Inclusivity Consulting co-leader Eve Hill was celebrated on July 19, 2023, as the Distinguished Honoree at the TASH Outstanding Leadership in Disability Law Symposium & Award Celebration. Each year, TASH celebrates individuals who have made history in the disability field and worked tirelessly in the legal field to obtain equity, opportunity, and inclusion for people with disabilities. A half-day legal symposium exploring “Breaking Down Barriers” was followed by a celebration of Eve for her exceptional leadership in disability law. Eve was joined by fellow BGL attorneys Lauren DiMartino and disability rights fellow Evan Monod, as well as National Federation of the Blind President, Mark Riccobono.
In delivering her award acceptance remarks, Eve spoke about her 29 years as a disability rights lawyer and highlighted an issue close to her heart: subminimum wages for people with disabilities – an issue she has been fighting for over half of her career. She also expressed her appreciation of the TASH mission of taking “strong, brave positions on policy issues consistent with its values.”
Eve spoke about Section 14c of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, which allows the Department of Labor to issue certificates for employers to be able to pay disabled workers less than minimum wage, currently negatively impacting 50,000 people with disabilities. A significant part of Eve’s work has been advocating for an end to Section 14c – a mission shared by TASH and many other civil rights organizations across the nation.
Eve closed her speech with an exhortation of her fellow disability rights attorneys and advocates to continue pushing forward until true equality and justice is achieved: “We are the legacy of Judy Heumann, Bobby Silverstein, Paul Miller, Larry Paradis, Jacobus tenBroek, Justin Dart, Ed Roberts, Paul Hearn, Paul Longmore, Max Starkloff, Laura Hershey, and Marca Bristo, and others, who shook the system until the law reflected our truth.” She continued, “If we want to honor them, then all of us are called to possess their moral imagination… Now is the time for us – all of us – to work to end subminimum wages once and for all.”
Unjust conditions for workers with disabilities is just one of the many issues against which Eve fights every day. She is one of the nation’s leading civil rights lawyers, known especially for her work with clients with disabilities and LGBTQ+ clients. Eve has been recognized by Law360 as one of just 12 “Titans of the Plaintiffs’ Bar” for 2023, as well as by Lawdragon as one of the 500 Leading Lawyers in America (2022 and 2023). Her wide-ranging experience complements Brown, Goldstein & Levy’s decades of dedication to high-impact disability rights cases and its advocacy on behalf of individuals with disabilities and their families. Eve also leads Inclusivity, BGL’s Strategic Consulting Group, which works with organizations to promote the education, engagement, and employment of people with disabilities.
The Judge David L. Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law highlighted Eve’s speech on its Americans with Disabilities Act anniversary blog on July 26. Eve is Chair of the Center’s Board of Trustees, where she has served since 2017. Read the blog here.
TASH is an international leader in disability advocacy. Founded in 1975, TASH advocates for human rights and inclusion for people with significant disabilities and support needs – those most vulnerable to segregation, abuse, neglect, and institutionalization. TASH works to advance inclusive communities through advocacy, research, professional development, policy, and information and resources for parents, families, and self-advocates. The inclusive practices TASH validates through research have been shown to improve outcomes for all people.
Founded in 1982, Brown, Goldstein & Levy is a law firm based in Baltimore, Maryland, with an office in Washington, DC. The firm is nationally recognized in a wide variety of practice areas, including complex civil and commercial litigation, civil rights, health care, family law, and criminal defense. Above all else, Brown, Goldstein & Levy is a client-centered law firm that brings decades of experience and passionate, effective advocacy to your fight for justice.