Erik Baptist

Erik Baptist serves as Senior Counsel and Director of the Center for Life at Alliance Defending Freedom, which was instrumental in the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, overturning Roe v. Wade. Building on that legacy, Baptist leads the organization’s pro-life litigation and advocacy efforts to protect unborn babies and their mothers from the harms of abortion.

Washingtonian magazine has recognized Baptist as one of the Most Influential People Shaping Policy in Washington in 2024, 2025, and 2026. As a member of the D.C. and Virginia Bars, he has litigated before the U.S. Supreme Court and federal courts across the country.

Baptist and his colleagues have been at the forefront of the most significant pro-life cases before the U.S. Supreme Court—safeguarding First Amendment protections for pregnancy resource centers in First Choice v. Davenport, securing the ability of states to defund Planned Parenthood in Medina v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, and challenging the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s actions on the abortion drug mifepristone in Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA and Louisiana v. FDA.

He and his colleagues successfully defend pregnancy centers across the country against hostile state attorneys general and other government officials. They work closely with state attorneys general offices, legislative bodies, and Members of Congress and their staff to defend pro-life laws in court and advance life-affirming policies.

Baptist represents pregnant women facing coercion to abort their unborn babies, including women subjected to abusive conduct by men and surrogate mothers pressured by procuring parents and surrogacy agencies. He also engages cutting-edge bioethical and biotechnology issues that implicate the sanctity of life, bringing the same litigation-focused rigor to emerging frontiers in science and medicine.

Before joining ADF, Baptist was a partner at one of the largest law firms in Washington, D.C., representing clients in high-stakes litigation and regulatory matters. He began his career in the trial department of a large international law firm in Washington, D.C. He earned his B.A. from Vanderbilt University and his J.D. from The George Washington University Law School. During law school, he externed for the Honorable Ricardo M. Urbina of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, interned for the Honorable Eric T. Washington of the D.C. Court of Appeals, and served on The George Washington International Law Review.