It’s hard enough to muster the courage and strength to leave an abusive spouse.

Especially if there are kids in the mix, making the bold decision to flee domestic violence is extraordinarily difficult.

For women who do make that painful choice, they often find the abuses they had to sustain in marriage multiply as they face not only ongoing threats from the former spouse but also new threats of legal, financial, psychological, and emotional abuse, including the terrifying risk of losing children in a custody battle.

At Lady Liberty Legal, we protect the legal rights of domestic violence survivors by providing top-tier legal services designed to take financial pressure and emotional stress off women trying to escape domestic abuse and start anew. Our nonprofit legal collective based in Austin, Texas is the first organization of its kind to offer full legal representation of victims of domestic violence while putting an end to the legal abuse of survivors.

At Lady Liberty Legal, we believe the last thing an abuse victim wants or needs is to represent herself in court when she has little to no legal experience and is still entrenched in trauma. While most legal nonprofits geared toward survivors of domestic abuse provide only legal resources and education geared toward pro se (self) representation, we offer legal representation of women fighting for their freedom while maintaining custody of their children after a divorce from an abusive ex-spouse.

Domestic abuse is often perpetuated and replayed in our justice system and family court. Abusive litigation can arise in a number of different contexts, including family law proceedings, protection order proceedings, and frivolous lawsuits initiated by batterers with the goal of prolonging court proceedings to inflict financial and emotional harm.

We work to ensure stay-at-home moms and moms with low-to-moderate incomes stop losing custody of their children because they can’t afford to battle an affluent ex-partner looking to sabotage the woman he abused while draining her of all her resources.

Through our innovative subscription model, members of our legal collective receive full legal representation for a flat monthly rate. Our affordable packages start with the option to receive reduced-rate representation not to exceed $100 per hour. Our members also qualify to apply for support from our pro bono partners and can apply for hardship grants.

Our work is possible thanks to our staff attorneys, who contribute their knowledge and skill to provide women with full representation, protecting them from exorbitant litigation fees and further legal abuse as they recover. Our ultimate mission is for the women we represent to rebuild their lives so they can invest in their children’s futures. Just as “Lady Liberty” promised immigrants crossing the shores of our great nation freedom, justice, and equality, we want to offer the women we serve the same sense of liberation and justice as they thrive in their newfound freedom.