Our Mission
We represent people who have been harmed by the criminal legal system and fight to vindicate their rights, hold people with power accountable, and transform the system.
We believe in a legal system that treats every person with dignity—as a human being—regardless of their social or economic power. Regardless of their race or identity.
— Amir Ali
Executive Director
In 1985, one part time attorney in a small office in Niles, Illinois started this organization by taking on the state’s death penalty. Over 35 years later, the MacArthur Justice Center has attorneys in five states litigating cases all over the country at every level of the federal judicial system.
Roderick MacArthur
Roderick MacArthur, an innovator and successful entrepreneur, channeled much of his business proceeds to diverse social justice and human rights causes.
He would pass his lifelong passion for reform onto his children – Greg, Solange and Rick. Sharing their father’s dedication to social justice and human rights, Roderick’s children founded the MacArthur Justice Center in his memory.
I know you know that my time is short. I wish I could be with you, shoulder to shoulder, in all the coming battles. But I have to be content with our footprints briefly mingling on the line of march. There is much to do. I am reassured by the knowledge that any empty ranks I and others leave will be filled by those who believe that civil liberties are not just a means but the essence of ourselves as humans.
— J. Roderick MacArthur
Solange MacArthur
Solange MacArthur, like her brothers, inherited Roderick’s deeply felt commitment to social justice. A woman of diverse talents – a medical doctor and a surgeon, an accomplished classical ballerina – she was also a steadfast advocate for the poor and the vulnerable. Her fierce commitment to social justice helped shape the mission of the MacArthur Justice Center.
At her untimely death, Solange’s bequest to the Justice Center ensures that the organization will live on – and continue to grow. Our work honors her memory and reflects her compassion.
Amir Ali
Executive Director
In 2022, Amir Ali was appointed the Executive Director of the MacArthur Justice Center, having previously served as Director of the organization’s Washington D.C. office and Deputy Director of the U.S. Supreme Court and Appellate Program. Ali has devoted his career to civil rights and racial justice issues in federal courts, including successfully arguing multiple landmark cases in the U.S. Supreme Court. He also teaches at Harvard Law School.
Meet Our TeamEvery day, we fight for real solutions to the problems with our criminal legal system.