CLDC Organizational Membership

Civil Liberties Defense Center (CLDC) supports movements that seek to dismantle the political and economic structures at the root of social inequality and environmental destruction. We provide litigation, education, legal, and strategic resources to strengthen and embolden their success. Above and beyond the pro bono services we offer to a wide range of progressive movements, CLDC’s affordable, fee-based organizational membership program provides dedicated, customized legal support for ally organizations.

A CLDC organizational membership is an annual pledge of financial support for the work we do for environmental, climate, and social justice organizations both big and small. This amount is based upon a sliding scale tiered primarily to your annual budget and the scope of your needs. This is ideal for organizations and social justice-oriented entities that do not have inhouse legal counsel, or for organizations that do, but require legal support for risk-assessment and support pertaining to actions and related topics beyond the scope of in-house counsel. CLDC can provide your group with legal support, counsel, resources, and trainings, as well as priority for certain types of attorney-client privileged representation, referrals, and billable attorney work[1]. Your support will help us to increase our legal capacity so that we are better able to support your work and those of all of our movement allies.

We offer three basic tiers of support:

1. Off the shelf training & basic document/policy review – Most of our trainings are currently occurring via live webinar. In-person trainings are possible, albeit with travel limitations. Additionally, we have 43-plus pre-recorded webinars relating to political dissent and the law available via a secure log-in, and we are constantly updating our offerings to be responsive to activist legal needs. We are also experienced in understanding the boundaries of free speech and helping to ensure that your organization is not opening itself up to SLAPP or libel claims. We have vetted templates for creating more secure organizational systems that you can adapt to your needs, and we are available for short risk assessment consultations. ($500-$2000 suggested range)

2. Customized training & organizational policy support – In addition to the above, we

will craft customized trainings and assist in the creation of organizational policies, including document destruction protocol, physical and digital security, etc. If you have an additional movement legal issue for which you wish to increase your knowledge or procedures, please reach out to discuss. ($2,000-$5,000 suggested range)

3. Specific consulting and support – For larger campaigns and/or organizations looking to take it up a notch, we offer strategic legal consulting. This is also for orgs with several campaigners who want legal support/legal risk assessment support for their campaigns. ($5,000-$15,000 suggested. Please contact us to discuss your needs).

More specifically, baseline membership benefits include:

• Confidential consultations with CLDC attorneys and a friendly lawyer ear at your service in exchange for your mutual support.

• Two customized/live Know Your Rights trainings from our menu of offerings: KYR for Climate Activists, Digital Security, KYR for Immigrants and/or Allies (English or Spanish), Grand Jury and Government Repression, Security Culture and Best Practices, and many more, including trainings designed specifically for a particular action, campaign, or community. Trainings can be in person or via webinar.

• One pre-publication legal review: CLDC lawyers will review your report, campaign messaging, or other documents for legal concerns and/or SLAPP/defamation prevention.

• Document retention and destruction policy review and/or creation.

• Legal materials related to digital security in the activist context.

• Additional legal services provided to member organizations for modest hourly compensation. Attorney-client relationships can be established as needed.

Sliding-scale fee tiers:

1. Zero - $100,000 annual budget, mostly volunteer-driven – We offer a small number of pro bono memberships, largely for higher-risk, BIPOC-led direct action entities

2. $100,000 - $500,000 budget – Suggested amount of $1,000-$2,500

3. $500,000 - $1 million budget – Suggested amount of $2,500-$8,000

4. $1 million-plus budget – Suggested amount of $8,000-$15,000 plus

Your organization’s rate will be negotiated based upon the tiers above. We do offer a limited number of pro bono memberships each year to qualifying groups.

If you are interested in becoming an organizational member or have any questions, please contact Carrie Tully, CTULLY(at)cldc.org or call 541-687-9180. Please visit our website (cldc.org) for additional information about the resources we can offer your organization.