“A provider should ensure that its staff has the skills, knowledge and resources necessary to provide assistance in a culturally competent manner.” – ABA Standard 2.4 For the Provision of Civil Legal Aid
By Nisel Desai Diversity and Inclusion trainings seem to have surged since the tragic killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. The Black Lives Matter movement has seen an outpouring of solidarity and support, but we, as attorneys and officers of the court, must grapple with the difficult question: Why Now?
Perhaps it is the dual disasters of police brutality amidst a raging pandemic that have forced us all to participate in difficult conversations with each other, with our families, and within our communities. Whatever the root of this self-reflection may be, it is absolutely overdue, and such trainings and conversations are not intended to advance a particular political agenda, but rather to reframe these issues in the name of preserving human dignity and the equitable provision of justice. Two ends, that most attorneys can agree are the pillars of our profession.
https://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.png00Pro Bonohttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngPro Bono2021-03-10 12:26:262024-05-07 10:34:18Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI) Series: Microaggressions, Building Rapport and Recovering from Blunders – Resources for Harmonious Pro Bono Client Interactions
Pro Bono Project: LANC Lawyer on the Line/Legal on the Line
By Sidney Thomas
A paralegal is an advocate, a teacher, an advisor, a valuable team member, and everything else in between. Katie Riddle exemplifies all of these characteristics through her dedication to her profession, her clients, and volunteering with the Legal on the Line Paralegal Partnership (LOTLPP)! Katie enjoys hearing about her clients’ experiences and being able to offer a helping hand.
Katie has served as a paralegal for the Lincoln Financial Group in Greensboro for almost two years. She handles a variety of matters, including, life insurance products, claims, underwriting, and regulatory matters, just to name a few. Her career path began in a law firm which eventually landed her in the corporate environment where she began to miss the fulfillment of public service. This growing need led her to Legal on the Line Paralegal Partnerships!
By Caroline Trautman What makes practicing law more than just a job?
Many attributes come to mind. By its nature, the law is constantly changing, forcing attorneys to constantly learn, adapt, and improve in order to effectively advocate for their clients. Practicing law also requires a high level of attention to detail and client service, demanding that attorneys make their clients’ interests the top priority.
For Chad Archer, it’s the responsibility to give back through pro bono service. “Pro bono service is one of the hallmarks of the practice of law that elevates our work as attorneys to the status of a profession rather than a mere occupation,” Archer said.
Archer already maintains a busy caseload as a litigation associate at Blanco Tackabery & Matamoros, P.A. in Winston-Salem. His practice consists of title curative litigation, corporate and commercial disputes, landlord-tenant litigation, and appeals. But during the year 2020, he took his practice to the next level, maintaining a litigation caseload while handling two major pro bono matters. These were assigned to him through the North Carolina Appellate Pro Bono Program and the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina’s Pro Bono Program.
Pro Bono Projects: Wills for Heroes and 4All Statewide Service Day
By Rachel Royal
For Rebecca Rushton, volunteering for the North Carolina Bar Foundation’s Wills for Heroes pro bono program was not just about reporting pro bono hours; it completely changed the path of her career as a lawyer. A marine science undergrad who went to law school in Oregon, she began her Wills for Heroes pro bono experience as a law student in 2013. After moving back to North Carolina to work in construction litigation, she continued her involvement with the Wills for Heroes committee, eventually serving as the committee chair in 2016.
She recalls an event that year at N.C. Central University Law School when her brother, who was a police officer in Durham at the time, attended the event with his wife, and they were able to complete their estate planning documents. Another memorable Wills for Heroes event was held for a fire department when the entire crew happened to be on call. The volunteers were able to work with the chief to have firefighters come in for single appointments in case a call came in.
By Kaitlyn Fudge “Without our guidance, many of these clients would be sitting in a deportation center awaiting a one-way ticket back to a country where they might be met with threats and violence.”
When you hear “corporate finance lawyer,” you think about boardrooms in high-rises and long hours poring over documents packed with legalese about acquisitions and lending practices. You picture the type of guys on Wall Street. What you don’t picture is someone at the U.S.-Mexico Border visiting an immigration respite center in McAllen, Texas, where summers are sweltering and an average August day is 97°F.
Meet Joey Polonsky. Joey is a corporate finance senior associate at King & Spalding LLP in Charlotte. His firm has partnered with the Catholic Charities Humanitarian Respite Center in McAllen, which provides asylum-seeking immigrants in crisis access to basic resources, legal services, and medical assistance. He attributes the opportunity to his firm, “Helping your clients achieve what is right and just is an uphill battle, and I wouldn’t be able to make the difference I have without my colleagues who have always pushed me to advocate for the people who need it most.”
