Ellen Hemley brings close to 30 years of experience in the equal justice community to her role as CLAE's first Executive Director. Under Ellen's leadership, CLAE provides advocates nationally with better tools, a more cohesive network, and a broader vision through which they can help low income clients gain greater control over the institutions that shape their lives.

Prior to launching CLAE, Ellen was Director of Training at the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute where, among other things, she oversaw CLAE’s predecessor, the Legal Services Training Consortium of New England. She also served for many years as an independent consultant; her clients included the American Bar Association, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, the Florida Bar Foundation, the Washington Access to Justice Commission, the Jewish Community Relations Council, the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition, the Massachusetts Union of Public Housing Tenants, and scores of other legal aid networks, bar foundations and justice-related programs across the country.

Ellen has presented leadership development courses nationally and internationally. Her work as a consultant and trainer has been featured in many publications, including Management Information Exchange, the Shriver Center's Poverty Law Manual for the New Lawyer, the Legal Services Corporation's Equal Justice Magazine, Massachusetts Lawyer's Weekly, the American Bar Association's Dialogue Newsletter and various law review journals. She is a 1981 graduate of Northeastern University School of Law.