Equal Justice Works Names Kace Rodwell to its Board of Directors

Accomplished public interest leader and Equal Justice Works Fellow Alumni from Oklahoma Indian Legal Services, Inc. joins the Equal Justice Works Board of Directors

WASHINGTON, D.C., January 31, 2023—Equal Justice Works, the nation’s largest facilitator of opportunities in public interest law, is proud to announce that 2017 Rural Summer Legal Corps Student Fellow and 2018 Equal Justice Works Fellow Kace Rodwell was selected to join the organization’s board of directors. Kace is currently a staff attorney at Oklahoma Indian Legal Services, Inc. (OILS), an organization that provides services to low-income Native Americans in Oklahoma.

“Equal Justice Works alumni have a deep commitment to equal justice and public service, and it is a bond that connects our community as we work toward fulfilling our nation’s promise of equal justice for all,” said Verna Williams, Equal Justice Works CEO. “We are honored to welcome Kace to the Board. She is an accomplished leader who embraces our values of service and equal access to justice. Her experience in our Fellowship programs and insights working in rural communities will be a great asset to Equal Justice Works and its continued success.”

In 2017, Kace was competitively selected as a Student Fellow in the Rural Summer Legal Corps at OILS, where she worked on estate planning and helped members of the Five Tribes with land status laws. She leveraged this experience to design a project in collaboration with OILS that focused on reducing the number of unrepresented Native American parents in Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) cases in rural Oklahoma counties and supporting tribal courts’ efforts to place Native children with tribal families. Kace’s project, sponsored by DLA Piper LLP and an anonymous co-sponsor, was the first Equal Justice Works Fellowship hosted by OILS, one of the few stand-alone programs dedicated to Indian law in the nation.

Following her Equal Justice Works Fellowship, OILS hired Kace as a staff attorney, where she continues her work to ensure ICWA compliance and that Tribal parents and Indian custodians receive all rights under the law to protect families and cultural ties.

“My law career is founded on a commitment to serve my community and communities like mine that often face obstacles in obtaining legal assistance,” said Kace Rodwell. “Equal Justice Works provided me the avenue to address the legal needs of Tribal Members across Indian Country in Oklahoma as a Rural Summer Legal Corp Fellow and as an Equal Justice Works Fellow. I’m thrilled to now serve on the Board of Directors for Equal Justice Works, to give back to the organization that supports my passion for public interest work and continue our shared mission to ensure justice for all.”

Kace is deeply committed to serving members of her community and ensuring access to equal justice in rural areas, much of which comprises her home state of Oklahoma. Kace is an active member of the Oklahoma Indian Bar Association and the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) Rural Task Force. She is also a frequent panelist with the task force, and most recently shared her advice and experiences at the LSC Access to Justice Forum for Legal Aid in Rural America. Kace earned her B.A. from Northeastern State University, and her J.D. from the Oklahoma City University School of Law.

The Equal Justice Works Board of Directors is comprised of national leaders from every corner of the legal profession including judges, corporate counsel, law firm partners, law students, Fellow Alumni, academics, and public interest law leaders and advocates. Nominations for the Fellow Alumni board member are accepted from the Equal Justice Works community before being presented to the board of directors for final selection.

A full list of Equal Justice Works Board of Directors can be found here.

About Equal Justice Works

Equal Justice Works is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that creates opportunities for lawyers to transform their passion for equal justice into a lifelong commitment to public service. As the nation’s largest facilitator of opportunities in public interest law, Equal Justice Works brings together an extensive network of law students, lawyers, advocates, legal services organizations, and supporters to build a community committed to fulfilling our nation’s promise of equal justice for all.

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