Our Team
Staff
Yael Caplan (she/her/hers) is a recent graduate of Yale Law School. In law school, she was involved with the Veterans Legal Services Clinic, where she helped litigate cases involving military parental discrimination, disability discrimination, and discriminatory IVF coverage restrictions. She also served as an articles editor with the Yale Journal of Law and Feminism. She previously interned with the Lawyering Project and a Better Balance. Prior to law school, Yael served as an analyst for the Surgo Foundation, focusing on domestic and global reproductive and maternal health issues. Yael earned her B.A., Phi Beta Kappa, from the University of Chicago with a dual degree in public policy and comparative human development. A longtime crossword enthusiast, she has recently started dabbling in the online crossword competition scene.
Leena Chawla (she/her) is a donor relations officer, previously serving as a development associate, at Pregnancy Justice. Leena most recently worked at the Legal Aid Society, helping NYC tenants fight eviction and unjust housing laws. Before moving to Brooklyn, Leena worked with domestic violence survivors in Austin, Texas. She holds a B.A. in sociology and gender, sexuality, and feminist studies from Middlebury College. Leena enjoys long dinners with friends and is learning how to sew.
Poonam Daryani (she/her) is a Justice Catalyst Legal Fellow at Pregnancy Justice. Prior to joining, she served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Keith P. Ellison of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas. Poonam holds a JD from Yale Law School, an MPH from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and a BA from Scripps College. Before law school, Poonam worked in health justice advocacy, with a focus on gender, sexuality, and reproduction. In her free time, she enjoys hosting dinner parties, listening to 90s Bollywood music, and practicing yoga.
Zenovia Earle (she/her) joined Pregnancy Justice as the media & communications director. She leverages experience in government affairs, community outreach, marketing, media relations, and journalism. Before joining Pregnancy Justice, Zenovia held NYC government communications roles in aging services and technology. She started her career in TV and online news. Zenovia holds a B.A. in journalism from Georgia State University and an MPA from New York University’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service. Zenovia is an avid traveler, working to make it to all continents, and counts the Waitomo Glowworm Caves in New Zealand as a top destination. She also has a big soft spot for older adults.
Cara Eisenstein (she/her/hers) is a recent graduate of the NYU School of Law, where she was a student advocate at the Reproductive Justice Clinic and the Criminal Appellate Defender Clinic. She interned with the Legal Aid Society’s Criminal Defense Special Litigation Unit and Adolescent Defense Unit, and Shanies Law Office — a civil rights law firm that represents individuals whose rights have been violated through police, prosecutorial, and prison misconduct. Cara also volunteered with the Sylvia Rivera Law Project, Identity Documents Project, and NYU Parole Advocacy. Cara earned her B.A., magna cum laude, from Middlebury College, with a degree in international politics and economics, with a focus in Chinese. In her free time, Cara loves watching horror movies and walking around the city.
Emanuella Evans (she/her) is a digital media specialist with experience in video production, graphic design, social media strategy, and audience engagement. She is committed to community, Black liberation, and using intentional communication to make information accessible and to organize against structural oppression. Emanuella holds a B.A. in journalism from Northwestern University and has previously reported on criminal justice, immigration, mental health, and the intersection of gender-based violence and affordable housing. Outside of work, Emma loves to travel and leads a youth program for South Sudanese in Kansas City that addresses generational trauma.
Caitlyn Garcia (she/her/hers) is a staff attorney at Pregnancy Justice. Prior to joining, she was a staff attorney at Brooklyn Defender Services, representing parents in child protection, custody, visitation, paternity, and family offense proceedings. She litigated cases from inception to disposition. Caitlyn also served as an associate attorney at Kelley Jasons McGowan Spinelli Hanna & Reber, LLP, where she represented clients in product liability matters. Caitlyn earned a B.A. in criminology from the University of Pennsylvania and a J.D. from Brooklyn Law School, where she led the Brooklyn Law Students for the Public Interest nonprofit group. In her free time, she enjoys boxing and running.
Dara Gell (she/her/hers) is a senior staff attorney. Previously, she spent nearly seven years with the Innocence Project as the investigations attorney and supervisor for intake partnerships and training. Additionally, she served as interim director of intake at the Innocence Project for three years. She began her career as a practicing immigration defense attorney in New York City. Dara holds a B.A. from State University of New York at Geneseo and a J.D. from Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. Dara loves singing kids songs with her beautiful daughter and belting out obscure Kate Bush songs at karaoke.
