The Clooney Foundation for Justice (“CFJ”) announced today that its Board of Directors has appointed a new executive leadership team: Emma Lindsay and David Sagal will serve as Co-Chief Executive Officers, and Deena Katz will serve as the Chief Operating Officer.
The new executive team will lead CFJ in its mission to provide free legal support and advocacy to victims of genocide, unlawful imprisonment, and other human rights abuses throughout the world. The appointments were led by CFJ’s Co-Founders – Amal Clooney and George Clooney – who have guided CFJ from its inception as a modest start-up 7 years ago into an organization waging justice in more than 40 countries.
“We believe CFJ now has the ideal executive team in place to lead it through its next chapter of growth,” said Amal Clooney, Co-Founder of CFJ. “CFJ is now a global legal support network providing a beacon of hope for many victims of human rights abuses around the world. George and I are confident that our new executive team has the talent, experience and dynamism needed to grow the foundation’s operations and increase access to justice for victims of crimes against humanity around the world.”
As co-CEO, Ms. Lindsay will oversee CFJ’s justice programs, which include the Docket (prosecuting perpetrators of mass atrocities), TrialWatch (ensuring fair trials for the persecuted) and Waging Justice for Women (fighting injustice against women and girls). Ms. Lindsay is an international lawyer with 20 years of experience in The Hague, Geneva, and New York, specializing in international arbitration, public international law and international human rights law. Most recently, Ms. Lindsay was a partner at the New York office of law firm Withers, where she was head of the firm’s international arbitration and public international law practice, in addition to leading their global pro bono practice. Ms. Lindsay is a founding member of CFJ’s Board of Directors and has led pro bono teams working with CFJ for many years.
Co-CEO Mr. Sagal will take the lead on operational matters, including finance, human resources and legal. Mr. Sagal is the former General Counsel at Warner Bros. Pictures, where he also spent time as an attorney specializing in corporate and finance law and as a business affairs and finance executive. Mr. Sagal has worked in Bombay, India, Singapore, New York, and Los Angeles and previously served as chairman of the board of the NGO, The Sentry. He is currently the chairman of the pro bono committee of the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles, where he also serves on the Board and the Executive Committee.
In her role as COO, Mrs. Katz will oversee implementation of the strategic and operational objectives of CFJ, with special emphasis on fundraising and communications. Mrs. Katz is a highly successful television producer and philanthropist who has led several social justice movements promoting the rights of women, children, minorities, and the LGBTQ+ community, including founding and co-chairing the Women’s March LA and the March for Our Lives movement. Mrs. Katz has brought her considerable producing talents to bear in her past work with CFJ, including overseeing the production of ‘The Albies’ events in New York since their inception.
About The Clooney Foundation for Justice
All over the world, journalists and human rights defenders are detained, prosecuted, and jailed. Women and girls, LGBTQ+ people, and minorities are subject to unfair laws and targeted for abuse. Meanwhile, perpetrators of massive human rights abuse and atrocities walk free. George and Amal Clooney created the Clooney Foundation for Justice to combat this: by waging justice, one case at a time.
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