After nearly a decade of service as the head of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Sherrilyn Ifill is stepping down from her role.  

Ifill, a prominent civil rights lawyer, will leave her position as the organization’s president in the spring. Janai Nelson, who currently serves as the organization’s associate director-counsel, will succeed Ifill.  

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“I have given this work my all, and I am proud of our accomplishments, including our increased growth and strength,” Ifill said. “But I am most proud of the leadership role LDF has played during one of the most volatile periods for civil rights in recent memory.”  

Ifill joined the organization in 1988 as Assistant Counsel. In 2013, she became the seventh president and Director-Counsel, according to the organization. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in 2021, the Spirit of Excellence Award by the American Bar Association and Attorney of the Year by The American Lawyer.  

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The NAACP Legal Defense Fund has functioned separately from the NAACP since the 1950s, The Hill reported. It has been an active advocate on several key issues impacting Black Americans, including voting rights, inequity in education, economic disparities, racial discrimination in the criminal legal system and civil rights violations.  

The organization also publicly criticized former President Donald Trump. It sued his administration for banning federal agencies from conducting diversity training.  

Ifill’s successor Nelson is ready to take the Legal Defense Fund into a new chapter. “LDF is unparalleled in its contributions to the cause of racial justice over the past 81 years and in the evolution and protection of civil rights for Black people,” Nelson said. “As LDF emerges from the profound metamorphosis of the past nine years under Sherrilyn’s leadership, I am honored to steward LDF’s next chapter with the skill, vision, care and courage it demands.”  

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