Jeffnie Jean Louis

Law ‘22

Jeffnie Louis is a legal trainee with Hughes Hubbard & Reed LLP and committed to defending vulnerable women and advocating for justice in Haiti. Her passion for legal advocacy grew from the injustice to women she witnessed growing up in Carrefour. After losing her father at 14, Jeffnie watched her mother struggle to repay debts from a robbery that had devastated their family. The same week of the robbery, Jeffnie learned about the H.E.L.P. scholarship program and saw it as a path to change her future.

In high school, Jeffnie began teaching English to support her family and discovered her strength as a communicator and leader. These skills fueled her determination to study law, particularly to support survivors of sexual violence. The lack of legal accountability for perpetrators in Haiti —cemented her desire to pursue criminal law. While still in university, she co-founded DKD, a civil rights project already making an impact in her community of Carrefour.

Now a graduate of H.E.L.P. and Quisqueya University, Jeffnie is gaining experience in the legal field. She aspires to represent sexual assault victims and work with the Haitian Women’s Ministry to push for systemic change.