lmerritt21@nul.org

Commonly known as “the people’s lawyer,” attorney and civil rights activist S. Lee Merritt has emerged as an influential new voice in the fight for social justice. Merritt’s high profile high-profile practice focuses on victims of police brutality, hate crimes and corporate discrimination. His office has led the way on police reform in Texas, a state notorious for its failure to prosecute police officers. Merritt successfully advocated for the first murder indictments of officers in the state in over 40 years. Following the devastation caused by Hurricane Harvey in the Summer of 2017, Merritt helped launch the American Black Cross, a disaster relief organization geared to serve the most vulnerable sectors of ociety. In 2017, he was recognized by The Root as one of the nation’s most influential African Americans aged 18 t0 45. The National Black Caucasus of State Legislators awarded Merritt the prestigious “Nation Builder” Award. A Cum Laude graduate of Morehouse College, Merritt attended law school at Temple University’s James Beasley School of Law.