Carmelyn P Malalis

Carmelyn P. Malalis was appointed Commissioner and Chair of the New York City Commission on Human Rights (the Commission) in November 2014, by Mayor Bill de Blasio following more than a decade in private practice as an advocate for employees’ rights in the workplace. Ms. Malalis has a dedicated history of combating prejudice, intolerance, discrimination and harassment through her representation of employees from a variety of industries and income levels, work with employers’ advocates, and collaborations with community groups, non-profit organizations and bar associations. As Commissioner and Chair of the Commission, Ms. Malalis leads an agency with the dual roles of investigating complaints of discrimination and retaliation in employment, housing and public accommodations; and providing outreach, education and training to the public to prevent discrimination before it occurs and avert intergroup tension. CCHR leads New York City’s efforts to enforce the New York City Human Rights Law, educate the public about the law, and work with governmental and non-governmental agencies and organizations with similar functions. Prior to her appointment, Ms. Malalis was a partner at Outten & Golden LLP. She joined the firm in 2004 and represented individuals and classes of employees in New York City and across the country in civil rights and employment actions. At the firm, she co-founded and co-chaired its Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Workplace Rights Practice Group; co-chaired its Disability and Family Responsibilities Discrimination Practice Group; and successfully represented employees in negotiations, agency proceedings, and litigations involving claims of sexual harassment, retaliation, and discrimination based on race, national origin, sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, pregnancy, disability, and religious discrimination. Previously, Ms. Malalis worked as a litigation associate at Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, and for the Honorable Magistrate Judge Ronald L. Ellis on the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Throughout her career, Ms. Malalis has demonstrated her commitment to promoting diversity and inclusion, and challenging discrimination and intolerance through her numerous speaking engagements, collaborations with educational institutions and bar associations, pro bono legal assistance she has provided to legal services and non-profit organizations, and cooperative working relationships she has forged with counsel representing employers. She is currently a member of the New York City Bar Association's Executive Committee and has held a variety of leadership roles with other groups, including co-chairing the Committee on Diversity in the Legal Profession of the American Bar Association’s Labor and Employment Law Section, serving on the advisory committee of the LGBT Rights Project at the Human Rights Watch, chairing the City Bar’s Committee on LGBT Rights, co-founding and serving on the board of BABAE Inc., and serving on the board of Queers for Economic Justice. She was also a longtime member of the National Employment Lawyers Association and its New York affiliate, and has been a member of the New York State Bar Association, the National Lesbian & Gay Law Association, and the Lesbian & Gay Law Association of Greater New York. In recognition of her professionalism, commitment to civil rights and human rights, and her contributions to different marginalized communities, Ms. Malalis has been awarded numerous honors throughout her career, including the Arthur S. Leonard Award (The New York City Bar Association), a Community Vision Award (The Lesbian & Gay Law Association of Greater New York), a Women on the Move Award (The Arthritis Foundation), a Pro Bono Publico Award (The Legal Aid Society), an inaugural Best LGBT Lawyers Under 40 Award (The National LGBT Bar Association), and a Visionary and Policymaker Award as one of the 100 Most Influential Filipina Women in the US (Filipina Women’s Network). Ms. Malalis earned her J.D. from the Northeastern University School of Law and received a B.A. in women's studies from Yale University. She and her spouse live in Brooklyn with their two children.