Yazmin Cader Frazier is an American civil rights lawyer with more than three decades of experience in the legal field. She works at one of the most well-known civil rights organizations in the United States. She holds senior leadership roles there and focuses on making the justice system fairer for everyone.
Many people first came across her name through her husband, television host Kevin Frazier. But Yazmin has built a career and a reputation that stand on their own. She is a public defender, a law teacher, a co-founder of a law firm, and a community leader. Her work touches many areas from prison conditions to racial fairness in schools and housing.
She keeps a low profile in public life, but her impact in the legal world is well documented. This biography gives a clear, factual look at who she is, what she has done, and what makes her stand out.
Quick Bio Table
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Yazmin (Yasmin) Cader Frazier |
| Birthday | May 7 (exact birth year not confirmed publicly) |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | Howard University (Political Science); Yale Law School (J.D., 1992) |
| Occupation | Civil Rights Lawyer, Legal Leader, Educator |
| Employer | American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) |
| Role | Deputy Legal Director; Director, Trone Center for Justice and Equality |
| Husband | Kevin Frazier (married November 25, 2006) |
| Children | Shane Frazier (b. 2007), Reece Cader Frazier (b. 2010); stepmother to Tony Frazier |
| Location | Los Angeles, California |
| Estimated Net Worth | Not publicly confirmed |
Early Life and Family Background
Yazmin Cader Frazier was born in the United States, though she has not shared many details about her childhood publicly. She grew up in America and attended local schools. Very little is known about her parents or where exactly she spent her early years, as she has always been careful to keep those details private.
What is known is that her family’s experiences helped shape the direction of her future work. She has spoken about how, as a child, she learned about the unfair treatment her parents faced when trying to rent an apartment. Landlords would agree to a meeting over the phone but then claim the apartment was taken once they saw the family in person. Hearing that story as a child stayed with her and helped push her toward a career in civil rights law.
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This kind of early exposure to inequality gave her a clear reason to pursue justice as a profession. It was not just a career choice it was a personal one.
Education and Early Interests
Yazmin showed strong academic ability from an early age. After finishing high school, she went on to study at Howard University, a well-respected historically Black university in Washington, D.C. There, she studied Political Science and Government. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree and then continued her education at one of the top law schools in the country.
She graduated from Yale Law School in 1992 with a law degree. Yale Law School is considered one of the most prestigious in the United States, and earning a degree there requires serious dedication and hard work. Her time there gave her a deep understanding of law, legal theory, and the power of the court system.
Her interests from early on were centered around fairness, civil rights, and how the law affects people’s daily lives. These interests never changed — they only grew stronger as her career developed.
Career Beginning
After finishing law school, Yazmin started her career in a meaningful way. Her first major role was as a judicial law clerk for a federal judge — the Honorable Damon J. Keith of the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. This gave her direct experience watching how courts work at a high level.
Following that, she joined the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division as a trial lawyer through the Honors Program. In this role, she handled cases involving workplace discrimination — specifically sexual and racial harassment cases. Some of these were individual cases and others involved groups of people filing together. This was important, hands-on work that connected her legal training to real-world problems that people faced every day.
This early part of her career set a clear direction. She was not pursuing high-paying corporate work. She was focused on the law as a way to protect people who needed protection.
Career Growth and Achievements
Yazmin’s career grew steadily over time. She worked as a public defender in Washington, D.C., New York, and Los Angeles. In this role, she represented both young people and adults facing serious criminal charges including some of the most serious offenses possible. Her clients included people charged with major felonies and even terrorism-related matters.
Working as a public defender means representing people who cannot afford private legal help. It is demanding and often difficult work, but it is central to making sure everyone gets a fair trial.
In 2019, Yazmin co-founded her own law firm in Los Angeles called Cader Adams Trial Lawyers. The firm was run by women and handled both civil and criminal cases. It also helped organizations — including schools and nonprofits work toward fairer internal policies and practices.
In 2021, she joined the ACLU the American Civil Liberties Union in a senior leadership role. She became Deputy Legal Director and Director of the Trone Center for Justice and Equality. This center covers a wide range of important legal work. It includes the National Prison Project, the Racial Justice Program, the Capital Punishment Project, and the Criminal Law Reform Project, among others.
