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Center on Civil Justice

The Center on Civil Justice is dedicated to the US civil justice system and the continued fulfillment of its purpose. 

The Center brings together the unmatched strengths of the NYU Law faculty in the fields of procedure and complex litigation with the sophisticated practitioners and judges who make up our Board of Advisers. Together we endeavor to support our civil courts as a place for people to fairly and efficiently resolve their problems and access justice.

The Center's faculty directors are Professors Samuel Issacharoff, Arthur Miller, and Geoffrey Miller. It is directed by Hon. Beverly Martin, previously a US Circuit judge. The Center’s work on access to justice is led by Janet Sabel, whose work in government and as a public interest lawyer uniquely equips her to support courts in their efforts toward reform. The Center has an advisory board made up of cutting-edge practitioners, as well as thought leaders from the judiciary. The chair of the Board of Advisers is Sheila Birnbaum '65. The Center brings together scholars, practicing lawyers, judges, court administrators, and others to track developments in our civil justice system and offer support and solutions for these changing times. 

Upcoming Events

September 12, 2025 
MDL in Motion: Evolving Practices, Emerging Leaders, and Reform 
The Center on Civil Justice will partner with the American Law Institute for this event, which will take place at NYU and  feature five panels comprised of America's foremost experts in multidistrict litigation, in addition to a lunchtime keynote discussion between Professors Sam Issacharoff and Arthur Miller on "MDLs from Inception to Opioids."

September 26th and 27th 2025
2025 International Access to Justice Forum (IA2J Forum)
NYU Law and Fordham University School of Law, together with the National Center on Access to Justice, the Stein Center for Law and Ethics, the Feerick Center for Social Justice, the Robert and Helen Bernstein Institute for Human Rights, and the Center on Civil Justice, are pleased to announce that the 2025 International Access to Justice Forum (IA2J Forum) will take place at our two schools in New York City on September 26th and 27th 2025. More information is available here, and you can sign up for information on how to submit a proposal here.

 

Recent Events

CCJ recently hosted two successful conferences:

Recent Legislative Responses to Litigation Finance contained lively debates over active legislation on the subject of third-party litigation funding, and it was covered in American Lawyer.  

Mass Actions: Bankruptcies, MDLs, Class Actions & Harrington v. Purdue featured first-hand accounts of the Purdue multi-district litigation and bankruptcy cases and surfaced previously unknown facts and arguments about the development of those cases and the ensuing legal precedent. 

More about Events

Our Work

Access to Justice Initiative

In the United States today, 50 to 90 percent of litigants now appearing in state civil courts do not have lawyers or meaningful access to the resources they need. 

Supporting Complex Litigation

CCJ’s founding principle was to serve as a forum for addressing critical problems in complex civil litigation, and it remains a leader in this space today. 

Third Party Litigation Funding and Dispute Financing Library

As part of its work bringing leaders and innovators together to explore the impact and define the policies around Third Party Litigation Funding, CCJ created and maintains the most comprehensive  public library of documents related to the third-party funding industry in the country. 

Contact Us