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.
Topics include recognizing and interrupting bias, addressing racial aggressions in practice and workplace culture, applying intersectionality to client representation, and navigating conversations about race with confidence and care.
Integrating race-conscious approaches into core defender skills such as client relationship building, storytelling, and the strategic use of social science data to strengthen race-based advocacy.
Partnering with communities, promoting diverse juries, and advancing justice beyond the courtroom through outreach, education, and systemic reform efforts.
Building capacity within defender offices to sustain antiracist practice over time. Topics include strategies to recruit and retain Black defenders, foster supportive and inclusive workplace cultures, and develop internal trainers and leaders who can design and deliver impactful antiracist trainings.
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