The ECDO is incorporated as an agency offering integrated legal defense and social work services.

In 1981, continuing to see the value of the Evanston Defender Project, Judge Moran along with Edward Beis, William Parks, Nancy Goldberg, Charles A. Brady, and Roosevelt “Bru” Alexander formally incorporated the agency as the Evanston Community Defender Office, Inc. (“ECDO”). Led by Rob Roy, the ECDO’s goal was to provide integrated legal and social work services – the holistic, restorative model we use today.