PROBONO Bulletin - Summer 2008 - (Page 5)

CovER SToRy A lead team was formed of Dan Taylor (Boston), Marianne Raimondi and Paul Shadle (both Chicago), Sean Hinners (Washington, DC) and Adam Kruger (Austin). Under the leadership, guidance and assistance of Sarah Bookbinder and David Tipson (LCCR, Washington, DC) and Crystal Utley (MCJ, Biloxi), the team built the framework for this project. The Real Estate group and Trusts and Estates volunteer lawyers authored the manuals that would serve as the volunteer lawyers’ primary reference materials. At the same time, the team assembled screening guidelines for the matters that would qualify for the project, built a network of community contacts to serve as a referral network and reached out to Mississippi Gulf Coast lawyers who would counsel and guide the volunteers on local customs and issues. DLA Piper volunteers also began working with the North Gulfport Community Land Trust (NGCLT) to address the lack of affordable housing stock that was harming the Gulf Coast’s rebuilding and recovery efforts. Matters were funneled into the project primarily from the periodic legal aid clinics hosted by MCJ in communities throughout the region. Working closely with LCCR and MCJ, we instituted a program that brings lawyers and paralegals to the Mississippi Coast each week to take in new matters and serve existing clients. Our two Ron Brown Scholars, Wendy Francois (New York) and Kiya Jones (Washington, DC), have worked extraordinarily hard to ensure that our community relations remain strong and that the trips are meaningful for all of the participants. They have become invaluable members of this team. So far, 111 lawyers, paralegals and staff are representing 74 clients and are involved in strategic thinking and planning around the heirs’ property issues with our partner organizations. Finally, several of our lawyers and staff have traveled to Mississippi to staff clinics, meet with clients and assist with community outreach. WHAT oUR voLUnTEERS HAvE LEARnED Betsy Karmin (Washington, DC) represents Mrs. D., a senior citizen who has several grandchildren living with her. Mrs. D. spent ten years making monthly payments of $275 to purchase her house in an installment sale. She finished making all the payments, but the woman who was selling the house to her died just before Hurricane Katrina hit, and the seller never delivered a deed to our client. Mrs. D.’s home was completely destroyed in the storm, and for more than two-and-a-half years she has been living with her grandchildren in a FEMA trailer on the property. Mrs. D. could not apply for state or federal assistance to help her rebuild her home because she is not the record owner of her property. “In my conversations with Mrs. D., I have often been struck with her resilience and determination to ‘wake up each day and just keep going,’” says Betsy. “I was literally in tears thinking about her sense of confusion regarding how to go about establishing title to her property, collecting on the insurance and applying for grants. It really does bring home how much we take for granted. My only fear in doing this project is that I might fail in my efforts to help out this brave and strong woman.” Marianne Raimondi (Chicago) has also been working tirelessly for Katrina victims. “We are assisting such a “There is still so much work to be done to rebuild these areas, and DLA Piper has taken the steps to ensure this happens.” SUMMER 2008 | 05

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of PROBONO Bulletin - Summer 2008

PROBONO Bulletin - Summer 2008 Contents A Firm Response to a Natural Disaster Protecting Our Electorate National News An Interview with Sandy Gohn Mapping Impact FourThought Signature Project Update New Perimeter Launches Addis Ababa Law School Project Awards and Recognition What Our Clients Say About Us

PROBONO Bulletin - Summer 2008

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