ALBUQUERQUE, NM—Today, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico announced the hiring of its new legal director, Eliza Bechtold, JD, LLM. Eliza comes to the ACLU of New Mexico from Oregon, where she worked as a litigation attorney and as a prominent pro bono advocate serving domestic violence victims and Legal Aid clients.
“We are thrilled to bring Eliza Bechtold on board to lead the ACLU of New Mexico’s legal efforts,” said ACLU of New Mexico Executive Director Peter Simonson. “Eliza’s extensive litigation experience and passion for public interest legal work make her an exciting new addition to our team. We look forward to working with her to continue the ACLU of New Mexico’s proud 54 year tradition of fighting for justice and liberty in New Mexico’s courts.”
Eliza, who received her JD from Hastings College of Law in San Francisco, CA, recently received her Masters of Laws from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), where she focused her studies on national and international human rights and wrote her dissertation on the American and European approaches to regulating hate speech. She began her career as a litigation associate at the internationally known firm DLA Piper LLP in East Palo Alto, California, and went on to manage large-scale litigation at firms in San Francisco and Portland, Oregon. Eliza also brings extensive public interest law experience via her pro bono work, which includes serving as a volunteer attorney for Legal Aid Services of Oregon and partnering with Bay Area Legal Aid and other public interest organizations in advising socio-economically disadvantaged individuals on a range of legal issues. During her time in Oregon, Eliza also served as a board member for NARAL Pro-Choice Oregon, a non-profit organization dedicated protecting the full range of women’s reproductive and privacy rights.
While at the LSE, Eliza co-founded a postgraduate pro bono group focusing on national and international human rights issues, based at the LSE Law Department. As part of her work with the group, Eliza co-authored a submission to the United Nations regarding women, peace, and security and partnered with the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute to update its Annual Human Rights Report.
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