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| January 2008 |
PILI Alumni Connection
The quarterly newsletter of the PILI Alumni Program |
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Greetings!
Welcome to the first edition of the Public Interest Law Initiative's quarterly e-newsletter, the PILI Alumni Connection. The newsletter is intended to provide you with information about the latest happenings at PILI and the Alumni Program. We will also spotlight a former Intern and Fellow as well as a PILI-affiliated agency in each edition. We hope you find it interesting and we would like to thank former PILI Intern, Nichole Cain, who is the chair of the PILI Alumni E-newsletter Committee.
Yours truly,
The PILI Staff and Alumni Circle |
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About PILI and the Alumni Program |
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For thirty years, the Public Interest Law Initiative (PILI) has pursued equal access to justice by creating opportunities for law students and lawyers to provide public interest and pro bono work in Chicago. PILI offers Internship & Fellowship programs for law students and new law school graduates, respectively, to work at public interest law agencies in Chicago. PILI also inspires and promotes pro bono work by members of the bar through its Pro Bono Initiative (PBI).
The PILI Alumni Program strives to maximize the natural link between  alumni as a conduit into PBI and to generate a philanthropic relationship with alumni both on a personal and institutional level. The Alumni Circle is the leadership core of the Alumni Program. In addition to issuing the quarterly PILI Alumni Connection, the Alumni Program will also host three programs each year specifically designed for alumni and will include an Alumni Ambassador component.
Please be sure that PILI has your contact information, including your mailing address and e-mail address by e-mailing us at alumni@pili-law.org.
Since 1977, there have been over 2,500 PILI Interns and Fellows, many of whom we have lost touch with. If you know a former Intern or Fellow, please feel free to forward this newsletter on to them. |
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PILI News & Events |
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PILI Alumni Program Launch Announced at Annual Awards Luncheon On December 6, 2007, nearly 500 members of the legal community gathered at the PILI Annual Awards Luncheon to recognize the contributions of several of the legal profession's best:
- LaShonda Hunt, (former PILI Fellow) of Exelon, and Joe Margulies (former PILI Intern), of the MacArthur Justice Center, received PILI's 2007 Distinguished Alumni Awards for their outstanding contributions to public interest and pro bono work;
- Ed Grossman, Executive Director and co-founder of the Chicago Legal Clinic, received PILI's 2007 Distinguished Public Service Award, for his commitment and career-long dedication to public interest work; and
- JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s Legal Department received PILI's 2007 Pro Bono Initiative Award, acknowledging a single individual or organization (law firm or corporation) for their outstanding commitment to to pro bono legal work.
Illinois Supreme Court Justice Anne Burke delivered keynote remarks. PILI Executive Director, Susan J. Curry, announced the launch of the Alumni Program and recognized former Interns and Fellows, especially those from the Alumni Program who came together to sponsor a table at the event. For more information, visit the PILI website or contact Susan at 312-832-5128 or scurry@pili-law.org.
Pictured above: Former PILI Fellow, LaShonda Hunt, receives the 2007 PILI Distinguished Alumni Award from the Honorable Ann Claire Williams of the United States Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit.
PILI to Host Alumni Program and Reception
PILI will host three programs each year designed specifically for our alumni. The first program will be held on Wednesday, February 27, 2008 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the offices of Kirkland & Ellis, located at 200 East Randolph Drive. The first hour will feature a presentation entitled "Networking Skills for Lawyers" delivered by Susan Sneider, Director of Marketing and Business Development at Freeborn & Peters, LLP. She is the well-know author of the American Bar Association publication, "A Lawyer's Guide to Networking," and will be giving away a signed copy of this book at the program. The program will be followed by a reception with drinks and appetizers. All former Interns and Fellows are welcome to attend this complimentary program and reception. Please register by February 15th by e-mailing us at alumni@pili-law.org. You can also find out more on the PILI website.