Under her leadership, the Trone Center has taken on major cases. These include lawsuits challenging the use of cash bail, poor conditions in prisons and jails, and the use of solitary confinement. The center has also worked to end the death penalty in certain states. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the team filed lawsuits to protect people held in jails and prisons from unsafe conditions.
Beyond direct legal work, Yazmin is also a law educator. She has taught trial skills at several of the top law schools in the country, including Yale, Harvard, NYU, Georgetown, and UCLA. She is also involved in mentoring programs that support new lawyers entering public service careers.
She serves on the Opportunity Agenda’s Steering Committee, is a fellow with the American College of Trial Lawyers, and plays a leadership role at the Yale Law School Association. She also participated in local efforts in Los Angeles to examine how police interact with public schools.
Personal Life
Yazmin has been married to Kevin Frazier since November 25, 2006. Kevin is a television personality who co-hosted the well-known entertainment news program Entertainment Tonight. The two have been together for nearly two decades and appear to maintain a stable and supportive relationship.
They have two sons together. Shane Frazier was born on February 5, 2007, and Reece Cader Frazier was born on July 5, 2010. Yazmin is also a stepmother to Tony Frazier, Kevin’s son from a previous relationship.
The family lives in Los Angeles, California. Yazmin is known for being a very private person. She does not often appear at public events and does not actively seek media attention. Her Instagram account uses the handle @yasmin_cader, though she keeps her public posts limited.
Challenges
Yazmin’s career path has not always been simple. Working as a public defender, especially on serious criminal cases is one of the most demanding jobs in the legal field. These lawyers carry heavy caseloads, often with limited resources. The work can be emotionally taxing.
On a bigger level, she has spent her career fighting against systems that are deeply entrenched. Issues like racial bias in courts, cash bail, and solitary confinement are not easy to change. Progress often comes slowly, and setbacks are common.
Being a well-known figure’s spouse while also holding a demanding senior role adds another layer of complexity. She has chosen to manage both without letting either define the other, something that requires focus and strong boundaries.
There is also the broader challenge she speaks about publicly: the pressure on corporations and institutions to stay committed to civil rights and racial equality in a changing political environment.
Net Worth and Lifestyle
Yazmin Cader Frazier’s personal net worth has not been officially confirmed. She has worked primarily in public service and nonprofit law throughout her career. Roles in civil rights organizations like the ACLU are well-respected but generally not as high-paying as corporate law positions. Her lifestyle appears modest and family-centered.
She and her husband Kevin live in Los Angeles. While Kevin’s career in entertainment comes with a more public profile, Yazmin has consistently stayed out of the spotlight. She is more comfortable at legal conferences and advocacy events than at entertainment industry gatherings.
Her professional focus appears to be on the value of the work itself rather than financial gain. This is consistent with the kind of law she has always chosen to practice.
Conclusion
Yazmin Cader Frazier is a woman who built a serious and meaningful career in the law. From her time studying at Yale to her current role leading a major civil rights center at the ACLU, she has consistently chosen work that matters. She represents people others overlook, fights for systems that are fair, and teaches the next generation of lawyers to do the same.
She is also a wife and mother who keeps her personal life private. She does not chase public attention. She lets her work speak for itself. For those who want to know who she is, the answer is straightforward: she is a civil rights attorney who has spent more than 30 years trying to make the legal system work for everyone, not just a few.
FAQs
1. Who is Yazmin Cader Frazier?
She is an American civil rights lawyer and senior leader at the ACLU. She is also the wife of television host Kevin Frazier.
2. Where did Yazmin Cader Frazier go to school?
She studied Political Science at Howard University and then earned her law degree from Yale Law School in 1992.
3. What does Yazmin do at the ACLU?
She serves as Deputy Legal Director and Director of the Trone Center for Justice and Equality. Her work focuses on criminal justice reform, racial fairness, prison conditions, and related civil rights issues.
4. When did Yazmin and Kevin Frazier get married?
They got married on November 25, 2006, and have been together since.
5. How many children does Yazmin Cader Frazier have?
She has two biological sons Shane (born 2007) and Reece (born 2010) and is the stepmother to Kevin’s son Tony from a previous relationship.
6. Did Yazmin Cader Frazier start her own law firm?
Yes. In 2019, she co-founded Cader Adams Trial Lawyers, a women-led litigation firm based in Los Angeles. She left to join the ACLU in 2021.
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