More than 50 leading litigators and legal experts were set to gather at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington on Wednesday to address the legal challenges of defending Jewish students and employees amid the historic surge in antisemitism following Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks and the ensuing war in Gaza. 

Hosted by the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law, which has filed numerous cases on behalf of Jewish students since the Oct. 7 attacks, the National Legal Strategy Summit features speakers including Harmeet Dhillon, the assistant U.S. attorney general for civil rights; Jeffrey Morrison, the deputy assistant U.S. attorney general; U.S. District Judge Roy Altman; and Noah Pollak, a senior advisor at the Department of Education. 

The conference comes one day after the Trump administration announced that the Education Department’s Office of Civil Rights, which handles Title VI discrimination cases, would be housed in the Justice Department, part of President Donald Trump’s efforts to dismantle the Education Department.

“We’re looking forward to getting the Justice Department perspective because coordination between the government and private organizations are so important,” Ken Marcus, founder and chairman of the Brandeis Center, told Jewish Insider. On Tuesday, Marcus called the OCR move “a significant and promising step forward for civil rights enforcement.” 

Critics have argued that the transfer would weaken civil rights protections because the DOJ focuses on litigation rather than improving systemic issues in schools.  

“OCR has long served as the federal government’s primary guardian of students’ civil rights. At the same time, the Justice Department possesses powerful investigative and litigation tools that can strengthen enforcement when institutions fail to comply with the law. A more integrated approach could bring additional resources, greater consistency, and stronger accountability to civil rights enforcement,” said Marcus. 

Panels will focus on legal strategies to address antisemitism on college campuses, in K-12 classrooms and in the workplace. The summit will also address concerns that have intensified over the past year, such as the growing influence of foreign funding in American education.   

“This is an opportunity to bring together many of the leading litigators in our space. We are now in a place where there are several law firms and legal organizations that have seen the importance of using litigation as one of the central tools for addressing the surge of antisemitism we’ve seen over the last couple of years,” Marcus told JI. “Many of them started with the campus antisemitism lawsuits, but have also expanded to dealing with an array of other issues from elementary and secondary schools to labor unions in the workplace to healthcare.”  

In November 2025, the Brandeis Center hosted its first legal summit in Manhattan for attorneys and heads of Jewish legal organizations. Marcus said the group plans to make the convenings a regular occurrence “in order to avoid problems of discoordination and to make sure everybody is getting the value of the experience and best practices of others.”  

The historic rise of antisemitism brought on by the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks has posed a unique set of challenges to lawyers litigating incidents targeting Jewish students and employees.  

More than 60 attorneys and heads of Jewish legal organizations gathered on Monday for an inaugural legal summit in Manhattan, hosted by the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law, to discuss questions including: how to effectively present a case to a judge that may not have experience with antisemitism or anti-Israel issues; how to determine when free speech turns into harmful conduct; and how lawsuits might change now that the Israel-Hamas war has ended.  

Panels focused on legal strategies for litigation in antisemitism cases involving K-12 schools, college campuses, Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights investigations, labor and employment and investigations into organizations that coordinate and fund antisemitic events. 

Speakers included James Pasch, vice president of litigation at the Anti-Defamation League; Gadi Dotz, assistant director of StandWithUs Center for Legal Justice; and Erik Jaffe, partner at Schaerr Jaffe LLP, who has been involved in more than 150 Supreme Court cases.

“It was an honor to be invited to speak by Brandeis Center, and to share the space with fellow non-profit practitioners, law firm leaders and academics throughout the country,” Pasch, who participated in a panel concerning the persistence of antisemitism on college campuses, and legal remedies to better protect Jewish students, told Jewish Insider. “It is crucial for the betterment of the Jewish community that we come together to share ideas and best practices so that we can collectively advance our mission in the fight against antisemitism.”

Law firms represented at the summit included Greenberg Traurig, LLP; Hangley Aronchick Segal Pudlin & Schiller; Holtzman Vogel Baran Torchinsky & Josefiak PLLC; Kasowitz Law Firm; Mazie Slater Katz Freeman; Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison; White & Case LLP; Torridon Law; Cooley LLP; Arnold & Porter; Covington & Burling; Stein Mitchell Beato & Missner LLP; Akin Gump; Burford Capital; Latham & Watkins LLP; Consovoy McCarthy PLLC; Cohen Williams LLP; Kagan Stern Marinello & Beard, LLC; Lewin & Lewin LLP and Gibson Dunn. 

Many law firms continue to primarily focus on antisemitism at universities, Karen Paikin Barall, chief policy officer at the Brandeis Center, told JI. But the event also highlighted “more cases we’re starting to see in the K-12 space, as well as union and employment issues that were not as prevalent before Oct. 7,” she said.   

“There was significant discussion about what’s emerging across the country,” said Barall. “People are increasingly focused on the connections between various antisemitic actors on campus — how they are funded, how they coordinate, and how these networks operate. Some of that becomes visible through the discovery process in active litigation.”

“By convening everyone and sharing information, it becomes clear that these incidents are not isolated,” she continued. “The encampments look the same, the messaging and posters are nearly identical. There is a broader, organized effort behind many of these situations.”

Amid the ongoing ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, “antisemitism is not going away,” Barall said. “We are seeing it spread into new spaces, including healthcare. A major focus of the summit was ensuring that we are prepared and equipped to confront what comes next.”

The Brandeis Center plans to host similar summits twice a year. “One of the clearest takeaways is that while there are many ways to combat antisemitism, the legal process is extraordinarily effective,” Barall told JI. “The collaboration in the room was remarkable. People often assume different law firms or Jewish organizations are competitive, but there was none of that. The shared purpose was unmistakable.”