Save the Date - PBI "Celebrating Pro Bono" Annual Reception
Next year's annual PBI reception, "Celebrating Pro Bono," will be held from 5-7 p.m. on Tuesday, June 10, 2008, at the Harold Washington Library's Winter Garden Room. Contact PBI Director, Michael Bergmann, for additional information about the event at mbergmann@pili-law.org or 312-832-5129, or visit the PBI website. The Alumni Circle is also hoping to have the Alumni Program as a sponsor of this event. We are seeking a minimum contribution of $50 per alumni to achieve sponsorship status at the $1,000, $2,500 or $5,000 level. Contact Alumni Circle member, Jordan Heinz, for more information about Alumni sponsorship of this event at 312-469-7027 or jheinz@kirkland.com. |
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PILI Alumni Spotlight |
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 Cathy Yu, 2006 Intern
Cathy Yu received the 2006 Thomas L. Nicholson Memorial Internship, generously funded by Jerome and Jamie Gilson in honor of their friend and esteemed PILI founding member. At the Environmental Law and Policy Center (ELPC), Cathy performed legal research on a variety of topics including interpretations of the Clean Water Act, eminent domain issues related to the Peotone Airport, pollution permits, and migratory bird law. Detailed feedback from ELPC's supervising attorneys helped Cathy develop her legal research and writing skills: "By the end of the summer, I was very confident in my legal writing abilities, which proved to be very helpful my 2L year and for my 2L summer job." Seeing ELPC's attorneys engaged in litigation also helped Cathy decide she wanted to be a litigator. Since her PILI Internship, she has continued her studies at University of Chicago Law School, volunteered at the Lawyers' Committee for Better Housing and Mandel Legal Aid Clinic, and worked as a summer associate at DLA Piper US LLP. When Cathy expressed her strong interest in public interest work, the firm invited her to participate in several pro bono projects. She will join DLA Piper next fall. Cathy currently serves on PILI's Board of Directors as an Intern Representative. Her commitment is clear: "I plan on continuing to do as much public interest work as I can in the future regardless of what path my legal career takes."
 Justin Heather, 2001 FellowAs a PILI Fellow at the Northwestern University School of Law's Bluhm Legal Clinic, Justin Heather worked on behalf of the wrongfully convicted in both federal habeas and state post-conviction proceedings, and prepared for successful oral argument before the Illinois Supreme Court on behalf of a mother wrongfully convicted in the death of her child. His work at Bluhm Legal Clinic "fostered an enduring sense that, as a lawyer, I have a moral responsibility to provide legal services to those whom cannot otherwise afford such representation." As a PILI Fellow, Justin learned first-hand the responsibilities of a young lawyer maintaining a rigorous case load: "I like to think of my PILI Fellowship as providing a seamless transition from law school to the practice of law." Since his PILI Fellowship, Justin has been an associate with the Chicago office of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP in its general litigation department. He has represented numerous clients in litigation, arbitral and bankruptcy proceedings covering a wide range of matters, including breach of contract and related corporate matters, consumer fraud actions, regulatory investigations and franchise matters. Justin has also worked on a number of pro bono cases, with the full support of the firm, including representing clients in federal habeas and state post-conviction proceedings, asylum proceedings and discrimination lawsuits. Currently, Justin and several of his Skadden colleagues are representing a Mississippi death row prisoner in federal habeas proceedings.
Is there a former PILI Intern or Fellow you think should be recognized? If so, you can send information about that alum to us at alumni@pili-law.org for consideration for a future Alumni Spotlight. |
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Agency Spotlight |
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Illinois Legal Aid Online
Website Helps Attorneys Find and Do Pro Bono Work
Since 2002, thousands of Illinois lawyers who do pro bono legal work have turned to a website, www.IllinoisProBono.org, to help them more easily find and do volunteer work. The website helps attorneys and other legal professionals across the state find appropriate volunteer opportunities and obtain the training and support needed to handle pro bono cases.
Those seeking pro bono work can now more easily find volunteer opportunities that better meet their needs. Users can search based on a variety of factors, including who they are, location, type of opportunity, area of law, skills they would like to acquire, specific client type, and their time availability. The Volunteer Opportunity Search recommends opportunities based upon volunteering preferences that users identify when they register. Registered users also automatically receive email alerts for pro bono opportunities that may be of interest to them.
In addition to the search function, www.IllinoisProBono.org contains thousands of legal resources in 24 areas of law. The largest volume of practice support information is concentrated in the areas of greatest need for lower-income clients, including housing, family law, and consumer law. Registered website users also have the opportunity to personalize the website in several ways. The news section allows visitors to obtain news from Illinois pro bono programs, and from national legal services organizations via RSS feeds. Registered website users can add their own RSS feeds, thereby integrating news from various sources into one webpage. Other features of www.IllinoisProBono.org include a discussion group and email list for pro bono attorneys, a robust search engine, automated HotDocs forms, and an improved calendar of events.
Each month the homepage features the pro bono attorney of the month. A short video highlights the exemplary pro bono work of an Illinois attorney. This month, Paul Freehling of Seyfarth Shaw was selected as the Pro Bono Attorney of the Month for his work with Cabrini Green Legal Aid Clinic. You can nominate a colleague for this honor by e-mailing a brief explanation of why he or she is deserving to info@illinoislegalaid.org.
What are you waiting for? Log on to www.IllinoisProBono.org, register, and make your pro bono work easier to do.
Is there a PILI-affiliated organization that you think should be recognized? If so, you can send information about that organization to us at alumni@pili-law.org for consideration for a future Agency Spotlight. |
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Contact Us |
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e-mail: alumni@pili-law.org
phone: 312-832-5127
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