherperelofficial will be joining us at our Autumn Benefit on Wednesday, October 23, 2024 at 7pm in NYC! 🏳️‍🌈 Early bird ticket sales end THIS Wednesday, September 25, so don’t wait! Secure your spot now: ✨bit.ly/cflcautumnbenefit2024 An evening of community and connection awaits! Join us as we honor the incredible @katebornstein! We’ll gather at the stunning private library of Dr. Andrew Solomon and John Habich Solomon in NYC’s Village. You won’t want to miss the insightful remarks from bestselling author @andrewwsolomon, our Executive Director @dianaadamsesq, and our Senior Legal Director Andy Izenson (@eyeandy). With our community under attack and the election season underway, this Benefit will be a much needed time of togetherness and resilience to buoy our spirits for the times ahead. Supporting a local LGBTQIA+ nonprofit is one of the most powerful ways to support each other in tumultuous times and protect the rights of our community members who need it most.🏳️‍⚧️ Get your tickets today! Let’s make this a night to remember! ✨ bit.ly/cflcautumnbenefit2024