Kulsoom Ijaz (she/her/hers) is a senior staff attorney at Pregnancy Justice. Prior to joining, she was a staff attorney at the Center for Reproductive Rights, litigating reproductive rights cases nationwide. She also championed tenants’ rights as a senior staff attorney at Legal Services NYC, ensuring safe, affordable, and fair housing. As a founding advocacy chair of the American Muslim Bar Association, she brings her passion for community and coalition building to every endeavor. Kulsoom also formerly rehabbed birds, finding inspiration in the lessons they offer about collective liberation.
Imaan Khasru (all pronouns) is an avid social researcher from Dhaka, Bangladesh. Prior to joining Pregnancy Justice, she conducted research for the National Institutes of Health, University of Chicago, and Dr. Kristina Olson’s Human Diversity Lab. She graduated from Princeton University with a B.A. in psychology, focusing on global mental health, and a minor in South Asian studies. She is the oldest in a family of six children, has been a freelance graphic designer and digital artist since 2014, and loves playing video games.
Chiara Padilla (she/her/ella) is a legal fellow at Pregnancy Justice and a recent graduate of Penn Carey Law School, where she pursued civil rights work grounded in racial justice and equity with ArchCity Defenders, the ACLU National Prison Project, and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. During law school, Chiara served as co-president of the Latinx Law Students Association and case chair for the Youth Advocacy Project. She also served as the direct services coordinator at her school’s If/When/How chapter, where she developed and launched a pro bono project in partnership with the Abolitionist Law Center. Prior to law school, Chiara was the associate director of development for Planned Parenthood of Utah. In her free time, she loves listening to Latin music and searching for the best kouign-amann in town.
Lourdes A. Rivera (she/her/ella) joined Pregnancy Justice as its first president in 2023, bringing more than 30 years of experience as a respected leader in reproductive rights and justice, health law and policy, and philanthropy. She recently served as a senior vice president of U.S. Programs at the Center for Reproductive Rights, overseeing comprehensive litigation, policy advocacy, and partnership strategies. Lourdes is a co-founder of California Latinas for Reproductive Justice and the Groundswell Fund, a board member of the National Health Law Program, and vice president of the Brush Foundation’s board. She also received an American Bar Association presidential appointment to the ABA’s Coalition on Racial and Ethnic Justice. She earned a J.D. from Yale Law School and a B.A. from Yale University. An enthusiastic salsa dancer since childhood, Lourdes can lead and follow with grace.
Emma Roth (she/her) is a senior staff attorney at Pregnancy Justice. Prior to joining us, she served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Ronnie Abrams of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. She also worked as an Equal Justice Works fellow for the ACLU Women’s Rights Project, where she brought impact litigation to advance the rights of women and girls in courts across the country. Emma received her J.D. from Yale Law School and her A.B., magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa, from Brown University. As a proud mom of two small children, Emma brings both her personal and professional experiences to her representation of pregnant and parenting people.
Alea Rouse is an operations and project management professional. She holds a B.A. from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and an M.A. from Rutgers University in global affairs. Alea previously worked for USAID as a research and innovation fellow in Cape Town, South Africa. In this role, she coordinated a wide range of complex cross-functional projects to achieve organizational goals focused on supporting women’s rights. Alea enjoys going to museums and strolling through Central Park.
Ashley C. Sawyer (she/her) is Pregnancy Justice’s senior policy counsel and an adjunct professor at Brooklyn Law School. Ashley previously served as senior staff attorney at Advancement Project, a movement lawyering and racial justice organization; policy director and senior director of campaigns at Girls for Gender Equity; and as an attorney at Youth Represent, where she supported NYC youth with their legal needs. Ashley is committed to abolishing prisons and building wellness, dignity, and joy for all people — especially Black girls, queer, and trans young people. She holds a JD from Howard University and a BA from Rutgers. She exists on a steady rotation of Stevie Wonder songs and journalism podcasts; she is also a devoted auntie.
Dana Sussman (she/her/hers) joined Pregnancy Justice in 2021 as deputy executive director and served as acting executive before becoming senior vice president. Dana previously served as a deputy commissioner at the NYC Commission on Human Rights and has 15 years of experience as a workers’ rights, civil rights, and gender justice attorney. After graduating from Northeastern University School of Law, Dana served as a Legal Fellow at the Center for Reproductive Rights and clerked for federal Magistrate Judge James Orenstein in the Eastern District of New York. Dana holds a B.A. and an M.P.H. from Tufts University. A former fitness instructor and dancer, Dana now hosts dance parties in her kitchen for her two small children to the soundtrack of 90s hits.
