2019 Government Pro Bono Award: Marisa Schnaith
12 November 2019 Blog, Featured
Marisa Schnaith is a pro bono superstar. Not only has she contributed an impressive number of pro bono hours, over 100 in the past year alone, but she has made significant contributions to the Department of Labor’s Pro Bono Program. That is why we’re thrilled to award her with the 2019 Government Pro Bono Award.
Trisha Monroe: 2019 Legal Services Award
12 November 2019 Blog, Featured
“Superb.” “Exceptional.” “One of the fiercest advocates for domestic violence survivors I have ever met.” These are just a few of the superlatives colleagues use to describe Trisha Monroe, our 2019 Legal Services Award Recipient.
Jen Swedish: 2019 Above & Beyond Award
07 November 2019 Blog, Featured
They say it’s always the quiet ones. In our case, the quiet one is a force. Quietly, and without fanfare, Jen Swedish simply gets things done. Effectively. Excellently. Extraordinarily. As one of her fellow board members aptly stated, “She has a behind-the-scenes role that even most Board members don’t fully see. But Jen has provided a critical service to Washington Council of Lawyers.” Jen has been a member of Washington Council of Lawyers Board of Directors for 10 years. And for 7 of those years, she has served as our Treasurer. There is nothing glamorous or exciting about the weekend and late-night hours Jen has spent pouring over spreadsheets and reconciling bank accounts. However, it is vitally important work that ensures our financial stability and ability to serve our mission. She has fearlessly tackled the IRS’s complex rules and regulations, always ensuring we are doing exactly what needs to be done. She is adept with Excel, creating pivot tables and using shortcuts to make the work easier. These may sound like trivial talents. They are not! Jen’s work over the years has saved Washington Council of Lawyers thousands of dollars in accounting and bookkeeping expenses. A long-time board member said it best, “In a small organization, it is vital to have passionate board members who are willing to take on the difficult tasks. Jen has consistently demonstrated her passion for Washington Council of Lawyers through her long-time stewardship of our finances and her dedication to our success. She has been a key component of our leadership team, and through her efforts, has ensured our ability to meet any challenge.” Jen contributes this valuable volunteer service while juggling the obligations imposed by judges, discovery schedules, and travel stemming from her active caseload as a full-time litigator at the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice and the competing demands of having and raising three precious children. (We like to think of them as future public-interest lawyers.) She also has been a key contributor to the work of our committees, especially the Personnel Committee. Her insights and financial acumen have helped the Washington Council of Lawyers make solid decisions so that we have been able to grow our membership, offer more trainings to pro bono and public-interest lawyers, advocate effectively for increased access to justice, and build a stronger public-interest community. Although Jen’s work has been in the background, it is central to advancing our mission. Two of the four pillars of our mission are training public-interest lawyers and developing leaders in the public-interest community. Jen was supporting these pillars even before she joined the board by serving as a co-chair of our Mentoring Program. As an alumnae of the program herself, she has been generous with her time in advising other co-chairs on how to effectively lead the program, and serving as a panelist at Mentoring Program events. Our Above & Beyond Award gives us the opportunity to thank Jen for a thankless job. We are pleased to take public notice of her dependability and dedication. We honor the talents she has shared with us and the hours she has devoted. We are grateful for her contributions and thrilled to recognize Jen Swedish as the 2019 recipient of our Above & Beyond Award.
Steptoe & Johnson LLP: 2019 Law Firm Award Recipient
06 November 2019 Blog, Featured
Steptoe & Johnson and their long-time, former Pro Bono Counsel Barbara Kagan, have been staunch supporters of Washington Council of Lawyers since our inception in 1971. That is why we are pleased to highlight their outstanding commitment to public service and partnership with Washington Council of Lawyers and the larger D.C. pro bono community to advance access to justice in our community with our 2019 Law Firm Award.
DC Pro Bono Week 2019 Photos!
29 October 2019 Blog, Featured
Pro Bono Week 2019 is a wrap! See all the fun, learning and volunteering.
DC Pro Bono Week 2019 Profiles: Complete Set
28 October 2019 Blog, DC Pro Bono Week, Featured
During DC Pro Bono Week 2019 we profiled lawyers who made a profound difference in the lives of their pro bono clients despite heavy demands on their time. We hope they have inspired you to take on your own pro bono case.
Pro Bono in Protest: Protecting First Amendment Freedoms in the District
24 October 2019 Blog, Featured
D.C. hosts over 2,000 protests a year. This unique landscape gives local lawyers an amazing chance to protect democracy and uphold the First Amendment.
To highlight and promote pro bono opportunities in this exciting area, the Washington Council of Lawyers hosted Pro Bono in Protest: Protecting First Amendment Freedoms in the District on October 22, 2019 at Steptoe & Johnson, with co-sponsorship from the American Constitution Society, the Filipino American Lawyers Association of Washington, DC, and the Metropolitan Washington Employment Lawyers Association.
Discussing Black Maternal Health and Domestic Violence
23 October 2019 Blog, East River of the River Profiles, Featured
Every year, pregnancy-related complications kill about 700 women. That’s bad enough, but the racial disparity makes it even worse: Compared to white women, black women are three times more likely to die because of pregnancy. Ujima: The National Center on Violence Against Women in the Black Community wants more people to learn about this gap and, more generally, that too many black women and black babies suffer avoidable deaths. Ujima provides culturally specific services and resources about domestic, sexual, and community violence. Says its Executive Director, Gretta Gardner, “We hope to bring awareness that will spur conversations in the community about how we have to rely on each other to reduce harm and raise awareness instead of relying solely on systems and institutions.” So two weeks ago (on Monday, October 14), Ujima held an event at Busboys and Poets in Anacostia to discuss black maternal health and how it relates to domestic violence. The program was one of over thirty District events held in October for Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Moderated by Ujima Senior Policy Attorney Megan Simmons, the panel featured two reproductive-rights leaders: Dr. Jamila Perritt (a local OBGYN and member of the District’s Maternal Mortality Review Committee) and Jessica Pinckney (Vice President of Government Affairs at In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda). The panelists were blunt about the relationship between domestic violence and maternal health. “Many folks who will someday become pregnant or potentially become mothers or parents have often experienced some type of abuse or violence in their life,” said Pinckney. And “there is no way to separate the trauma or that experience from both the experience of being pregnant and the experience of being a parent.” In fighting these problems, the panelists stressed, there’s no substitute for knowing about reproductive justice and its history. As Dr. Perritt explained, “If you don’t understand reproductive justice, you will continue to see inequities.” And, she added, “you can’t understand the inequalities with medical care unless you understand the history.” Because of this history, for instance, some African-Americans distrust medical professionals; that distrust can affect the quality of care delivered and received. As a result, doctors and other medical providers need to ask better questions to learn whether someone is a victim of violence: “You have to ask if something is going on.” Unfortunately, quite a bit is going on. According to the National Network to End Domestic Violence, last year District domestic-violence organizations served an average of 589 victims—each day. Bit by bit, groups like Ujima are working to change that. Learn more about Ujima, Inc. here.
Pro Bono Week 2019: Paul Thompson – Appellate Pro Bono
21 October 2019 Blog, Featured
Paul Thompson, a partner with McDermott Will & Emery LLP, is a very successful, well-known appellate lawyer. Despite his busy practice, he regularly uses his skills and experience to advocate on behalf of pro bono clients. He handles a wide-range of appeals on behalf of pro bono clients and is a frequent author of amicus briefs. Two of his most noteworthy efforts this year highlight Paul’s commitment to pro bono.