Following investigative reporting on horrific conditions under which children and adults with disabilities were living at the Willowbrook State Developmental Center in New York, Legal Aid supported parents of Willowbrook residents in filing a class action suit in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. This watershed case in the evolution of the legal rights of people with disabilities to live in dignity set important precedents for the humane and ethical treatment of people with developmental disabilities living in institutions. This, in turn, served as the impetus for accelerating the pace of community placements for people with developmental disabilities, expanding community services, increasing the quality and availability of day programs, and establishing the right of children with disabilities to a public education.