Impact Docket – 9/24/2025
The chaos is calculated. The overwhelm is part of the plan.
Every new proposal, every attack on the rule of law—it’s designed to make us question whether fighting back even matters. But here’s the truth: We don’t need to do everything. We just need to keep doing something.
Whether you’re fired up or running on fumes, this week’s Impact Docket gives you focused, actionable steps to push back—against judicial power grabs, due process violations, and the erosion of democratic norms.
Pick one. Pick all. But don’t look away. Not now.
🔴 The Moment We’re In: Power Without Guardrails
In Washington, the attacks on local self-governance keep escalating. Two new bills, H.R. 5125 and H.R. 5179, would give the President sweeping control over D.C.’s judicial nominations and its Attorney General. That means no bipartisan vetting, no voter input, and no checks on political loyalty. If Congress allows this power grab to go through, it won’t stop with D.C.—it will become a blueprint for undermining independent courts and elected accountability nationwide.
At the same time, due process is under siege. Immigration arrests are happening inside courthouses and ICE check-ins, often cutting people off from legal counsel entirely. Mass detention continues to expand. And enforcement is growing more aggressive, despite long-standing legal and constitutional safeguards.
This Docket is about holding the line: standing up judicial independence, legal access, and constitutional limits on executive power. The legal community has a role to play in every one of these fights, and we’re calling on you to step in.
⚡ URGENT ACTION
🛑 Tell the Senate: Reject Trump’s Judicial Power Grab in D.C.
📍 L4GG.org/ProtectDCJudges | 2 min
House Republicans have passed a bill that would eliminate D.C.’s bipartisan Judicial Nomination Commission—handing unilateral judicial appointment power to the President.
If enacted, H.R. 5125 would give the executive branch complete control over who serves as judges in D.C.’s local courts, stripping D.C. residents of their only meaningful say in the judicial selection process. This isn’t about efficiency—it’s about power. Here’s what’s at stake:
Most legal disputes in D.C. are handled in local courts—not federal ones.
The JNC is the only safeguard D.C. residents have in the judicial selection process, since they lack Senate representation.
This power grab sets a dangerous national precedent: if judicial independence can be dismantled in D.C., it can be dismantled anywhere.
Tell the Senate: Vote NO on H.R. 5125 and protect judicial integrity and local democracy.
⚖️ Tell Congress: Stop the Power Grab to Replace D.C.’s Elected AG
📍 L4GG.org/DefendDCAG | 2 min
H.R. 5179 would terminate D.C.’s elected Attorney General and give the President sole authority to appoint the AG—no Senate confirmation, no community input.
This isn’t just a local issue. It’s a test run for executive overreach nationwide.
Here’s what the bill does:
❌ Overturns a 2010 ballot measure approved by D.C. voters
❌ Ends the current AG’s term immediately
❌ Allows a non-lawyer, non-resident to take the job
❌ Destabilizes D.C.’s legal system, affecting tenants, small businesses, and vulnerable residents
The D.C. AG defends real people—from consumer fraud to housing justice. That role should never be a political pawn. Tell your Congressmembers: Vote NO on H.R. 5179.
🛠️ LONG-TERM ENGAGEMENT
📝 Volunteer Interest Form: Detention Bridge Project
L4GG is building a national network of volunteer attorneys to support immigrants in some of the country’s most underserved detention centers—and right now, we need to know how many people in our corner are ready to show up.
Why this matters: We’re finalizing the structure and capacity of this new project. Your interest helps us determine how many detention centers we can serve and what legal services we can provide.
Our program will deploy attorneys—both remotely and in-person—to support detained asylum seekers through:
Know-Your-Rights trainings
Parole preparation and advocacy
Documentation of conditions for litigation and policy efforts
Initial focus: South Texas and East Coast detention centers, with plans to expand nationally. If you're interested in volunteering or supporting this work, fill out the form to help us build a legal safety net for people who need it most.
📄 Volunteer Interest Form: Work Permit Legal Clinics
Asylum seekers need stability—and a work permit is a vital step toward rebuilding their lives. That’s why L4GG is seeking experienced immigration attorneys to volunteer at upcoming NYC-based clinics this October.
We’re looking for attorneys to review draft work permit applications at in-person clinics hosted at Manhattan law firms on October 27, 28, 29 and 30.
If you're an immigration attorney in the NYC region who is comfortable reviewing work permits and are ready to make a meaningful difference, fill out our interest form!
🎥 Rights in Reel Time: Law Student Video Challenge
📍Toolkit to spread the word | Interest Form
This fall, Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG) and partners are launching the first-ever Rights in Reel Time Challenge—a video contest inviting law students to bring the Constitution to life.
This year’s theme centers on the Fourth Amendment, with a focus on government overreach and privacy in today’s digital world. Here’s why students should enter:
🏆 Win up to $3,000 in cash prizes
🎥 Get your work shared widely on social media
⚖️ Use your legal voice to raise awareness and educate the public
Use this toolkit with graphics, social posts, and an email to help spread the word. Fill out our interest form to stay informed and get ready for the official launch announcement.
🎉 Community Impact: Thousands Mobilize to Defend Climate, Constitution, and the Rule of Law
This past month, our community showed what it means to turn concern into action - fighting back in public comment records, and in public squares across the country.
⚖️ EPA Comment Trainings:
Through five live comment trainings, 473 legal advocates joined us to defend the EPA’s authority to regulate climate pollution. Over 160 public comments were submitted by our network alone—contributing to an incredible 320,000+ total comments submitted to the EPA. That number is not a typo. It’s a legal record built by people who refuse to stay silent while the Endangerment Finding is under attack.
📜 Constitution Day 2025:
As a proud member of the Nation of Laws Coalition, L4GG helped mobilize a nationwide day of action: 23 Constitution Day events took place across the country—anchored by teachers, lawyers, judges, and Congress members committed to protecting our founding principles.
From classrooms to courthouses, and Capitol Hill to TikTok, Americans rallied to say: the Constitution belongs to all of us.
The legal community showed up in force, with dozens of bar associations and federal courts participating. Meanwhile, a digital reach of 7.4 million+ helped amplify the message far beyond any single stage or city.
This is what collective legal power looks like. When our community rises together, we don’t just make a statement—we make an impact.
We’ll be back in two weeks with more ways to take action—but the work doesn’t stop here.
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