BPDA partners directly with defender offices to co-create customized trainings that strengthen the skills every defender needs to excel. Each program is developed through an antiracist lens, grounded in the belief that great advocacy requires both technical excellence and a deep awareness of how race and bias operate in the criminal legal system.
BPDA works collaboratively with each office to design trainings that meet their goals, capacity, and schedule. We can start with a 90-minute to 2-hour framework and build from there—expanding into half- or full-day programs, multi-session series, or shorter, 60-minute introductions when time is limited. The format and depth of each training are shaped by your office’s priorities, allowing for the right balance of learning, discussion, and practice.
BPDA trainings are designed to build defender skills while also equipping participants to recognize and address the role of race and bias in their work. Some sessions focus explicitly on antiracism; others teach core lawyering skills through that same lens. Together, they help defenders deliver advocacy that is both excellent and responsive to the realities of the system.
BPDA curates and designs trainings across the topic areas below, tailoring each to the specific needs, goals, and culture of your office. These represent the foundation of BPDA’s training portfolio, but they are not exhaustive—if you don’t see exactly what you’re looking for, BPDA can collaborate with you to design a custom program.
This area focuses on building a shared foundation for antiracist advocacy in defense practice. Trainings explore how race and bias operate in legal representation and workplace culture, with attention to recognizing and interrupting bias, responding to racial aggressions, and applying an intersectional lens to client advocacy. Participants also develop tools for engaging in conversations about race with confidence, clarity, and care, grounded in both professional responsibility and lived experience.
This category centers on integrating race-conscious approaches into core defense skills used in everyday practice. Trainings examine how race shapes client relationships, case narratives, and credibility assessments, and offer strategies for strengthening advocacy through intentional storytelling and trust-building. Sessions may also address the strategic use of social science and other contextual evidence to support race-based arguments and deepen the overall effectiveness of defense advocacy.
This area highlights training focused on advocacy beyond individual cases, emphasizing the defender’s role in community engagement and systemic change. Topics include partnering with community organizations, supporting efforts to promote diverse and representative juries, and engaging in outreach and public education. Trainings also explore ways defenders can identify patterns of harm and contribute to broader reform efforts aimed at advancing justice outside the courtroom.
This category focuses on strengthening defender offices and organizations to support sustained antiracist practice. Trainings address strategies for recruiting and retaining Black defenders, fostering inclusive and supportive workplace cultures, and building internal leadership. Participants also explore approaches to developing internal trainers and creating structures that allow antiracist training and advocacy to continue and grow over time.
