Florida Justice Institute

Florida Justice Institute The Florida Justice Institute uses impact litigation and advocacy to improve the lives of all Floridians. The Florida Justice Institute, Inc.

(FJI) was founded in 1978 by Roderick N. Petrey while serving as Executive Vice President of the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation in New York City. Rod was and still is a leading figure in securing funding for public interest law programs across the country. Upon leaving the Clark Foundation to enter the private practice of law in Miami, Rod was given a start-up grant to establish FJI. Rod’s initia

l mission for FJI, a private, not-for-profit, public interest law organization, was to:
1. Improve the administration of justice for all Floridians;
2. Encourage better representation of citizens’ interests; and
3. Increase the ability of citizens to resolve disputes quickly and inexpensively. FJI was to accomplish these goals by working with existing organizations to identify major, unmet needs in the community and address them with advocacy and litigation. FJI’s initial Board of Directors, in addition to Rod, included LeRoy Collins, former Governor and Undersecretary of Commerce; Chesterfield Smith, former President of The Florida Bar and American Bar Association and managing partner at Holland & Knight; John Edward Smith, a partner at Steel Hector & Davis; Hugh McMillan, Jr., former Legislative Counsel for Governor Askew and in private practice; and Eleanor Mitchell Hunter, Assistant General Counsel to the Governor and eventual Executive Director of the Florida Board of Bar Examiners. After incorporating the organization, establishing the Board, and obtaining section 501(c)(3) charitable status, FJI hired Randall C. “Randy” Berg, Jr. in 1978 to be its Executive Director, a position he held until his retirement at the end of 2018. Randy sadly passed away in April of 2019.

09/08/2026

For decades, the ninth floor of Miami-Dade's jail served as the largest psychiatric ward in Florida. In June, commissioners finally voted to open Judge Steven Leifman's alternative, the Miami Center for Mental Health and Recovery, built to treat people with mental illness and addiction instead of putting them behind bars.

Addiction, untreated mental illness, and homelessness feed each other, and jail has never solved any of them. FJI keeps fighting the laws and conditions that trap people in that cycle instead of getting them help. Read more on the recovery center at wlrn.org/2026-07-13/miami-prisoner-mental-health-center-judge-leifmans

Not all workers get the protections that Labor Day commemorates. People incarcerated in Florida prisons work without bas...
09/07/2026

Not all workers get the protections that Labor Day commemorates. People incarcerated in Florida prisons work without basic safety standards, fair pay, or the right to refuse dangerous conditions. When they come home, many still can’t find employers willing to pay a livable wage.

FJI fights those conditions from the inside through litigation, and groups like Beyond the Bars organize workers with records to win fair pay and protections once they’re out. This Labor Day, we’re asking more employers to give people a fair shot. Learn more at linkin.bio/fji and beyondthebars.org

09/05/2026

Happy birthday to FJI's Executive Director, Michael Langley.

We are grateful for Michael’s passion and leadership, which helps drive our mission forward. Join us in wishing Michael a happy birthday!

09/03/2026

Florida makes sure homeowners know how to prepare for storm winds and floods. None of it applies if you have no home to secure. The unhoused face the same conditions with none of the options, and the laws that punish people for sleeping in public have done nothing to make them safer.

Storm season exposes what the rest of the year hides. People without housing carry the most risk and get the least protection. FJI fights the laws that criminalize people for having nowhere to go, and we push for the housing and resources that would actually keep people safe. See how we do that work at linkin.bio/fji

09/02/2026

September is National Su***de Prevention Month, and Florida's prisons belong in this conversation. Su***des in state prisons across the country rose 85 percent between 2001 and 2019, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. People with serious mental illness end up in cells instead of treatment, often in isolation, and isolation makes the illness worse.

FJI supported the Murphy family as they pushed for the Tristin Murphy Act, a law that strengthens training standards and expands access to mental health care for people in Florida's jails and prisons. Passing a law is a start, but we need to keep working to make sure that care actually reaches the people who need it. If you or someone you know is struggling, call or text 988 to reach the Su***de and Crisis Lifeline.

09/01/2026

Happy birthday to Jessica Pla, our Director of Operations. Jessica’s exceptional leadership has been an undeniable asset to our team.

Thank you for balancing the books, guiding our growth, and leading our team with integrity and excellence. Happy Birthday Jessica!

08/25/2026

The Marshall Project highlights FJI's lawsuit against the Florida Department of Corrections as one of the cases shaping the story nationally.

Nearly half of state prisons across the country still lack full air conditioning, leaving people vulnerable to heat stroke and death. We will continue fighting in Florida and serving as a model for others to do the same. Learn more about our case at linkin.bio/fji

08/24/2026

Mayor Eileen Higgins had until August 3 to veto the City Commission's changes to the encampment ban. She did not. Police in Miami can now arrest someone for sleeping in public after a verbal warning and a "reasonable amount of time" to gather everything they own. This decision is part of what keeps Miami on the list of state and local governments spending more on handcuffs than they do on housing.

FJI will keep fighting laws that punish people for trying to survive. See the full government spending report at linkin.bio/fji

08/21/2026

Orlando is spending $60 million on housing instead of handcuffs. The Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida is building a new Center for Women and Families, funded through a public-private partnership with the City of Orlando, Orange County, the federal government, and a foundational gift from Morgan & Morgan.

The facility adds 112 residential beds, an on-site health clinic, expanded childcare, and new bridge housing. This is what actual solutions look like. See how they’re doing it at linkin.bio/fji

08/20/2026

Five women at Lowell Correctional Institution accused a prison gynecologist of assault during medical appointments. He worked for Centurion of Florida, the contractor the state pays to provide health care in its prisons.

A settlement settles a court case. It does not answer why Centurion kept him seeing patients after women reported him. Read the full Tampa Bay Times report at linkin.bio/fji

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Miami, FL
33128

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+13053582081

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