By Leah Dursch

Volunteers from eight pro bono programs were honored at the annual Volunteer Recognition Event on May 24, 2005, at the Museum of History and Industry. Allen Schauffler of KING 5 News was the Master of Ceremonies. Fredric C. Tausend, President of the King County Bar Foundation and Gary Mae-hara, Vice President of the King County Bar Association, welcomed the group. King County Superior Court Judge Julie Spector acknowledged volunteers who made particularly outstanding contributions and presented them with awards.

According to the Rule of Professional Conduct 6.1, “every lawyer has a professional responsibility to assist in the provision of legal services to those unable to pay.” More than 1,000 lawyers fulfilled this obligation during the past year by accepting a pro bono case through one of the Community Legal Services programs.

Volunteer Legal Services (VLS) provides direct representation to low-income King County residents in a broad array of civil legal issues, including bankruptcy, debt defense, housing, public benefits, estate planning, guardianship, special education, and tort defense. VLS screens clients for eligibility, merit, and program priorities and then refers the case to a volunteer attorney.

VLS recognized Thomas Gates of Gates’ Law PLLC for his tireless efforts in providing estate-planning services to our clients. Tom is one of the few attorneys who make “house calls” and visits to hospitals and nursing homes. A large portion of our clients are elderly or disabled, so Tom’s ability to provide direct service to these populations is greatly appreciated. Tom is always willing to take a case and calls if he has not received a referral that month. VLS especially appreciates Tom’s kindness and compassion in these matters. Tom sees the “whole” client and takes the time necessary to explain the various estate planning documents and their purpose. This type of dedication to our clients is invaluable and we truly appreciate Tom’s outstanding commitment to pro bono work.

Volunteer Attorneys for Persons with HIV/AIDS (VAPWA) consists of 259 attorneys who have a particular commitment and sensitivity to individuals impacted by HIV and who have expertise in areas of legal concern to such individuals. The program refers clients to panel attorneys for assistance with civil legal matters. VAPWA attorneys also provide legal education to persons living with HIV/AIDS, as well as to other community organizations providing services for persons living with HIV/AIDS.

VAPWA recognized Brock Gavery of Keating, Bucklin & McCormack, Inc. PS and the Law Offices of Douglas G. Anderson (Jeannie Goshgarian and Doug Anderson) for the commitment, enthusiasm, and passion they bring to the VAPWA program, as well as their tireless efforts to provide legal advice and representation to VAPWA clients. Each of these attorneys has never turned down a case and, in fact, often times call the program to request more cases. Brock, Jeannie, and Doug are expert advocates in the areas of bankruptcy and estate planning. Having this type of practice area and background is a tremendous value to the VAPWA program, as a majority of the VAPWA clients are making “end-of-life” decisions.

Legal Services for the Homeless pairs law firms with homeless shelters in King County and offers direct representation to residents in shelters who would otherwise have very limited access to legal services. Firm volunteers visit their paired shelters at least once a month to meet with residents and discuss their legal concerns. These firm attorneys also represent clients whose concerns are of legal merit. To reach shelters not paired with a law firm, the project utilizes a panel of volunteer attorneys to provide direct representation.

Carol Arnold of Preston Gates & Ellis LLP has been volunteering with Legal Services for the Homeless since March of 2003 when the project began a weekly legal clinic at YWCA’s Angeline’s Day Shelter for homeless women. Carol stands out as a volunteer for her commitment to serving homeless women by regularly providing advice and consultation at the legal clinic and assisting clients further with direct representation. In her two years of volunteering she has been one of the volunteers at the Angeline’s legal clinic who has volunteered the most. Carol has also assisted at least three clients outside of the legal clinic with representation in family law matters. It is this type of commitment and follow through that Carol portrays every time she volunteers, and this has helped make the legal clinic at Angeline’s a success.

The Newcomers Resource Project provides access to legal services for newcomers, immigrants and refugees through providing legal clinics, legal education workshops and direct representation. In order to provide effective programs, the project builds partnerships with area agencies and organizations that serve newcomer communities.

Gwynne Skinner of The Public Interest Law Group was recognized for her involvement in representing immigrant clients with employment and wage claim issues and ensuring that, regardless of employee immigration status and language, employers are not successful in taking advantage of immigrant work-ers. Gwynne has volunteered with the Newcomers Project since October 2000 and has represented seventeen individuals, often taking on some of our most difficult cases. What stands out about Gwynne is not only her representation of many low-income immigrants, but her passion for the work and her ability to recruit her colleagues to get involved in pro bono work. Gwynne is responsible for bringing on at least four other volunteers into the Newcomers Project. In addition to all of the above, Gwynne has made herself available to mentor new volunteers who work on pro bono wage claim cases.

