Building a Values Aligned Legal Career feat. John Lopez
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
John Lopez is the Legal Director of the Youth Sentencing and Reentry Project, where he supports children charged as adults across Pennsylvania. In this episode, John shares how combining law and social work allowed him to practice in alignment with his values, and why treating people as people is central to meaningful legal advocacy.
About This Episode
Background
John Lopez grew up in Allentown, Pennsylvania, in a family deeply rooted in service. His older sister is a trauma therapist for children, and his father worked as a caseworker, which meant John grew up witnessing both the impact and the limitations of helping professions. From an early age, he saw how systems failed the very kids they were meant to protect.
“I wanted to figure out how to advocate for kids with more privilege and more access, and it seemed like the courts had that," shares John Lopez on You Are A Lawyer.
John went straight from high school to college to law school, entering the profession with little life experience and a strong sense of urgency. Although law school was challenging and isolating at times, his early exposure to advocacy work planted the seeds for a career focused less on prestige and more on impact.
Why Law School
John chose law school for one clear reason: to advocate for children. He believed that becoming a lawyer would give him the tools, access, and credibility needed to protect young people navigating the criminal legal system.
“I only went to law school for that reason," explains John Lopez on Episode 231 of You Are a Lawyer.
After graduating, John became a public defender in Philadelphia, where he quickly realized the tension between urgency and humanity. High caseloads and systemic pressure made it difficult to truly connect with clients as people, even though connection was what mattered most to him.
What Can You Do with a Law Degree
Rather than walking away from the law entirely, John chose to expand his toolkit. During the pandemic, he returned to school to earn a Master of Social Work, determined to combine legal advocacy with frameworks centered on care, trauma, and relationship building.
“If there is a place where I could practice law in a way that is aligned with my personal values, it is going to be YSRP," shares John Lopez on Episode 231 of You Are a Lawyer.
Today, as Legal Director of YSRP, John supports children charged as adults while helping shape a model of legal practice that treats kids as kids. His career shows how a law degree can be used in tandem with other disciplines to create more humane and effective systems.
Lawyer Side Hustles
Outside of his legal role, John co-founded a nonprofit called Toolshed Boxing with his sister, providing trauma-informed boxing and yoga programs for kids in the Lehigh Valley. While the programs involve physical movement, the real focus is connection, mindfulness, and helping young people feel safe in their bodies.
“The real transformative thing is the relationship,” John Lopez expresses in Episode 231 of You Are a Lawyer.
Through both his legal and community work, John demonstrates that advocacy can take many forms. Whether in courtrooms, classrooms, or parks, his work centers on presence, care, and helping people reconnect with themselves.
About John Lopez
John is licensed to practice in the State of Pennsylvania.
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