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Iván Espinoza-Madrigal

Executive Director

Iván Espinoza-Madrigal is the Executive Director of Lawyers for Civil Rights (LCR) in Boston, an organization founded at the request of President John F. Kennedy in the 1960s at the height of the Civil Rights Movement. LCR is one of the largest and oldest organizations in New England advancing legal and policy initiatives at the intersection of racial justice, immigration, public health, and entrepreneurship. LCR is a recent MacKenzie Scott grant recipient.

Best known for his work at the intersection of civil rights and immigration, Iván has more than 20 years of experience in complex federal and appellate litigation. He has represented a wide range of clients, as both plaintiffs and defendants, in the corporate and non-profit sectors. His work spans immigration, education, housing, workplace justice, voting rights, public health, entrepreneurship, and LGBTQ+ rights.

Iván is an expert in legal protections for people of color and immigrants. He has filed and won dozens of life-changing and law-changing cases across the country. He regularly advises policymakers on the legal needs of marginalized communities. His work has been featured in outlets such as The New York Times and in documentary films, including Martha’s Vineyard v. DeSantis (MSNBC). He has been recognized as “Lawyer of the Year” by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly and “Bostonian of the Year” by The Boston Globe.

A sought-after thought leader, Iván is a nationally recognized voice on racial justice and immigration. He centers the legal needs of people at the intersection of race, sexual orientation, gender identity, and immigration status. He has also delivered convocation remarks at universities.

Early in his career, Iván worked as an associate at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson in New York, handling securities litigation for corporate clients. He also worked with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) on civil rights cases in San Antonio, Texas.

At a pivotal time in the movement for LGBTQ+ equality, Iván joined Lambda Legal to advance marriage equality and support LGBTQ+ people of color. He later served as Legal Director of the Center for HIV Law and Policy, focusing on the legal needs of people living with HIV.

Iván clerked for Judge Ronald Ellis in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, and Judge Eric Clay in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Detroit, Michigan.

A summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, he received a Juris Doctor from NYU School of Law, where he was a Root-Tilden-Kern Scholar. In 2023, he received an honorary doctorate from Cambridge College.

Iván currently serves on the Board of Ambassadors of Eastern Bank; the Board of Directors of the New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA); the Advisory Board of the Institute of Contemporary Art / Boston; and the Governing Council of the Mass Cultural Council. He also serves on the Board of Trustees of Crossroads, a youth empowerment summer camp.

Iván is the author of Obie’s Adventures in the Berkshires, a 2024 Next Generation Indie Book Awards finalist for LGBTQ+ Fiction.

Academic Appointments:

  • Senior Fellow in Residence, Rappaport Center for Law and Public Policy, Boston College Law School (2021)
  • Visiting Researcher, Immigration Clinic, University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law (2021)

Honors & Awards:

  • Honorary Doctorate, Cambridge College (2023)
  • Bostonian of the Year, Boston Globe (2023)
  • Lawyer of the Year, Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly (2022)
  • Boston’s 100 Most Influential People, Boston Magazine (2021 & 2023)
  • Top Lawyers, Boston Magazine (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 & 2025)
  • Impacto Award, American Bar Association (2026)
  • President’s Award, Boston Bar Association (2020 & 2023)
  • Beacon Award, Boston Bar Association (2017)
  • Top 40 Under 40, Boston Business Journal (2018)
  • LGBT Trailblazer Award, Boston Business Journal (2025)
  • Community Advocacy Award, Eastern Bank Foundation (2025)
  • Ohtli Award, Government of Mexico (2021)
  • Alfonso García Robles Award, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) (2023)
  • Martin Luther King Award in Social Justice, University of Pennsylvania (2018)
  • Boston’s 100 Most Influential People of Color
  • Boston’s 50 Most Influential Attorneys of Color
  • Boston’s 50 Most Influential Men of Color
  • Boston’s 25 Most Influential LGBTQ+ People of Color
  • Portraits of Pride, Boston LGBTQ+ Museum of Art, History & Culture (2024)
  • Top 100 Most Influential People, Poz Magazine (2022)
  • Powermeter: 100 Most Influential People for the Latino Community, El Planeta (2017)
  • Ally of the Year, Centro Presente
  • Champion of Public Education, Citizens for Public Schools (2026)
  • Founder’s Award, The Welcome Project (2024)
  • Fair Housing Open Door Champion Award, CHAPA (2023)
  • ALX 100, Top 100 Latinx Leaders, Amplify Latinx (2023)
  • Social Justice Award, ACEDONE (2022)
  • Community Champion Award, MIRA (2022)
  • Inspiring Leader Award, Hyde Square Task Force (2021)
  • Progressive Leadership Award, Progressive Massachusetts (2021)
  • Hispanic Heritage Month Latinx Amplifier, Amplify Latinx
  • Hispanic Heritage Month Recognition, Hispanic National Bar Association (HNBA)
  • Honorary Lifetime Membership, MAMLEO
  • Top 100 Influencers: Rising Stars Across The Nation, The Business Journals (2018)
  • Community Service Award, Brazilian Workers’ Center (2018)
  • 50 For 50 Honoree, Inquilinos Boricuas en Acción (IBA) (2018)
  • Edwin D. Wolf Award, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (2018)
  • 21st Century Fellow, Rockwood Leadership Institute
  • 40 Under 40 Rising Stars, NYU School of Law
  • LaLSA Alumni Recognition Award, NYU School of Law (2021)
  • OUTLaw Alumnus of the Year Award, NYU School of Law (2016)
  • Community Service Award, Queens Pride House (2014)
  • Best LGBT Lawyers Under 40, National LGBT Bar Association (2012)