Brown Goldstein & Levy is proud to recognize May as Mental Health Awareness Month and support efforts to combat stigma, provide support, educate the public, and advocate for policies that uplift individuals with mental health disabilities.
BGL is a national leader in breaking down barriers that people with disabilities face.
BGL represented 14 unhoused veterans in a class action lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) demanding the VA provide permanent supportive housing on and around its West Los Angeles campus for thousands of homeless veterans with serious mental illness, traumatic brain injury or post-traumatic stress disorder. In September 2024, a U.S. District Court judge sided with the plaintiffs, ruling that the VA violated its mandate to end veteran homelessness when it leased land on its West Los Angeles campus to third-parties.
The court ordered the VA to build 750 temporary housing units within 12 to 18 months and gave the agency six months to plan another 1,800 units of permanent housing. He also ordered the agency to begin construction within 18 months on a town center and wellness area for veterans on the nearly 400-acre campus.
The firm also represented Gary Montgomery, a man with mental illness who was targeted by the District of Columbia Metropolitan Police Department and interrogated while in a mental health crisis without any accommodations. This led to his incarceration in St. Elizabeths mental hospital for five years, after which he was acquitted of the murder he was accused of. BGL’s commitment to ending the stigma and advocating for the rights of individuals with mental health disabilities extends beyond the courtroom. Partner Eve Hill chairs the Board of Trustees for the Judge David L. Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, a national legal advocacy organization advancing and protecting the civil rights of adults and children with mental disabilities.
Brown, Goldstein & Levy is proud to advocate for the rights of individuals with mental health disabilities, ensure their stories are told, and work hard to end the stigma for good.
Learn more about our disability rights practice here.
Founded in 1982, Brown Goldstein & Levy is a law firm based in Baltimore, Maryland, with an office in Washington, D.C. The firm is nationally recognized in a wide variety of practice areas, including complex civil and commercial litigation, civil rights, health care, family law, and criminal defense. Above all else, Brown, Goldstein & Levy is a client-centered law firm that brings decades of experience and passionate, effective advocacy to your fight for justice.