The Clooney Foundation for Justice is starting 2024 with a new executive leadership team.
The organization confirmed today that its board of directors has appointed Emma Lindsay and David Sagal to serve as co-chief executive officers, and Deena Katz as chief operating officer. The team is charged with leading CFJ’s mission to provide free legal support and advocacy to victims of genocide, unlawful imprisonment and other human rights abuses. The appointments are said to be driven by CFJ’s co-founders George and Amal Clooney, who have guided the foundation from inception seven years ago into an organization with influence now in more than 40 countries.
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“We believe CFJ now has the ideal executive team in place to lead it through its next chapter of growth,” said Amal Clooney in a statement. “CFJ is now a global legal support network which provides a beacon of hope for many victims of human rights abuses around the world. George and I are confident that our new executive team has the talent, experience and dynamism needed to grow the foundation’s operations and increase access to justice for victims of crimes against humanity around the world.”
Lindsay will oversee CFJ’s justice programs, which include the Docket (prosecuting perpetrators of mass atrocities), TrialWatch (ensuring fair trials for the persecuted) and Waging Justice for Women (fighting injustice against women and girls). Lindsay, an international lawyer with 20 years of experience, has a speciality in international arbitration, public international law and international human rights law. Most recently, she was a partner at the New York office of Withers, where she was head of international arbitration and public international law practice, and led the global pro bono practice. Lindsay has ties to CJF already as a founding member of the board, and she’s also led pro bono teams working with CFJ.
Sagal will oversee operational matters including finance, human resources and legal. Sagal previously served as general counsel at Warner Bros. Pictures, where he spent time as an attorney specializing in corporate and finance law and as a business affairs and finance executive. Sagal has worked in Bombay, India, Singapore, New York and Los Angeles and served as chairman of the board of the NGO, the Sentry. He is currently chairman of the pro bono committee of the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles.
In her role as COO, Katz will oversee implementation of the strategic and operational objectives of CFJ, with special emphasis on fundraising and communications. Katz is a veteran television producer and philanthropist who has led several social justice movements promoting the rights of women, children, minorities, and the LGBTQ+ community, including founding and co-chairing the Women’s March LA and the March for Our Lives movement. Her credits include Dancing with the Stars, The Masked Singer and Real Time with Bill Maher. For CFJ, she’s overseen production of their Albies events in New York City.
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