Peter Kempner oversees VOLS’ legal department and pro bono program. He joined VOLS as the Senior Law Project Director in May 2018 and moved into his current role as Legal Director in May 2019. He received his J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University in 2001 and was admitted to the New York State Bar in 2002. He received his B.A. in Political Science from the State University of New York College at Purchase in 1996 and he received an M.A. in Political Management from the Graduate School of Political Management at the George Washington University in 1998. He is admitted to practice in the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York and is accredited to practice by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. Prior to working at VOLS he worked in Brooklyn Legal Services’ HIV Unit from 2001 until 2011 as a Senior Staff Attorney and Government Benefits Specialist. In May 2011, he helped found the Veterans Justice Project, an innovative general legal services practice focusing on veterans, active-duty military personnel and their families. In April 2015, Pete became the Director of the Veterans Justice Project and Deputy Director of the Housing Unit at Brooklyn Legal Services where he worked until 2018. He has been a member of the Military and Veterans Affairs Committee of The Association of the Bar of the City of New York since 2019, and served as a member of the Social Welfare Law Committee of The Association of the Bar of the City of New York from 2007 until 2013. Later he served as the Chairperson of the Committee from 2013 until 2016. He served on the Advisory Committee to the Brooklyn Veteran Treatment Court from 2012 until 2018. He is currently a member of the New York State Bar Association’s Committee on Veterans and previously served on the committee from 2013 until 2017. He has served as co-chair of the New York State Bar Association’s Pro Bono Coordinators Network since 2023. He has also served as co-chair of the New York Veterans Law Working Group convened by Fordham University’s School of Law since 2019. In 2022 he was appointed by the Chief Judge of the State of New York to serve on the Attorney Emeritus Advisory Council. He has been a member of the Public Interest Pro Bono Association since 2020. He is also an Adjunct Clinical Professor at New York Law School where he created and has taught their Veterans Justice Clinic since 2015. In 2022 he received the Association of the Bar of the City of New York’s Legal Services Award in recognition of his work in providing civil legal assistance to indigent clients in New York City and his contribution to equal access to justice.