Brenda Star Adams

September 22, 2024

As Director of Litigation, Brenda Star Adams (she/her) oversees the strategic vision and priorities of BayLegal’s impact litigation and partners with staff to bring litigation to challenge systemic inequities and legal barriers identified through BayLegal’s community based direct individual legal services to improve the lives of low-income California residents. Brenda also provides litigation training and support to attorneys across the firm to increase litigation practice skills broadly. From 2011-2018, as a BayLegal staff attorney Brenda represented survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence, and child abuse in family law and immigration matters. Prior to re-joining BayLegal in 2024, Brenda led impact litigation at the National Center for Youth Law (NCYL) aimed at dismantling systems of oppression for youth in education, health, immigration, criminal justice, and child welfare. Prior to NCYL, Brenda worked to combat gender discrimination at work and at school with Equal Rights Advocates, where she led the organization’s education equity work and sexual violence impact litigation, oversaw the direct services programs, and managed the queer justice project. Brenda began her career at the Eviction Defense Center in Oakland, where she defended low-income tenants (primarily undocumented families) from eviction in jury trials and organized tenants in affirmative lawsuits against slumlords. Brenda is also a lecturer at UC Berkeley Law School, where she teaches a class to students placed in nonprofit externships covering themes of authenticity, combatting white supremacy culture, and resilience. In her spare time, Brenda coaches a high school mock trial team and loves spending time with her husband, daughter, and 3-legged dog. A native of San Francisco, Brenda brings a fierce passion for social justice and over 18 years’ experience litigating cases on behalf of youth, low-income families, the LGBTQI+ community, and survivors of abuse.

Education: Graduated 2006 with a J.D. from New England Law; 2002 with a B.A. from UC San Diego.

Bar Admissions: California and Northern District of California

Practice Areas: Housing, family law, immigration, criminal justice, child welfare, civil rights, education, employment, litigation

Awards: 2021 Fay Stender Award winner (“The annual award is given to a feminist attorney, who, like Fay Stender, is committed to the representation of women, disadvantaged groups and unpopular causes, and whose courage, zest for life and demonstrated ability to effect change as a single individual makes her a role model for women attorneys”); 2006 Public Service Award from New England Law; 2005 Public Law Association Grant Recipient.

Publications:

  • “Trauma informed lawyering is our professional responsibility,” The Daily Journal (2023) (co-authored) available here.
  • “Court of Appeals in Young v. Solano County opens the door to racial bias complaints,” The Daily Journal (2022) available here.
  • “Developments Related to Sexual Misconduct on College Campuses,” The Daily Journal (2021) (co-authored) available here.
  • “Domestic Violence and Housing: How California Laws, the Fair Housing Act, and the Violence Against Women Act Protect Survivors of Domestic Violence from Denial of Housing, Help them Defend and Avoid Eviction, and Aid Survivors in Maintaining Safe and Stable Housing,” Practising Law Institute (published 2013 – 2017) (co-authored).
  • Published Opinion (as lead counsel), Perez v. Torres-Hernandez, 1 Cal.App.5th 389 (2016), available here.
  • “Unbundled Legal Services: A Solution to the Pro Se Problem in Massachusetts’ Civil Courts,” New England Law Review, 40 New Eng. L. Rev. 303 (2005).