Posts Tagged ‘ Volunteer ’

Lawyer Wall of Heroes: 26 Stories You Really Should Read

May 25th, 2011. By AbiK

Chances are, none of the lawyers shown above is really comfortable with the title “hero”. And we usually reserve the honor for caped crusaders in tights or, joking aside, those who’ve shown incredibly selfless acts of courage in the face of devastating events. But for the individuals who were extended a helping hand during their own personal hour of need—often when everyone else had turned their backs on them—these attorneys are indeed truly heroes.

In each of our interviews with these attorneys, the majority shared this one quote with our senior legal correspondent, Brenda: “It’s the right thing to do.” If you’re wondering what that ‘thing’ is for each of them, click on their images above to find out. The legal practice areas they’ve chosen to champion and the causes they’ve chosen to support are as diverse as can be imagined—from Hurricane Katrina to children with special needs to the transgender community and even one that combines practicing with preaching.

We continue to be inspired by the pro bono stories we share in our Lawyers Giving Back columns. We hope you are, too.

If you know an attorney who ‘gives back’, let us know—we’d love to share their story as well. Drop us a line at .

Tags: charitable giving, Lawyer Wall of Heroes #1, Lawyers Giving Back, Pro Bono, Volunteer
Posted in Emerging Issues, Lawyers, Lawyers Giving Back | 2 Comments »

Attorney Douglas Fox: Helping US Servicemen a “Humbling Responsibility”

April 19th, 2011. By BrendaC

Lawyers Giving Back looks at a side of lawyers you don’t hear too much about—the side that gives back…pays it forward..and shares the love. We’ve found quite a number of attorneys who log non-billable hours helping others—simply because they believe it’s the right thing to do. Their stories are inspiring, and hey, who knew lawyers were so…good? If you’ve got a story to share about an attorney who’s doing the right thing, let us know—we’d love to let others know, too. Today, we’re talking with attorney Douglas Fox of Cozen O’Connor law firm…

Attorney Douglas Fox: “If you are going to be deployed to Afghanistan or Iraq, the last thing you need is a legal problem on your mind.”

Attorney Douglas Fox

US military personnel have legal issues just like everybody else. And last year, the American Bar Association (ABA) saw a need to reach out to US servicemen and servicewomen and connect them with lawyers who were willing help on a pro bono basis.

“We jumped at the chance,” says attorney Douglas Fox, whose firm, Cozen O’Connor, was asked to become one of the founding members of the ABA Pro Bono Military Project. 

“We thought it was an incredibly exciting and humbling responsibility and opportunity to help active servicemen and women. If you are going to be deployed to Afghanistan or Iraq, the last thing you need is a legal problem on your mind and we felt this was a way for lawyers to give back.“ 

Even before volunteering to be a founding member of the Pro Bono US Military Project, Cozen O’Connor had an impressive pro bono track record. Last year alone according to Fox, who heads the firm’s pro bono committee, Cozen O’Connor attorneys did more than 16,000 pro bono hours—with a total time value of some $6 million. 

“These were hours given to those who otherwise would not have been able to access legal services,” says Fox. “We handle all kinds of pro bono cases, from very high visibility cases to cases that don’t make the headlines, like the pro bono military project cases, but they are equally important to us and they are, of course, important to our clients.” 

In the high-profile category you can include Lozano v. Hazelton, a civil rights case that is now before the Supreme Court. For the last four years, along with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and others, Cozen O’Connor has being fighting a Hazelton, Pennsylvania city bylaw that would punish landlords and employers who rent to or hire so-called illegal aliens.

Cozen O’Connor has several hundred lawyers with 20 offices across the US and is also represented in London and Toronto.  Although it is a general practice firm, its lawyers don’t do a lot of family law. With the Pro Bono US Military Project, Fox says, “This is an opportunity for our lawyers who don’t practice family law to go outside their comfort zone. It is something that lawyers who take on these cases are anxious to do because they know the need is so great.” 

“Many of the cases are family law cases. They are adoptions, child support, divorces—cases of that nature. They are issues that need to be dealt with in order to put the minds of the servicemen and women at ease,” Fox adds. 

“There is no question, even today with this program, not all of the legal needs of military personnel are being met,” says Fox.  “Even with the great work of the ABA Pro Bono Military Project we know there are needs that are not being met, however, we have been very excited to do what we can do.” 

Douglas Fox concentrates his practice in subrogation and recovery, property insurance, commercial and civil litigation. Before joining Cozen O’Connor in 1985, Fox served as an assistant district attorney in Philadelphia. Fox has also previously served on the board of directors of the Philadelphia Committee to End Homelessness.

Tags: ABA, ABA Pro Bono Military Project, ACLU, Active Servicemen, Attorney Douglas Fox, Charity, Cozen O'Connor, Douglas Fox, Lawyer, Lawyers Giving Back, Pro Bono, US Military, Volunteer
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Attorney Kip Scott: Ground Zero, Katrina Volunteer Ready to Help Again

August 3rd, 2010. By janem

Attorney Kip Scott has plenty of experience helping others—outside of his legal practice.

