Lambda Legal Hires Omar Gonzalez-Pagan as Staff Attorney in National Headquarters

(New York, April 28, 2014) - Lambda Legal today announced Omar Gonzalez-Pagan as a new staff attorney in its National Headquarters. At Lambda Legal, Gonzalez-Pagan will work on a range of issues, including work with LGBT people and people living with HIV in Puerto Rico and as well as with Spanish-speaking LGBT and HIV-affected communities in New York.

"We are very excited to welcome Omar to Lambda Legal. He brings a wealth of legal experience and a powerful commitment to furthering civil rights," said Jon W. Davidson, Legal Director and Eden/Rushing Chair, Lambda Legal. "Omar is a talented lawyer who will help strengthen Lambda Legal's team and bring a fresh perspective to our work on behalf of Spanish-speaking LGBT people and people living with HIV."

Before joining Lambda Legal, Gonzalez-Pagan worked for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as an Associate General Counsel to the Massachusetts Inspector General, an Assistant Attorney General, and a Special Assistant District Attorney.  As an Assistant Attorney General, Gonzalez-Pagan was part of the team that represented Massachusetts in its successful challenge to the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.  He also successfully obtained injunctive relief for victims of a hate crime that were targeted based on their sexual orientation and civilly prosecuted housing discrimination cases. Gonzalez-Pagan is a member of the Massachusetts bar and is preparing to be admitted to practice in New York.

In 2012, Gonzalez-Pagan was recognized as a Public Interest Leader by the Boston Bar Association and was a Fellow at the New Leaders Council.  Omar received his J.D. from University of Pennsylvania Law School and his Master's in Environmental Studies from the University of Pennsylvania's School of Arts & Sciences.  In law school, Gonzalez-Pagan served on the board of the University of Pennsylvania Journal of Constitutional Law and Lambda Law, Penn Law's LGBT group.

"I have long admired the extraordinary work Lambda Legal does on behalf of the LGBT and HIV communities and look forward to be able to be a part of that work," said Gonzalez-Pagan. "I am honored to join such a distinguished and highly accomplished legal team and am even more excited to contribute my skills to helping ensure the civil rights of LGBT people and those living with HIV."

** Gonzalez-Pagan is fluent in Spanish. **