Maya Simek

Maya Simek is a Clinical Professor and Director of the Human Trafficking Law Clinic at Case Western Reserve University School of Law. She serves as Legal Director at Equality Ohio, where she launched a statewide legal clinic for the LGBTQ+ community in 2019. Simek holds dual credentials as an attorney (JD from Cleveland State University College of Law) and a licensed social worker (MSSA from Case Western Reserve’s Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, BS from John Carroll University).

• Educated in Social Work and Law
• Graduate of Gestalt Training Program (GTP), Gestalt Institute of Cleveland

Her work bridges law, social work, and trauma-informed advocacy, focusing on human trafficking survivors, LGBTQ+ rights, and marginalized communities impacted by HIV/AIDS. At Equality Ohio, she supervises legal services across Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Columbus, addressing systemic inequities. She also advocates for poverty law frameworks to understand human trafficking.

Notable accolades include the Crain’s Cleveland Business 40 Under 40 Award (2020) and founding the Nueva Luz Legal Clinic. Outside academia, she fosters homeless animals and rides motorcycles as a meditative practice.