New York

A small, dedicated staff at the ILF’s headquarters in New York City provides strategic leadership and direction to the organization, leads its global advocacy initiatives, engages in fundraising, and oversees the legal work, operations and administration of its country programs.

Jennifer Smith

Executive Director

Jennifer Smith, the ILF’s executive director, is an experienced criminal defense lawyer with extensive international development experience. She was previously the ILF’s advocacy director. At the ILF, Smith has spearheaded efforts to strengthen international support for the right to quality legal representation for poor persons accused of crimes. She played a key role in drafting the UN Principles and Guidelines on Access to Legal Aid in Criminal Justice Systems, the first international instrument on legal aid. Before joining the ILF, she ran the China Defender Program of International Bridges to Justice, based in Beijing. Prior to that, Smith served as a public defender in New York and Massachusetts. Smith also worked on juvenile justice reform in Cambodia. Smith is a graduate of Boston College Law School.

Blake Trettien

Advocacy and Communications Officer

Advocacy and communication officer Blake Trettien graduated from NYU Law School in 2010, where he focused his studies on criminal and international law. Blake has held several legal internship positions in the field of indigent criminal defense, working on criminal appeals in New York, advocating for children in prison in Cambodia, and investigating death penalty cases in Alabama. Before attending law school he worked as a policy researcher and community organizer. Blake holds a bachelor’s degree from Johns Hopkins University.

Nicole Taylor

Program Director

Nicole Taylor is an experienced criminal defense lawyer who has practiced in the Philadelphia area for the past eight years. Most recently, she was an associate attorney at the law firm of El-Shabazz + Harris, LLC. Prior to that, she worked as a staff attorney at the Public Defender Association of Philadelphia. She spent a summer interning with the Judicial Inspectorate of Prisons in Cape Town, South Africa where she researched prison reform post apartheid. Nicole is a graduate of Howard University School of Law and Spelman College.

Shelley Azumbrado

Grants Administrator

Shelley Elizabeth Azumbrado, the grants administrator, has over 20-years experience in the non-profit sector. She has a Bachelor’s degree in finance with a minor in Mathematics from the City University of New York (Baruch College). Upon graduating college, she also studied in Perugia, Italia and worked in Milan, Italy for four and a half years as a Systems Engineer.

Ingrid Rasmussen

Director of Finance and Administration

Ingrid Rasmussen, Director of Finance and Administration at the ILF, was previously Director of Finance and Operations at Nonprofit Finance Fund. At NFF she managed the organization’s internal financial reporting and analysis, working to implement processes, gather data, and provide analysis to help NFF better understand and act upon financial information. Ingrid holds an MA in International Development from American University and a BA in International Relations from Tufts University.

Natalie Stephenson

Finance Associate and Fellows Coordinator

Natalie Stephenson, the ILF’s finance associate and the fellows coordinator, studied Philosophy and French at the University of NH. After graduating, she continued her studies in Philosophy at Sorbonne IV and the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. From 2000-2002 she studied Chinese Language at the University of Peking. Before coming to the ILF, she wrote and coordinated grants for NYC public schools.