Burris Nisenbaum Curry & Lacy

Brand Story

Decades Of Success

Since 1985 in CA
In 1985, John L. Burris created a law firm committed to serving, largely underserved clients. While Mr. Burris' practice initially focused on criminal defense, he quickly shifted to an emphasis on civil rights litigation, particularly in police misconduct and racial and sexual discrimination in employment. Today, the firm serves all areas throughout Northern and Southern California with a commitment to fight for justice worldwide!

Protecting Everyone

Over the years, John Burris, Ben Nisenbaum, Ayana Curry, DeWitt Lacy, and associated counsel have represented everyday people and victims of police misconduct whose names became synonymous with police reform, such as Rodney King, Oscar Grant and Theresa Sheehan. Our attorneys have also represented a number of public officials and high-profile clients: Earl Sanders, the former Chief of Police of San Francisco, recording artist Tupac Shakur, actor Del Roy Lindo, NFL player Keyshawn Johnson, NBA players Gary Payton and Jason Kidd, and Aaron Goodwin (former sports agent for NBA phenomenon LeBron James).

Becoming a Top Firm

BNCL has been and will continue to be instrumental in social reforms of police policy, governing racial profiling, Asphyxiation, Canines, Deadly Force, Tasers, In-Custody deaths, and other inhumane practices. Our work has also changed police department protocols for crowd control tactics and handling the mentally impaired.

BNCL has been successful in identifying and rooting out police corruption and sexual abuse, including the infamous “Oakland Riders” case.

Thank You

Burris Nisenbaum Curry & Lacy

Brand Identity

Brand Archetype: The Hero

BNCL’s brand fits closely with the Hero archetype, which speaks to the firm’s courage and expertise as it looks to make a significant difference in the world.

The BNCL name conveys bravery, strength, and mastery. The firm has distinguished itself from competitors by focusing more on principles of justice rather than potential monetary gain. This Archetype also suggests a somewhat understated approach to marketing: that heroes don’t brag about their accomplishments, they just state them.

Our Goal

“To fight for our clients’ civil rights, using the legal system as a lever for institutional reform that protects everyone.”

Positive Traits
Courage, Honesty, Candidness

Avoid Appearing
Overly idealistic, impractical or self-aggrandizing

Marketing Niche
Changing society by fighting for, and with, regular people.

Underlying Message

“We can and will make the world better. Through grit and determination, we will fight the good and necessary fight.”

Brand Pillars

Agency: We have the desire, ability, and skill to overcome challenges.

Determination: Our work stems from our moral convictions. We are driven by the injustice we see in the world.

Advocacy: We make the world better by advocating and being a champion for those who fight for justice against institutionalized power.

Tireless: We keep working even when the fight is long, difficult, and seemingly stacked against us.

Gratitude: We are honored to serve those in need; those who are marginalized and often shut out and abused by the system.

Value Proposition

All four BNCL partners have built their careers around serving everyday citizens, especially in regards to police misconduct and civil rights issues. It’s why each of us became lawyers, and why we work so hard each day to bring about the change we want to see in our communities.

Larger firms might handle these cases through pro bono community service programs, but their attorneys don’t live and breathe these issues like we do, or have our level of focus, experience, or knowledge. Other firms focus on maximizing monetary damages or awards, while that’s never our primary motivation. The work we do is always aimed to prevent future civil rights abuse. We demand accountability from police departments and leverage our victories to produce systemic changes.

Our sense of mission makes us unique because it gives us not just depth of experience and knowledge, but also because it impacts how we approach each case. We’re fighting not just for our clients, but for their communities.

Thank You

Burris Nisenbaum Curry & Lacy

Visual Guide

The BNCL logo is a letter mark style. This consists of a composition based on the Emberly typography, taking as its main piece the initials of each of the firm's partners. These are united and protected by a rectangle around it.

Clear space prevents type, imagery or other graphic elements from interfering with the legibility of our logo. No graphic elements should encroach the border around the logomark.

This space is determined by a square whose side measures half the height of our logo.

Our logo used on an application will often depend on the background and production method.

We have two variants of the logo for light or dark backgrounds.

Do not resize or change the position of the logo icon.
Do not use any other font, no matter how close it might look to Emberly.
Do not squish or squash the logo. Any resizing must be in proportion.
Do not change the colors even if they look similar. Use the official color specifications detailed in these guidelines

AILERON (Titles)

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Rubik (Body)

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