Jack Tambini (he/him/his) is a seasoned administrative professional who has worked for several nonprofits and arts organizations throughout New York City. He joined Pregnancy Justice, where he provides executive-level support to President Lourdes A. Rivera, from an international art gallery. He has held numerous positions, including administrative assistant to the executive director at the American Friends of the Hebrew University, development and communications consultant at the Hudson School, office manager at New Yorkers for Parks, and executive assistant at Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden. Jack holds an M.A. in art history from the CUNY, Brooklyn College, and a B.A. in fine arts from Wagner College. In his spare time, Jack loves exploring New York City museums and is working on a graphic novel about an artist living in Italy during the Renaissance.
Karen Thompson (she/her) joined Pregnancy Justice as legal director in 2024. Karen was previously a senior staff attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey and the Innocence Project. After earning her J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law, M.A. from New York University, and B.A. from Carleton College, Karen started her legal career as an associate at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP and Morrison & Foerster LLP. She has decades of experience fighting for civil rights and liberties and racial justice in courts nationwide. Karen spends her free time learning to play the cello, honing her jazz vocals, and helicopter parenting her two dachshunds, Miles Davis and Jolene.
Fikayo Walter-Johnson (she/her) is a social science researcher committed to transformative social movements. Prior to joining Pregnancy Justice, she was a paralegal with the ACLU’s Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project, where she supported pressing First and Fourth Amendment litigation. She is excited to combine her knowledge of privacy and free speech to advance pregnant people’s social and legal protections. Fikayo received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Chicago with a dual degree in sociology and public policy and a specialization in gender and sexuality studies. Once upon a time, she co-hosted and produced a biweekly radio show on WHPK 88.5 FM called “OurSpace.”
Lauren Wranosky (she/they) is a policy and program associate with Pregnancy Justice. Before joining us, Lauren worked as a social worker in mental health, hospice, and skilled nursing. They earned their MSW from Columbia University, specializing in public policy, and interned with Pregnancy Justice. Additionally, they have a BSW from Azusa Pacific University. In their free time, Lauren enjoys music production and singing karaoke.
Board of Directors
Sarah Burns is a professor of clinical law at New York University School of Law. She supervises the Reproductive Justice Clinic, which represents clients in litigation and policy projects centering on reproductive decision making. Sarah is executive director of Washington Square Legal Services. She also co-founded and oversees the Mediation Clinic and the Litigation, Organizing & Systemic Change Clinic, conducted in partnership with Make the Road NY and Center for Popular Democracy. Sarah combines law with learning in social science to develop effective solutions for problems that institutions and communities face. Sarah, who has been on the NYU faculty since 1990, specializes in experiential learning pedagogy, developing simulation and clinical courses in litigation, negotiation, mediation, policy advocacy, and systemic change. Burns graduated in 1979 from Yale Law School and holds master’s degrees from Stanford University in sociology and the University of Oklahoma in human relations.
Julie Ehrlich (she/her) is the director of presidential initiatives and chief of staff at the Mellon Foundation, where she partners with the president to identify, create strategies for, and execute hallmark grant-making initiatives — including the Monuments Project, the Puerto Rico Initiative, and Imagining Freedom. Previously, Julie was assistant dean for strategic initiatives and chief of staff, executive director of the Birnbaum Women’s Leadership Network, and adjunct professor of clinical law and co-instructor of the Reproductive Justice Clinic at NYU School of Law. Prior to joining NYU Law in 2014, Julie was a civil rights litigator for nearly a decade. She began her legal career as a staff attorney/fellow in the ACLU Women’s Rights Project and clerked for Judge Nina Gershon in the Eastern District of New York and Judge Robert D. Sack on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Julie holds a B.A. in American Studies from Yale University, and a J.D. from NYU, where she received a Hays Fellowship in Civil Rights and Civil Liberties and the Maurice Goodman Memorial Prize for Scholarship and Character.
Humaira Faiz (she/her/hers) is an impact investor who manages the mission-related investment portfolio at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. Humaira’s investment expertise is predominantly in the private markets with the theme of inclusion and equity across the U.S. and internationally. Her experience spans sustainable finance, development, economics, strategic consulting, philanthropy, and traditional finance. She has an M.B.A. from New York University Stern and a B.S. in finance and English from Rutgers University. Humaira is a globetrotter-turned-suburban-mom who spends her free time wrangling her children and dog or planning her family’s next big adventure.
Warner Fite (he/him/his) has decades of finance, operations, and strategic planning experience with nonprofits and for-profits. He teaches accounting at New York University’s Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, and maintains a group of nonprofit clients. He previously served as managing director of Austerlitz Management; principal of the Public Equity Group, working with Planned Parenthood Federation of America, the Buffett Early Childhood Fund, and others; and as a senior vice president at Merrill Lynch. He earned an M.P.A. from NYU Wagner and an A.B. in economics from Princeton University. Warner enjoys road biking, kayaking, and traveling. He once jumped off a moving train in Kenya and saw the top of Kilimanjaro.
