About Us

Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF), founded in 1979, is a leading national civil rights law and policy center directed by individuals with disabilities and parents who have children with disabilities.

Our Mission

To advance the civil and human rights of people with disabilities through legal advocacy, training, education, and public policy and legislative development.

Our Vision

A just world where all people, with and without disabilities, live full and independent lives free of discrimination.

Our Strategies

We work with the core principles of equality of opportunity, disability accommodation, accessibility, and inclusion by employing the following strategies:

Training and Education

  • We train and educate people with disabilities and parents of children with disabilities about their rights under state and federal disability rights laws so they can use the laws as tools to challenge exclusion and discrimination and advocate effectively for full participation in the lives of their communities.
  • We educate lawyers, service providers, government officials, and many others about disability civil rights laws and policies.
  • For over two decades, we have operated a disability rights legal clinic in collaboration with law schools in the San Francisco Bay Area including U.C. Berkeley School of Law.
  • DREDF is a Parent Training and Information Center (PTI) funded by the U.S. Department of Education. PTIs serve families of children and young adults from birth to age 26 with all disabilities: physical, cognitive, emotional, and learning. Our Education Advocates help families:
    • Obtain appropriate education and services for their children with disabilities;
    • Work to improve education results for all children;
    • Train and inform parents and professionals on a variety of topics;
    • Resolve problems between families and schools or other agencies;
    • Connect children with disabilities to community resources that address their needs.

Legal Advocacy

Since our founding in 1979, DREDF has been dedicated to advancing the civil rights of people with disabilities through various legal avenues. Here are some key aspects of our work:

  1. Litigation Representation: We take on cases aimed at advancing the civil rights of people with disabilities. We directly represent clients in court, advocating for their rights and seeking legal remedies to address discrimination or violations of disability rights laws.
  2. Co-Counseling: In addition to representing clients directly, we also collaborate with other legal entities as co-counsel in disability rights cases. This partnership allows for a combined effort in pursuing legal action on behalf of individuals or groups facing discrimination or other rights infringements.
  3. Amicus Curiae Briefs: We prepare and file amicus curiae (friend of the court) briefs in appellate courts and the U.S. Supreme Court. These briefs provide expert analysis and legal arguments to support disability rights issues in cases where we are not directly representing a party but seek to influence the court’s decision.
  4. Impactful Cases Selection: We strategically select cases and issues that have the potential to bring about significant change or law reform affecting large segments of the disability community. By focusing on high-impact cases, we aim to create broader systemic improvements in the protection of disability rights.
  5. Advocacy: Beyond litigation, we engage in advocacy efforts to promote the legal rights of individuals with disabilities and their families. This may involve legislative advocacy, policy analysis, public education campaigns, and collaboration with other advocacy organizations to advance disability rights agendas.

Overall, our work encompasses a multifaceted approach to advancing disability rights, involving direct legal representation, collaboration with partners, expert legal analysis through amicus briefs, strategic case selection, and broader advocacy efforts aimed at fostering positive change for disabled people and families.

Public Policy and Legislative Development

We design and carry out strategies that strengthen public policy and that lead to the enactment of federal and state laws protecting and advancing civil rights for people with disabilities such as the Handicapped Children’s Protection Act, the Civil Rights Restoration Act, the landmark 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act, and the IDEA Amendments Act.

Our current work in public policy focuses on:

  • Transportation
  • Housing
  • Assisted Suicide
  • Marriage Equality
  • Parents with Disabilities
  • HIV Criminalization
  • Disability and Bioethics