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New England’s leading legal rights organization dedicated to ending discrimination based on
sexual orientation, HIV status and gender identity and expression.
The AIDS Law Project works to protect the rights of people living with and affected by HIV and AIDS.
Although the face of the HIV/AIDS epidemic has changed dramatically since GLAD founded its AIDS Law Project in 1984, the need for strong legal protections is as critical as ever.
People with HIV continue to face severe discrimination in employment, housing and other areas. They may be denied health care based on irrational fears of HIV transmission, or have their HIV status disclosed illegally. And new problems are emerging. People with HIV are now living long enough to be refused appropriate care for unrelated medical needs, such as organ transplants, based on their HIV status. Individuals who return to work after long stretches away from the job market face tough questions and suspicion. Others are not able to go back to work due to severe fatigue or illness caused by HIV medications, yet disability insurance providers attempt to strip them of coverage because they appear clinically stable.
Today, HIV infection is on the rise again after many years of decrease, with major disparities based on race or ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation. We are all being hit hard. While blacks and Hispanics make up only 12% of the population, they account for half of all HIV/AIDS cases; Male-to-male sexual contact accounts for more than half of the cases recently diagnosed among men, and gay youth under the age of 22 are among the most at risk; women’s infection rates are soaring, with 59% being infected through heterosexual sex; and injection drug use leads to 30% of all infections.
Strong legal protections for people living with HIV are essential prerequisites to effective risk-reduction and prevention strategies. By fighting discrimination based on HIV status, protecting people’s privacy, and improving access to information about HIV-related legal issues, GLAD’s AIDS Law Project continues to help turn the tide and strengthen the health of our communities.
Case Managers and Medical or Social Service Providers: Contact us at 617-426-1350 for information about scheduling an in-service training on GLAD’s AIDS Law Project and HIV-related legal issues.
Subscribe to the AIDS Law Project's Quarterly E-Newsletter - breaking news, hotline Q&A's, and information about GLAD's new projects and upcoming events designed especially for HIV medical and social service providers and consumers

Pending • AIDS Law Project •
For the second time GLAD has filed a lawsuit against a New… Read More
Settled • AIDS Law Project • January 11, 2010
GLAD negotiated a successful settlement on behalf of our client after Harvard… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • September 1, 2009
Victory! GLAD Announced a settlement in this case on September 1, 2009.… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • February 19, 2008
On February 19, 2008, the Massachusetts Court of Appeals ruled in favor… Read More
Loss • AIDS Law Project • December 31, 2003
In 2000, GLAD filed a brief in a Middlesex Superior Court criminal… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • December 31, 2002
In a major victory for public health programs that stem the tide… Read More
Loss • AIDS Law Project • December 31, 2002
GLAD filed a friend of the court brief urging the U.S. Supreme… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • January 1, 2002
GLAD settled a case against a doctor who refused to provide in-office… Read More
Loss • AIDS Law Project • December 31, 2001
In a disappointing decision, the United States Court of Appeals in Boston… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • May 31, 2001
In this case, in May 2001, the Mass. Supreme Judicial Court ruled… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • January 1, 2001
In the first legal ruling of its kind in the country, GLAD… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • January 1, 2001
GLAD, with co-counsel Stephen Rosenfeld and Mala Rafik, won the restoration of… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • January 1, 2001
GLAD won a favorable settlement in a case filed at the Massachusetts… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • December 31, 2000
GLAD obtained clarification from the Board of Registration of Cosmetology that an… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • December 31, 2000
A single justice of the Supreme Judicial Court issued an opinion strongly… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • December 31, 2000
GLAD negotiated an agreement with the Department of Social Services that it… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • January 1, 2000
GLAD won a change in the practice of the Nashua Housing Authority,… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • December 31, 1999
GLAD won the restoration of disability insurance benefits for a Portland man… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • January 1, 1999
GLAD succeeded in obtaining proper medical care and medications for an HIV-positive… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • January 1, 1999
GLAD successfully resolved a lawsuit against a hospital that violated the HIV… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • December 31, 1998
In its first case addressing HIV, the United States Supreme Court ruled… Read More
Victory • AIDS Law Project • January 1, 1996
GLAD obtained a $10,000 judgment in Suffolk Superior Court against a surgeon… Read More
The more people know their LGBT and HIV+ family, friends, and neighbors, the more likely they are to support our rights and help us work toward full equality. Read More
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