Dr. Hytham M. Imseis is a maternal-fetal medicine specialist practicing in Charlotte, North Carolina. His career has been dedicated to caring for and advocating for pregnant women. He is very involved in the medical education of obstetrician/gynecologists across the U.S. for which he has won many teaching awards. He currently serves on the Women’s Executive Board and the Ethics Committee at his hospital and has served as the medical director of the Mountain Area Perinatal Substance Abuse Program and the Mountain Area Health Education Teen Pregnancy Clinic. Dr. Imseis has published research articles in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology and in Obstetrics and Gynecology and currently reviews manuscripts for publication in both the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology.
Tiloma Jayasinghe (she/her) is the president and CEO of Community Resource Exchange, a nonprofit management consulting firm that works with nonprofits in New York City. Tiloma is a human rights advocate, working from the local to the international levels, at Sakhi for South Asian Women, the United Nations, and served as Pregnancy Justice’s first full-time staff attorney when we were named National Advocates for Pregnant Women. She has deep roots in strengthening the nonprofit sector through her tenure at Nonprofit New York. Tiloma is a proud New Yorker, tree-hugger, and cheese lover, living in the great borough of Queens with her husband, and two teen/tween daughters (so prayers are always welcome).
Carmelyn P. Malalis (she/her) joined the board of Pregnancy Justice in 2022. Carmelyn is the head of impact at Level Forward. She previously served as commissioner of the New York City Commission on Human Rights and was a partner at Outten & Golden LLP, where she co-founded and co-chaired its Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Workplace Rights Practice Group. She is a frequent speaker and commentator on human rights, diversity, equity, and inclusion; and she has worked with several local and national organizations advocating for the rights of LGBTQIA, BIPOC, immigrant, and religious communities. Depending on the season, Carmelyn can be seen in Brooklyn coaching her older child’s softball team, playing a pick-up game of beach volleyball, or trying to keep up with her daughter on ice skates.
Katherine Rosenfeld (she/her) is a partner at Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP. She has a diverse civil litigation and trial practice, focusing on prison and jail abuse and conditions such as lack of medical and mental health care, police misconduct, and discrimination in public accommodations, housing, and employment. She has obtained historic settlements on behalf of women challenging the New York City Police Department and other agencies’ use of shackles during pregnancy, labor and delivery, and the postpartum period. From 2014 to 2017, Katherine served as the legal director at New York Lawyers for the Public Interest. She received her J.D. from Yale Law School. In her free time, she enjoys spending time in nature and trying not to lose at Scrabble to her three children.
Karen Sauvigné was a pioneer in the fight against sexual harassment in employment. While on the Cornell University faculty in the mid-1970s, she organized a “Speak-Out” in Ithaca, New York—a kind of public consciousness raising—against sexual exploitation. They coined the phrase “sexual harassment on the job.” Karen served as director of education in the Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Care at Mount Sinai. Before Mount Sinai, she held faculty and management positions at Cornell, CUNY Law School, John Jay College, and Baruch College. She served on the boards of the Asian American Legal Defense Fund, the Public Interest Law Foundation, Cornell’s Institute for Women and Work, NYC’s LGBT swim team, and served on Callen-Lorde’s board for 10 years — five of which as chair. Karen, who loves sailing, iceboating, and oyster-growing currently serves on the board of the East End Seaport Museum.
Vivian Siu (she/her/hers) is an Emmy and Webby Award-winning producer with more than 20 years of communications experience with nonprofit and news organizations worldwide. Vivian is the managing director of communications and external affairs at the Vera Institute of Justice and Vera Action. She has also led communications for the Center for Reproductive Rights, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Planned Parenthood Action Fund, UNICEF, and The Intercept. Vivian started her career in news, working as a journalist and producer for NBC, ABC, and PBS. She holds a B.S. from Barnard College, Columbia University and an M.S. from Columbia University’s Journalism School.
Ria Tabacco Mar (she/her) is the director of the ACLU’s Women’s Rights Project. Previously, she was an attorney with the ACLU’s Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender & HIV Project, where she led the ACLU’s team in Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission . In the case, a same-sex couple was refused a wedding cake because they are gay. Ria is a frequent commentator on gender justice issues and has been recognized on The Root 100 annual list of the most influential African Americans ages 25 to 45 and as one of the Best LGBT Lawyers Under 40 by the National LGBT Bar Association.