Counsel to Counsel - November 2008 - (Page 19) Building Houses, Building Lawyers Habitat for Humanity International and Ford & Harrison LLP By Steven Andersen E lizabeth K. “Liz” Blake had been the vice president and general counsel of GE Power Systems, and executive vice president and general counsel of US Airways Group, Inc., but when she decided to move back to Atlanta and marry a fellow law school alumnus in late 2005, she didn’t have a new job lined up. At a friend’s urging, she applied to be the general counsel of an organization that appealed strongly to her values and faith: Habitat for Humanity International. The result is a one-ofa-kind partnership that benefits both sides. “I thought this would be a great opportunity for us to give young lawyers their very own client,” Harrison says. “They would be responsible for that client, prepare a monthly bill for that client, send it to the client, but not expect for it to be paid. I thought this would be a great teaching tool, and worthwhile in terms of helping an important and worthwhile organization achieve its goals.” Critical Work She got the job, and as she Habitat for Humanity International; C. Lash Harrison, Ford & Harrison LLP Habitat for Humanity was adjusted to the demands of founded in 1976 to provide partner families their sleeves to build a Habitat house in the nonprofit world, she refreshed old with shelter. Initially a small grass-roots Atlanta for the Atlanta affiliate of Habitat acquaintances. Blake first met C. Lash movement, the organization has steadily for Humanity International. But Harrison Harrison, managing partner of Ford & grown. Today Habitat is building homes in wanted to know more about the Habitat Harrison LLP, nearly a decade earlier, when 1,500 communities in the United States and organization as a whole. she was at GE. Their friendship continued in more than 90 countries around the world. when she moved on to US Airways, where “She was so excited about her new position, she often relied on Ford & Harrison for the From its Georgia headquarters— so I asked her a lot of questions about complex labor and employment work that administrative offices are in Atlanta and it,” he explains. “Habitat has a small legal is critical in the airline industry. In summer department with a very large number of issues international operations are based in rural 2007, the two met to talk about her new job. Americus—the NGO manages a network of and I was curious about what they did. She mentioned that they had a significant amount affiliates around the globe. Habitat and its “When Lash and I got together for lunch affiliates raise more than $1.2 billion a year, of labor and employment issues.” and I told him about the work I was doing, I and in 2007 it worked on 55,000 homes, watched the light bulb go on,” Blake recalls. Blake was hoping Ford & Harrison would including 7,000 in the United States, using “He said, ‘Would you like some help?’ That’s take on some work pro bono, or at least at a more than 1 million volunteers. a question every nonprofit general counsel deep discount. “I danced around it gingerly. wants to hear.” As with any organization of that size, It’s hard to ask people you know to give Habitat for Humanity faces a broad range you legal services pro bono,” she says. But Ford & Harrison already had a donor of legal issues. Its trademark compares in Harrison quickly developed a much bigger relationship with Habitat. In fact, once a recognition to that of the American Red plan. year the firm’s attorneys and staff roll up www.martindale.com/c2c November 2008 From left, Sarah Fuson, Ford & Harrison LLP; Elizabeth K. “Liz” Blake, profiles in partnership 19 Photography by Stanley Leary http://www.martindale.com/c2c
For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.