STAFF
Charity Ryerson
Executive director, founder Charity@corpaccountabilitylab.org
Charity Ryerson is an attorney, legal designer, activist and strategist with two decades of experience fighting corporate abuse around the globe. She is the Executive Director and Founder of Corporate Accountability Lab, where she leads a team of committed advocates who design, prototype and test new strategies to protect the world and her inhabitants from corporate misconduct. Before CAL, Charity litigated complex international human rights cases under the Alien Tort Statute, Torture Victim Protection Act and state tort law. Her passion for clean supply chains was ignited by the student anti-sweatshop movement, which occupied much of her time while pursuing her Political Science B.A. from Loyola Chicago. In 2003, she served six months in federal prison for civil disobedience at the U.S. Army School of the Americas, where she worked in a prison factory for 12 cents per hour. She has extensive experience in labor and human rights monitoring, anti-union violence investigations, and support for labor organizing in Central and South America. She graduated cum laude from Georgetown Law and is admitted to practice in D.C. and Illinois, and before the U.S. Supreme Court. She teaches Business and Human Rights at Northwestern Pritzker School of Law, and in 2021, she received the International Corporate Accountability Roundtable’s Gwynne Skinner Human Rights Award. She is fluent in Spanish, has two rambunctious children, and loves Chicago enough to tolerate the brutal winters.
Avery kelly
Senior staff attorney avery@corpaccountabilitylab.org
At CAL, Avery co-develops new strategies for corporate accountability through cross-jurisdictional solidarity building and collaboration. Her passion for international social justice stems from her time in Alabama, where she was born and raised, and where she first learned about structural oppression and the power of resistance movements. In 2014, Avery graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in International & Global Studies and minors in Spanish and Women’s & Gender Studies from Sewanee: The University of the South. She received a J.D. and Certificate in Refugees and Humanitarian Emergencies from Georgetown Law in 2019. While at Georgetown, Avery participated in an immigration/asylum clinic and practicums on business and human rights and impact litigation. She was awarded the Marcos and Ida Kerschner Prize for her essay connecting labor rights abuse in Mexico to forced migration to the United States. Avery speaks Spanish and is admitted to practice law in Illinois. She is based in Portland, Oregon, where she can be found hiking with her rescue pup or watching cooking shows.
Allie Brudney
Senior staff attorney allie@corpaccountabilitylab.org
Allie Brudney is a Senior Staff Attorney at Corporate Accountability Lab. She first joined CAL as a legal intern and then returned as a Justice Catalyst Legal Fellow after law school. At CAL, Allie’s work focuses on combating forced labor in global supply chains. Prior to law school, Allie lived in Berlin for four years, where she was a Fulbright Research Scholar studying Jewish identity and immigration in contemporary Germany, and where she earned a master’s degree in North American Studies from the Free University in Berlin. Allie graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in History and German from Middlebury College in 2011 and earned her law degree from Harvard Law School in 2019. Allie is fluent in German, speaks some Yiddish, and is admitted to practice law in Illinois.
Alev Erhan
Staff Attorney alev@corpaccountabilitylab.org
Prior to joining CAL in January 2024, Alev worked in the field of transnational strategic litigation at the European Center for Constitutional and Civil Rights in Berlin. Her area of focus included combatting double standards in international criminal law, particularly in the context of conflict and occupation. As a student advocate in law school, she worked with the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots calling for the prohibition of fully autonomous weapons systems and engaged in strategic litigation at the intersections of national security, immigration and criminal law. Alev earned a B.A. in International Relations at the University of Pennsylvania, an M.Sc. in Conflict Studies at the London School of Economics and a J.D. from Harvard Law School. She is admitted to practice in New York and is currently based in Chicago, where you can find her exploring new restaurants, hoarding books and planning her next road trip.
Dean Pinkert
Special Advisor Dean@corpaccountabilitylab.org
Dean Pinkert joined Corporate Accountability Lab in November 2021 as Special Advisor. His background includes private practice as a labor lawyer and government service in international trade law and policy. As an advocate for public employees who lacked collective bargaining rights, he relied on administrative litigation to give voice to his clients. As a Commissioner on the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), he notably dissented in Samsung v Apple, leading to the first Presidential veto of an ITC decision in more than 25 years, and fought to ensure recognition of the critical economic significance of global climate change. Born and raised in Chicago, Dean earned his B.A. with High Honors in Government and Phi Beta Kappa from Oberlin College, his J.D. with Honors from University of Texas School of Law (Hook ‘em Horns!), and an LLM with Merit from the London School of Economics and Political Science. He is admitted to practice in D.C., and lives in Northern Virginia with his wife Susan and his two almost-grown children. Dean’s devotion to his family, including Lucky-the-dog, fortunately outweighs his dedication to fantasy football, which is itself considerable.
NADIA EL FAHDI
OFFICE COORDINATOR
NADIA@CORPACCOUNTABILITYLAB.ORG
Nadia El Fahdi joined CAL as an Office Coordinator in May 2023. She is a social activist who has founded three non-profit organizations in Morocco that tackled important social issues such as poverty, education, human rights, and gender equality. Nadia has been honored with the "Women Pioneers Award" from the Ministry of Youth, Culture, and Communication in Morocco for her work in this area. She has also accomplished many other successful projects and programs, including building the first daycare in a Morocco prison for pregnant women or women accompanied by their babies. Nadia's interdisciplinary background, combined with her Project Management Professional (PMP) and Data Analytics certifications from Google, gives her the versatility to drive sustainable solutions and empower marginalized groups through data-driven insights. She has a Bachelor's degree in French Language & Literature and holds an MBA in Finance. She is also fluent in Arabic and French. In her free time, Nadia enjoys taking walks with her son and dog Rocky, along the beautiful Lakefront trail.
MOLLY PACHAY
PROGRAM OFFICER
MOLLY@CORPACCOUNTABILITYLAB.ORG
Molly Pachay joined CAL in January 2024 as Program Officer, managing communications, individual fundraising, and supporting project management. She is a Chicago area native with a B.A. in Sociology and certificate in Community Action & Public Policy from Connecticut College. For the past decade, she has been working in the hospitality industry, doing everything from bartending to event management to communications. In 2020, Molly was a founding member of a small nonprofit that focuses on corporate accountability in the restaurant industry and organizing workers. This work ultimately led her to CAL and its expansive mission. She brings her experience in community engagement, communications, design, and project management to this role. Outside of work, she enjoys constantly redesigning her little apartment, riding her bike, and throwing elaborate dinner parties.