Gay Crosthwait Grunfeld

San Francisco

Complex Litigation

Gay Grunfeld focuses her practice on complex civil litigation, with an emphasis on civil rights, business and employment litigation. She persists in fighting for the disenfranchised, including California prisoners with disabilities and vulnerable workers enrolled in Salvation Army rehabilitation programs.

In a long-running Americans with Disabilities Act case, Grunfeld and her team won groundbreaking victories on behalf of California prisoners with disabilities, including orders for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) to install security cameras and deploy body-worn cameras at five prisons. Armstrong v. Newsom, 484 F. Supp. 3d 808 (N.D. Cal. 2020); 2021 WL 933106 (N.D. Cal. 2021), 58 F.4th 1283 (9th Cir. 2023).

In February, the 9th Circuit unanimously affirmed the majority of the orders intended to stop CDCR staff from abusing and discriminating against people with disabilities.

"Though implementation has not been fully compliant, we are seeing changes. We're hopeful CDCR will begin to change its culture and really emphasize the rehabilitative aspect of their system and that more and more people will be allowed to leave the prison walls and start new lives. That is the goal of this work," she said.

In another ongoing lawsuit, Grunfeld leads a team of three law firms challenging the unconstitutional and unlawful conditions in San Diego County jails. Dunsmore et al. v. San Diego County Sheriff's Department et al., 3:20-cv-00406-AJB-WVG (S.D. Cal.).

In April, Plaintiffs sought an injunction to force the Sheriff's Department to do more to serve disabled people incarcerated in the county's jail system. In June, the plaintiffs and the county reached an agreement for compliance on issues including reducing its reliance on triple bunks, accessible and safe housing, and sign language interpretation.

"We have entered into a process that will change the policies, and change the physical plant, and make it better for incarcerated people with disabilities. However, San Diego still has a very long way to go. They've had 11 in-custody deaths to date this year -- one of the highest rates in the country. They need significant reform with regards to how they handle mental illness, how they prevent suicide, and how they deliver medical and mental health care," Grunfeld said. "We will be filing a motion for class certification in a few months, and we hope to keep moving that case forward."

Grunfeld also leads four class action cases against the Salvation Army for violating a host of federal and California state laws, including federal and state minimum wage laws, when they fail to treat vulnerable workers enrolled in rehabilitation programs as employees. Spillman et al. v. The Salvation Army, CGC-21-591364 (San Francisco Superior Court); Michael Clancy et al. v. The Salvation Army, 22-cv-01250 (N.D. Ill.); Raymon Alvear et al. v. The Salvation Army, 22-cv-00979 (N.D. Ga.); and Robert Geiser et al. v. The Salvation Army, 22-cv-1968 (S.D.N.Y.). Grunfeld and co-counsel have defeated motions to dismiss in all three national cases, with summary judgment pending in the state case.

"I continue to be passionate about improving the conditions under which people who are in carceral settings, such as detainees and people forced into rehabilitation programs, such as at the Salvation Army, are compensated," said the managing partner of the firm.

-- Jennifer Chung Klam