The Public Law Center’s legal team is one of the best in the business and the leadership group has a combined 88-year tenure in the public interest arena. In the next few editions of Pro Bono Matters, we will introduce you to the great legal minds ensuring access to justice for Orange County’s low-income residents.
This month, we feature PLC’s Director of Litigation, A. Christian Abasto, and Housing and Homelessness Prevention Unit Lead Attorney, Lili Vo Graham. Both provide leadership on a wide range of programs and issues on PLC’s behalf, but they are the driving force behind our growing Affordable Housing and Homelessness Prevention practice. Check their bios out below and stay tuned for upcoming news on some of their recent accomplishments.
A. Christian Abasto
Since 2011, Christian has been responsible for the development of long-term strategies to maximize the impact of the Public Law Center’s legal work. He is also responsible for the supervision of attorneys in complex litigation and policy advocacy matters.
Christian began his career at the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA) in 1997 as an Equal Justice Works AmeriCorps attorney. Four years later he transferred to the Housing Unit, where he handled complex litigation in State and Federal court on a wide variety of housing issues including rent control and Section 8. Christian was instrumental in assisting tenants assert their rights against landlords and government entities, resulting in significant monetary settlements for the tenants and rehabilitation of slum buildings in the City of Los Angeles. He also advised and assisted government entities and tenant organizing groups in the development and drafting of local and state laws.
Christian handled appeals to the United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, the California Court of Appeal, and the Appellate Division of the Los Angeles Superior Court. Christian was lead counsel in the 9th Circuit published decision in Barrientos v. 1801-1825 Morton LLC, 583 F.3d 1197 (2009), which provided precedent-setting protections for 22 Section 8 tenants in the Los Angeles Echo Park community.
In 2008 Christian became the managing attorney of the Housing and Eviction defense units at LAFLA. Under his leadership the Housing and Eviction defense units nearly doubled in size and substantially increased the quality and quantity of legal services to low-income Angelenos. Because of Christian’s leadership, LAFLA and its partners received a $10 million grant to provide coordinated legal services, social services, and rental assistance. He also played a lead role in the development of an eviction defense representation project in the Los Angeles Superior Court, which was awarded an $8 million grant by the State Bar of California.
Christian received a B.A. from the University of California, San Diego and his J.D. from the University of California, Davis in 1997. He is a fluent Spanish speaker.
Lili Vo Graham
Lili is the Lead Attorney for the Housing and Homelessness Prevention Unit and the Co-Lead Attorney for Operation Veterans Re-Entry at the Public Law Center. Lili and her team provide direct legal services to low-income clients in need of assistance with unlawful detainer/eviction defenses, Section 8 termination hearings, HUD vouchers, and impact litigation. Lili also works with community partners and volunteer attorneys to advocate for low-income residents of Orange County.
In addition, Lili supervises two PLC legal clinics: one at Share Our Selves in Costa Mesa and the other at the Little Saigon Social and Cultural Center in Westminster as part of PLC’s Southeast Asian Legal Outreach Project (SEALOP). At these clinics, PLC and volunteer attorneys provide brief counsel and advice to pro per litigants, with assistance from bilingual staff and volunteers.
Prior to joining PLC, Lili began her legal career as an Assistant Public Defender in Ramsey County, Minnesota. She litigated and tried many misdemeanor and felony cases working with indigent clients faced with criminal charges. She then worked at a private firm here in Orange County practicing civil litigation.
Lili graduated from Wake Forest University in 2003 with a B.A. in Political Science and received her J.D. from the University of New Hampshire in 2006. While in law school, she interned at the Colorado Public Defender’s Office and the Legal Rights Center in Minnesota. Lili is a member of both the California and Minnesota State Bars.