As humans, we are multi-dimensional beings made up of several identities, including race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, and ability. Cultures are inextricably connected to these identities and are learned from what we see, read, hear and experience. We carry them with us wherever we go and, collectively, they make up who we are at any particular point in our lives. They may influence our decisions, impact our lived experiences, play a role in how we choose to engage with others, and provide the lens through which we see the world. Acknowledging this truth is a good starting point when engaging in equity and inclusion work.
As chair of the Pro Bono Committee’s Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion subcommittee, I am pleased to announce the launch of a multi-part blog series surrounding DEI issues in legal work. Each entry will provide a high-level view of a resource relevant to a particular topic, which we encourage you to review as a follow up. While many of the topics may relate to sects of the population that are served by pro bono projects, historically under-supported communities, the information presented is not exclusive to pro bono work and should be applied as you engage with any client.
Pro Bono Projects: NC LEAP, Wills for Heroes, Lawyer on the Line
By Allison Constance Even though Alexa Whiteside has not lived in North Carolina long, she has already made her mark as a pro bono volunteer. Alexa moved to Davidson from Los Angeles in April 2019 and works for Ramo Law PC as a motion picture and television attorney. In just a year and a half as a North Carolinian, she has served clients through NC LEAP, Wills for Heroes, and Legal Aid of North Carolina’s Lawyer on the Line program, and she encourages others to take on pro bono work alongside her.
Alexa is currently working to get more sports and entertainment law attorneys involved in NC LEAP because the work is rewarding and very applicable to what they are already doing. Alexa often finds links between pro bono projects and her practice in unexpected ways. As a motion picture and television attorney, Alexa represents producers in all areas of the law, including general business affairs and contract negotiations.
The winners of the North Carolina Bar Association’s 2020 Pro Bono Awards have been selected. The recipients were chosen by members of the NCBA Pro Bono Committee, chaired by Emily Moseley and Jennifer Mencarini.
Congratulations to each recipient and their nominators, who provided the background and biographical information included below for each honoree.
https://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.png00Russell Rawlingshttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngRussell Rawlings2020-06-24 14:27:372020-08-05 12:24:462020 Pro Bono Awards Announced
As we all process the ongoing events related to the Covid-19 pandemic, one source of comfort is knowing that helpers, like first responders, healthcare workers, and so many others, are doing the impactful work they’ve always done – saving lives.
Lately, their works seems particularly meaningful and dangerous, but they have been heroes since long before this pandemic.
Another one of the helpers out there is Yazmeen Gadalla. Gadalla, a corporate paralegal at Smith Anderson, has volunteered to help first responders at multiple Wills for Heroes events, and the NCBA Pro Bono Committee is very grateful for her work.
Wills for Heroes is a North Carolina Bar Foundation program that provides essential legal documents like wills, living wills, and powers of attorney to North Carolina first responders free of charge. Gadalla is a North Carolina Certified Paralegal and a Notary Public and helps notarize documents – many of which require not only a Notary, but multiple witnesses – to ensure the first responders receive valid estate planning documents. NCBA Pro Bono Committee member Rachel Royal says that Gadalla has even gone out of her way to volunteer at Wills for Heroes events that are out of town and required her to travel.
By Rachel Royal
Perspective. That is what Michael Martinez, Bankruptcy and Corporate Attorney at Grier Wright Martinez, P.A., gleans from his pro bono work. He shares, “It really helps the effectiveness of my tact and approach dealing with my corporate clients when I’m simultaneously working with a pro bono client trying to save a house or put food on the table.” Although he has worked at the same firm since graduating from law school in 2009, Michael has volunteered for a wide variety of pro bono causes.
One of the most meaningful projects was one that he essentially pioneered in 2012 when he assisted terminal cancer patients at a local rehabilitative and palliative care clinic with end-of-life-planning. This project was particularly important because most of the patients were immigrants or underprivileged and unable to otherwise afford the legal assistance needed to prepare their families for the aftermath of their deaths. Many of these patients would leave behind minor children who would subsequently be orphaned which magnified the significance of this work.
By Nisel Desai
By Sidney Thomas
By Caroline Trautman
By Rachel Royal
By Kaitlyn Fudge
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By Allison Constance
As we all process the ongoing events related to the Covid-19 pandemic, one source of comfort is knowing that helpers, like first responders, healthcare workers, and so many others, are doing the impactful work they’ve always done – saving lives.
By Rachel Royal