In 2020 hundreds of attorneys across the city took on pro bono cases to help our client community. This year, with mentoring from our Legal Aid subject matter experts, our partners in the law firm community stepped up even more.
In 2021, we have referred over 120 cases in matters ranging from child custody to housing conditions to unemployment insurance. That is more than 120 additional individuals and families who otherwise would have had to navigate the legal system alone. Volunteers also helped 100 seniors and persons with disabilities complete their annual Medicare Part D “check-ups” to ensure that they continue receiving critical prescription medications without interruption or prohibitive cost increases.
We are so grateful to our pro bono partners, some of whom received much-deserved recognition earlier this year from the DC legal community. With an anticipated surge in need for help with eviction defense and other areas over the coming year, we look forward to strengthening these partnerships and growing our pro bono network to help close the access to justice gap in the city.
LAKESHIA BATTLE
Lakeshia Battle sought sole physical and legal custody of her young daughter, Kiley*, after a series of troubling behaviors by Kiley’s father, Damien Johnson*. On one occasion, school administrators had to forcibly escort Mr. Johnson off the school grounds when he tried to remove Kiley from school without Ms. Battle’s permission. Ms. Battle’s request for sole physical and legal custody was denied, in large part because the judge believed that Ms. Battle falsified letters from school officials describing incidents involving Mr. Johnson.
Once Ms. Battle was able to connect with Legal Aid, her case was referred to Legal Aid Board Member John McCarthy and his Crowell & Moring colleagues Chalana Damron and Emily Tucker, who immediately got to work on helping Ms. Battle. The Crowell team was able to verify that school officials in fact wrote the letters and help right the trajectory of the case.
“We ended up in court, thanks to John, Emily and Chalana – all of the three of them jumped in and supported me on this emotional rollercoaster to do the right thing for the child. That was what it all boiled down to.”
LAKESHIA BATTLE
Ms. Battle expressed that she wanted Kiley to have a positive relationship with her father but was concerned about sharing custody because of Mr. Johnson’s history of angry outbursts. Working with Mr. Johnson’s attorney, the Crowell team crafted a settlement proposal that focused on mending the relationship between Mr. Johnson and Kiley while ensuring that mechanisms were in place to protect Kiley and empower Ms. Battle to act if Kiley’s safety or wellbeing was compromised by Mr. Johnson’s actions.
After negotiations with Mr. Johnson’s counsel, the Crowell team finalized a settlement that allowed Ms. Battle to maintain primary physical custody of Kiley.
It also made the additional day of custodial time that Mr. Johnson was seeking contingent upon active participation in family therapy, the completion of a co-parenting class, and a clean drug test. The terms of the settlement also ensured that Kiley would remain enrolled at her current school so that she would have a consistent and stable educational environment.
*Name changed
“They have been tremendous – ‘TREMENDOUS’ if that can be captured in all caps.”
LAKESHIA BATTLE (on partnering with her Crowell & Moring attorneys)
CELEBRATING OUR VOLUNTEERS
DAVID REISER
Long-time Legal Aid volunteer and 2006 Servant of Justice honoree David Reiser of Zuckerman Spaeder, who has made significant contributions to the establishment, development, and expansion of our Barbara McDowell Appellate Advocacy Project, received the D.C. Bar’s William J. Brennan Jr. Award earlier this year, presented biennially to a bar member who has demonstrated exceptional achievement in the pursuit of equal justice and who has made a significant, positive impact on the quality of administration of justice.
DAN CANTOR
Dan Cantor, partner and Chair of the Pro Bono Committee at Arnold & Porter, received the D.C. Bar’s Laura N. Rinaldi Pro Bono Attorney of the Year Award. The annual award is presented to a lawyer for excellence, achievement, and commitment to providing legal services to DC’s low-income and/or disadvantaged individuals and/or organizations serving such individuals. Shortly after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Dan spearheaded a firm-wide initiative to help restaurant workers who had lost jobs or had hours reduced due to the public health emergency.
Here in DC, the firm partnered with Legal Aid, and Dan and his team have accepted 58 referrals from us since April 2020 for workers seeking help to secure the unemployment insurance benefits to which they are entitled.
Elliot Weingarten
In April, Legal Aid honored Elliot Weingarten with the Klepper Prize for Volunteer Excellence at our virtual Servant of Justice Awards Dinner. The Klepper Prize was created through the generosity of Martin and Arlene Klepper to recognize attorneys early in their careers who have made a significant volunteer contribution to Legal Aid. Since coming to Washington as a first-year associate in 2013, Elliot has made pro bono work a central part of his practice.
Over the past seven-plus years, Elliot has been one of Legal Aid’s most active pro bono volunteers, developing expertise in defending tenants facing eviction cases. Elliot has personally handled about 15 eviction cases, and mentored his colleagues on additional cases as well, ensuring that families are able to stay in their homes and that landlords remedy severe housing conditions as required by law.