Movement Lawyer.
Federal Law for the People.
Lee Merritt, ESQ
S. Lee Merritt, Esq. is the nationally recognized civil rights attorney and Movement Lawyer behind landmark cases like Ahmaud Arbery, Botham Jean, and Atatiana Jefferson. Lee Merritt is a national voice offering audiences clear, actionable insight on justice, power, and federal civil rights.
Trusted by leading media, institutions, and movements across the country and internationally.
See Lee in Action
In this short highlight reel, S. Lee Merritt shows how protest, media, and federal law work together to force real accountability and why that matters for your campus, conference, or community.
Why Lee for Your Event
Clarity on Complex Law
Most people hear “federal civil rights” and “qualified immunity” but never really understand them. Lee translates these doctrines into clear, memorable explanations that students, community members, and professionals can follow and use.
Roadmap from Outrage to Change
Your audience will see how viral videos, protests, and public pressure can become investigations, lawsuits, and policy changes that outlive the news cycle so they leave with a roadmap, not just emotion.
Movement-Rooted
Lee moves easily between marches, federal courtrooms, and policy hearings. He brings those worlds into the same room so your audience can see how power really works, and how to engage it.
Stories from Landmark Cases
Drawing from cases like Ahmaud Arbery, Botham Jean, and Atatiana Jefferson, Lee illustrates both the limits and possibilities of the current system and what real accountability can look like when communities refuse to give up.
Speaking Topics & Keynotes
For legal audiences, law schools, civil rights organizations
- Understand how Section 1983 and federal civil rights law can hold local systems accountable.
- Learn how race, disability, and other factors shape both harm and legal strategy.
- See concrete ways lawyers, organizers, and institutions can work together to push cases toward real change.
For policy, legal, and civic audiences
- Grasp why qualified immunity so often blocks justice in police violence cases.
- Explore how intersecting vulnerabilities—race, disability, poverty—compound harm.
- Identify policy and litigation strategies that can move us toward meaningful accountability.
For campuses, movements, and community forums
- Follow the journey from first phone call or video to investigation, lawsuit, and policy demand.
- Learn how to design campaigns that aim at relief, consequences, and rule changes—not just headlines.
- Get tools to measure whether a “win” actually changed anything for the next family.
For movement organizations, coalitions, and institutional partners
- Learn lessons from partnering with NAACP branches, movement networks, and local counsel.
- See how to structure roles so organizers, lawyers, and institutions share power and credit.
- Walk away with templates for collaboration that you can adapt to your own coalition.
For broad civic, institutional, and community audiences
- Go inside three landmark matters to see how criminal, civil, and policy tools intersect.
- Understand where existing accountability tools fall short—and what new tools are emerging.
- Discover practical steps communities and institutions can take to push their systems toward real accountability.
Who this is for
- Universities, colleges, and law schools
- Civil rights and movement organizations
- Civic, faith, and community institutions
- Bar associations and legal conferences
- Policy and thought‑leadership platforms
- Corporate and institutional teams committed to justice and equity
- Keynote addresses and plenary sessions
- Fireside chats and moderated conversations
- Panels and town halls
- Workshops and trainings on movement lawyering, Section 1983, and accountability strategy
- Media interviews and live‑taped conversations
Results & Recognition
Lee’s work has helped shift conversations and outcomes around police violence, civil rights, and accountability across the country.
- Helped secure the first murder indictments of police officers in Texas in more than 40 years in cases that drew national attention.
- Named to the prestigious faculty of Harvard Law School’s Trial Advocacy Workshop, where the nation’s top lawyers train future litigators from Harvard Law.
- Represents families in landmark cases including Ahmaud Arbery, Botham Jean, and Atatiana Jefferson.
- Named among America’s Top 200 Lawyers by Forbes and recognized for high‑impact civil rights and trial practice.
- Honored by The Root as one of the most influential African Americans and by the National Black Caucus of State Legislators for nation‑building work.
- Has testified before Congress and international bodies on policing and human rights, connecting individual cases to systemic reform.
Booking Request
Check Lee’s Availabilty
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This form starts a conversation there is no commitment until we confirm details together.
Booking & Partnerships
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For urgent media or breaking‑news inquiries, please note timing and outlet in your message so our team can prioritize your request.