Scott first got into volunteerism during law school in his late 20s (his first career was in engineering). ” I had the opportunity to volunteer as a summer camp counselor for kids who were living in group homes,” says Scott, who  helped with whatever activities they wanted to do, from swimming to bow and arrow(!) . ” I found it much more rewarding than a lot of stuff I did at work,” he adds. Scott volunteered at the camps for four summers and then 9/11 happened.

Again through his church, Scott volunteered with the relief effort. “I had one week’s notice to pack, take a few classes in disaster training and get to New York [from California], a city I had never been to,” says Scott. “We stayed a few blocks north of ground zero and worked 10-14 hour shifts. I drove a little cart around that carried supplies—food, water, firewood (to keep everyone warm at night)—for the police, fire department and the Port Authority. Most of the officers I spoke to just wanted someone to talk to about California, to keep their minds off what had just happened. Of course many people were emotionally numb; I owed them a great deal of respect.

“Basically Ground Zero was an open grave. We didn’t take any pictures; we wanted to honor the dead. It was really tough for everyone and every night after our shift we came back to the hotel and were debriefed about what we saw, what happened and what took place. The disaster training classes taught us what not to say and not to give advice; just be there for support.

“Most of us who worked at Ground Zero were so busy we didn’t have time to think about what we saw or smelled. There was a food tent and two supply tents set up and everything was being worked on including the subway. Often the gas lines would give way and everyone would have to evacuate; everywhere smelled like an electrical fire—it was surreal.

“The other part of my job was working at the medical examiner’s office—where the bodies were processed. When a body or partial body was found, they would bag the remains, put a bar code on the bag, put the bag on a gurney with a flag on it, salute, put it in the ambulance and drive the ambulance midtown to the NY Medical Examiner’s office.  Again,  I was there to make sure all the tents had supplies. I was there a few times when the bags were opened. The doctors would cut a piece of muscle or fingernail and bone marrow to get DNA samples. The triage room smelled like dirty ammonia, which made the doctor’s voices hoarse because the ammonia had eroded their esophagus.

“Our shift was over after two weeks and another group came in but I felt bad for leaving so many people still working there.. I would have stayed for as long as necessary.”

Then came Hurricane Katrina. Just as he did after 9/11, Scott dropped everything on short notice and traveled to Mississippi to help those in need. “I first arrived in Gulfport, where the eye of the hurricane hit,” says Scott.

“We helped flood survivors (they were not called victims) because their insurance wouldn’t help them. We would take all their furniture, appliances, clothes, everything, onto the curb of the street in the front of their house, in separate piles. Then we brought out all the drywall to expose the rafters so the wooden beams would dry—mold was a big issue.  It was physically intense and the conditions were bad: it was about 100° with heavy humidity. Lots of windows wouldn’t open because the wood was swollen and inside the houses  it was even hotter. I worked there for about two weeks until Hurricane Rita came and we had to leave.

“Even though for just a brief time, I’m glad I was able to help some people. And I wouldn’t hesitate to help in this capacity again—God forbid it won’t happen again. “

Back in California, Kip Scott helps personal injury victims at the Personal Injury Law Center in Orange County.

Tags: Ground Zero, Katrina, Kip Scott, Lawyers Giving Back, Volunteer
Posted in Lawyers Giving Back | 6 Comments »

Katie Morales’ DisceRNment: Making the Legal Industry Proud

July 23rd, 2010. By Kristine B

Editor’s Note: This is the first in a series we hope to present to celebrate and commend the behind-the-scenes volunteer work (including pro-bono cases), donated funds and/or time, and the overall commitment those in the legal industry generously give—most often quietly, without fanfare or cameras rolling—to those in need. We thank Katie Morales for all that she and her team at DisceRNment do, and for taking the time to speak with us.

Sometimes, when you focus on lawsuits and drug side effects, it can be easy to forget how much good there is in the world. Katie Morales, who we profiled previously in a Pleading Ignorance blog post, is one of the people doing a lot of good. So much good, that we had to talk about her. 

Katie is a legal nurse consultant and runs a company called DisceRNment (online at discernment.biz). Both privately and through her company, Katie works to make the world a better place. 

“Just this weekend, we adopted a mile as part of ‘Keep Cobb Beautiful,” Katie says. “You adopt the mile and are responsible for cleaning it. We participate in Service Juris, an event in Atlanta where attorneys help an inner city area; we helped to convert an abandoned area into a green space.” 

Katie, her husband and DiseRNment are involved in donating water, sponsoring a swim team and sponsoring six children through World Vision.

“We sponsor older boys because we’ve been told it’s hard to get people to sponsor older Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: DisceRNment, Katie Morales, Volunteer
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