The Housing Justice Project (HJP) provides assistance to tenants who would otherwise appear pro se at their eviction Show Cause Hearings. KCBA runs two programs: one in downtown Seattle and one in Kent. Attorneys and legal assistants volunteer at the courthouse and provide tenants with a range of services, including informational and educational materials, legal advice, negotiation, limited representation and referrals to other agencies.

HJP Seattle recognized attorney Erika Lim of Seattle University School of Law and legal assistant Janet Cavallo, a second year law student at Seattle University School of Law.

Erika Lim has been an HJP volunteer since 2003. She always goes above and beyond the call of duty by taking exceptionally difficult cases. This past year, Erika took on eighteen HJP case, including three that went on to trial. Erika never gives up and always finds a way to assist the client in the face of overwhelming odds. Without Erika’s help and persistence, many clients would have to face the legal process and trial on their own. Erika has truly provided access to justice and access to the courts for some of King County’s most vulnerable residents.

Janet Cavallo has been a long-term volunteer legal assistant at HJP and has put in more than 200 hours over the past year and a half. Janet possesses a unique ability to focus on a client’s legal problem and attend to their emotional needs at the same time. Her adaptability allows her to focus on the client in addition to providing support and direction for attorneys. In addition to her routine responsibilities as a legal assistant, she has taken on the task of training new legal assistants. Janet has also worked on reference materials for attorney use and is always available to fill in for extra shifts when needed.

HJP Kent recognized attorney Elizabeth Powell, a solo practitioner, and legal assistant Kim Komoto, a paralegal student at Highline Community College.

Elizabeth Powell has been a dedicated volunteer with HJP since 2000. She has successfully represented tenants through many different procedural and substantive issues to prevent eviction and homelessness. Elizabeth also provides clients with the support they need when the law is not in their favor and helps them understand the remaining alternatives. HJP Kent especially appreciates her willingness to volunteer on short notice and to provide mentorship to new volunteer attorneys.

Kim Komoto interned at HJP Kent for her paralegal program and continues to volunteer her time. Kim brings extensive administrative volunteer experience to the program. She especially excels at conducting client intake interviews and has a great eye for detail. Kim spearheaded the program’s effort to create and organize reference materials for use by clinic volunteers.

The Family Law Mentor Program provides pro bono representation for low-income clients in contested dissolution of marriage or parentage cases where children are at risk because of domestic violence, child abuse, drug/alcohol abuse, or other factors. Volunteer attorneys new to family law receive free training, a comprehensive practice manual, and a Mentor attorney for support throughout the case.

The Family Law Mentor Program recognized Meena Pallipamu Menter of the Northwest Justice Project for her enthusiasm and commitment in advocating for the client. Meena represented the client in a dissolution trial and obtained a protection order for the client and her children. As a result of the trial, the court ordered a protective parenting plan with the opposing party only having supervised visitation and the client having sole decision-making. Additionally, the court ordered the opposing party to pay child support.

The Kinship Care Solutions Project provides pro bono representation to relatives and other caregivers in Nonparental Custody actions. In increasing numbers, children are living with caregivers other than their parents, such as grandparents, aunts/uncles, adult siblings, and family friends. Children live in kinship care due to a variety of factors including abuse and neglect by the parent, incarceration, substance abuse, mental or physical illness, or death of the parent. Volunteer attorneys receive free training, a comprehensive manual and mentor support.

The Kinship Care Solutions Project recognized Sarah Bhagwandin and Jason Mills, both of Davis Wright Tremaine LLP. Both Sarah and Jason have applied their compassion, dedication and skill to represent a client in a highly contested Nonparental Custody action with complex procedural and substantive issues. Sarah and Jason briefed and argued several contested motions at various levels of review. Their efforts in providing a voice for their client in order to ensure a safe and stable home for the children have been remarkable. Through it all, they have maintained a commitment that is truly inspiring.

All the volunteers for the Community Legal Services programs should be commended for their dedication to pro bono work. The individuals recognized at the event are a terrific example of the impact that attorneys can make in the lives of the low-income clients we serve.

Many thanks to the Community Legal Services staff, in particular Val Carlson, Director, and the Commun-ity Legal Services Committee, with Will Rava of Perkins Coie LLP and

Joan Tierney of Seattle University School of Law as co-chairs. Special thanks go to the event planning committee of Andrea Axel, Tracy Demers, Leah Dursch, Alfred McGugin and Edward Song.

Thank you to Alice Paine, Execu-tive Director of KCBA and Founda-tion, and a special thanks to the sponsors, Davis Wright Tremaine LLP; Hale’s Ales; Karr Tuttle Campbell; and Stoel Rives LLP.

If you would like to volunteer, please contact Community Legal Services at the King County Bar Association at (206) 267-7100 or on the web at www.kcba.org. n