Jodi is the secretary and immediate past president for the ACLU of Maine’s Board of Directors. She joined the board in 2010. During her time as president, Jodi supported the organization through leadership transitions and negotiations to establish a collective bargaining agreement.
Jodi was inspired to volunteer her time with the organization after working on adjacent legal issues and collaborating on cases with the ACLU of Maine throughout her career. For example, when she was in law school, Jodi was a summer intern for Mary Bonauto, the attorney who successfully argued for marriage equality before the Supreme Court of the United States.
Throughout her career as an attorney, Jodi has worked with the ACLU of Maine on civil rights claims, including representing a minor who was assaulted at the Youth Center, as well as an adult incarcerated at the Cumberland County Jail. Jodi was also counsel for Nicole Maines, a transgender student whose parents fought in Maine state court for their daughter’s right to use the bathroom that aligned with her gender identity. In her work as a trial lawyer, she seeks justice for her clients and holds defendants accountable for injuries caused by negligent choices.
Jodi is licensed to practice law in Maine and Massachusetts and is a partner at Berman & Simmons, P.A. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Biology and English from the University of Illinois, and her Juris Doctor from the University of Maine School of Law.
In her free time, you can find Jodi outdoors, camping, hiking, skiing, kickboxing, and water skiing. She enjoys murder mysteries and historical fiction.
