(CHICAGO) Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP announced today that 10 of the firm's attorneys were honored for exceptional dedication to pro bono services as part of the firm's 16th Annual Pro Bono Service Awards. Recipients were selected for demonstrating a long-term commitment to using their legal skills on behalf of those in need.
"Pro bono service is one of the core values, like client service and legal innovation, that define Katten," said Katten Chairman Vincent A.F. Sergi. "This year's award recipients generously volunteered their legal skills and, as a result, made a positive impact on people's lives and in the community."
The following individuals were recognized for their pro bono service:
- Meghan D. Engle, associate, Litigation and Dispute Resolution (Charlotte), for obtaining domestic violence protective orders for women subjected to domestic abuse;
- Nicholas Gross, associate, Litigation and Dispute Resolution (Los Angeles) and Tami K. Sims, associate, Litigation and Dispute Resolution (Los Angeles), for winning back the home and life savings of an 88-year-old widow suffering from Alzheimer's Disease and dementia and securing for her a substantial jury verdict against the neighbors who defrauded and abused her after her health declined;
- Catherine Bennett Hobson, associate, Environmental (Austin), for winning a major sentencing reduction for a federal criminal defendant;
- William F. McGonigle, associate, Litigation and Dispute Resolution (Washington, DC), for participating in and providing nationwide coordination for Clemency Project 2014, an initiative that seeks out federal inmates who received grossly enlarged sentences more than 10 years ago and evaluates the potential for clemency under criteria set by the Department of Justice;
- Christine M. Murphy, partner, Real Estate (New York), for providing critical real estate advice to a church subleasing some of its space, a school leasing a new building in order to expand to upper grades, a gym negotiating with its landlord after the premises were damaged by Hurricane Sandy, and an agency that uses thrift store revenues to provide various services to homeless individuals and AIDS sufferers;
- Mark C. Simon, partner, Real Estate (Chicago), for assisting nonprofits trying to improve urban neighborhoods by buying, developing, leasing and financing real estate projects, including a shelter for young Hispanic men, a home for older teens transitioning out of foster care, apartments for disabled individuals and their families, and a community youth center;
- Emily Stern, partner, Litigation and Dispute Resolution (New York), for winning asylum in the United States for two individuals who fled Tibet after being beaten and imprisoned by the Chinese government for their Buddhist beliefs, Tibetan ethnicity and support of Tibetan independence;
- Laura D. Waller, staff attorney, Employment Law and Litigation (Chicago), for providing litigation services to juveniles, the sick and the elderly, as well as teaching urban public school students about the Constitution and preparing them for, and guiding them through, mock trials; and
- Brian J. Winterfeldt, Partner, head of the Internet practice (Washington, DC), for securing intellectual property protection for nonprofit organizations doing HIV research, providing leadership training to women and girls, and providing suicide prevention and crisis management services to LGBTQ youth.
"Katten has a long history of providing diverse pro bono services, and our attorneys proactively look to become involved in pro bono projects with the same unwavering dedication, commitment to hard work and legal excellence that they bring to all client matters," said Jonathan Baum, Katten's Director of Pro Bono Services. "The outstanding service delivered by this year's award recipients represents a fraction of the pro bono efforts provided by hundreds of Katten attorneys each year."
Katten's Pro Bono Service Awards include $1,000 honorariums, which each recipient donates to a charity of their choice.