Catherine Bendor
Director of Litigation
Area of expertise: Civil rights litigation (including employment, housing, and other areas); Sexual harassment and sexual assault; Economic justice and poverty policy reform; Advocacy for survivors of domestic violence
You want to get to know her because:
- Catherine has decades of experience litigating impact and individual cases to protect and advance civil rights and economic justice, in addition to engaging in policy advocacy and public education.
- She previously served as Special Litigation Counsel and Deputy Chief in the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. There, Catherine led numerous federal court anti-discrimination cases, including lawsuits challenging sexual harassment by housing providers or discrimination based on familial status, and a large-scale investigation to address the sexual abuse of incarcerated women by correctional staff in a state prison.
- Prior to the DOJ, Catherine spent seven years doing impact litigation, policy advocacy, and public education to protect and expand rights of low-income individuals, including advocating for domestic violence survivors as the Legal Director and as a Staff Attorney at the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty (now the National Homelessness Law Center).
- In her advocacy efforts to advance gender, racial, and economic justice, Catherine has worked to build power among movement partners, analyzed federal and local government policies, conducted research, and provided numerous trainings and presentations for the public.
Alumna of:
- Catherine received her J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School, where she was a managing editor of the Harvard Civil-Rights Civil Liberties Law Review and a member of the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau.
- She received her B.A., magna cum laude, from Cornell University.
Outside of work:
- Catherine loves to travel, being outdoors, and spending time with her family at their home in the D.C. area and elsewhere.