WHAT IS IMPACT LITIGATION?

Impact Litigation is about more than just winning a case—it’s about using the law to fix what’s broken. Every case starts with someone who’s been wronged. But when that harm points to a deeper problem in the system, we step in—not just to get justice for our client, but to push for change that protects others, too.

This kind of litigation aims higher. It’s about setting legal precedents, holding powerful institutions accountable, and forcing systems to do better.

 

EVERY CASE IS A CIVIL RIGHTS CASE.

At Hartenstein Poor & Foster, we don’t take cases just to win—we take them to make a difference. Our Impact Litigation Practice Group goes after cases that challenge power, demand accountability, and stand up for the oppressed, the abused, and the wrongfully accused.

We don’t just want a win—we want a reckoning. If a case exposes a broken system, we’re in. If it forces change, even better.

Freedom isn’t a privilege—it’s a right. And when that right is violated, we take it personally—and we take it to court. Every time we step into a courtroom, we carry more than one client’s fight—we carry a message: no one gets left behind, and no one gets steamrolled by the system.

 

WE’RE FIGHTING THE GOOD FIGHT.

Before a case changes the law, it starts with someone who got steamrolled by it.

And before anything changes, someone has to step up. That’s where we come in.

At Hartenstein Poor & Foster, our team brings decades of experience in civil rights, public integrity, election law, and more. We’ve taken on police departments, correctional facilities, state agencies—and we’ve won. Some of our cases have shaped Kansas law. Others have simply made sure the system did what it was supposed to. Both matter.

Right now, we’re focused on exposing police misconduct, ending jailhouse abuse, and pushing back against the way the legal system punishes addiction instead of treating it. We handle more drug and alcohol-related cases than any other firm in South Central Kansas, and we’re using Impact Litigation to push for better solutions—because withdrawal isn’t treatment, and incarceration isn’t recovery.

 

DEFENDING RIGHTS. PROTECTING DEMOCRACY.

We take on big cases about even bigger issues—constitutional freedoms, voting rights, government overreach—because the system only works if it works for everyone. When power is abused or access is denied, we don’t stand on the sidelines. We step in.

Our team knows how political machinery moves because we’ve worked inside it—and against it. From ballot access fights and First Amendment clashes to campaign finance battles and redistricting challenges, we’ve been in the thick of it. We’ve seen how rules get bent, broken, and rewritten to silence voices and shut out voters.

That’s why we don’t just argue the law—we challenge it when it’s used as a weapon. We know how these fights are won because we’ve spent decades in them. Before founding the firm, Scott B. Poor built a career doing just that—advising political campaigns, fighting for ballot access, and redrawing congressional maps when the stakes were highest.

That firsthand knowledge of the system—its gears and its cracks—guides every case we take. When institutions forget who they’re supposed to serve, we push back.

 

SYSTEMIC CHANGE TAKES ALLIES.

You don’t change broken systems by filing paperwork—you change them by bringing the right people to the fight.

At HPF, we know how to bring pressure from all sides. We work shoulder-to-shoulder with civil rights advocates, reform organizations, and policy experts to push for change that lasts. These aren’t surface-level partnerships. They’re strategic alliances forged over years of shared fights and hard-won trust.

Our team knows how the legal system works—and how it gets worked. We’ve built strong relationships with the people and groups who hold power to account, and we bring those connections to bear in every case we take on. That reach lets us punch above our weight and make sure no challenge gets ignored.

Because Impact Litigation isn’t just about filing suit—it’s about creating pressure, building momentum, and forcing the system to answer for its failures.

If you have a case, a cause, or a story that needs to be heard—we’re ready to fight it with you.