Berks County Bar Association The Berks Barrister Spring 2018 - 6

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Walking the Walk in Stride with the Fourteenth
Continued from page 5
The Berks County Bar Association
received a County Recognition Award
at the Conference of County Bar
Leaders for 287(g) Agreements and
Immigration Status Issues public
seminar that had attracted many
Berks County public officials, including
County Commissioners. With President
London (L-R) are PBA Vice President
Anne John, CCBL President Mike
Pierce, PBA President Sharon Lopez
and PBA President-Elect Charles
Eppolito, III.

The Bar Association has a long-standing tradition of outreach
geared towards education about our legal system, and in assisting
members of our community needing to assert and protect their
rights. Some of our programs and services include:
* Lawyer Referral Service, which at a reasonable cost
matches members of the public seeking legal services with an
attorney who is qualified to handle the specific matter.
* Bar Association funding and volunteer attorney hours and
financial contributions to Mid-Penn Legal Services (MPLS)
to assist low income individuals in matters such as housing,
child custody, domestic violence, public benefits, elder law, and
consumer issues. According to the MPLS 2016-2017 Fact
Sheet, 2,951 Berks County residents benefited from MPLS
advocacy, including the efforts of volunteer attorneys, in FY
2016-2017.
* The "Modest Means" Program, which serves a segment
of the Berks population in need of legal services, who earn
in excess of MPLS limits, but cannot afford the usual hourly
rates of private counsel. After initiation at a recent joint
meeting of the Community Outreach and Lawyer Referral/
Legal Aid Committees, chaired respectively by Mary Kay
Bernosky and Amy Good, the Board recently expanded the
Modest Means Program to review of leases and lease-purchase
agreements, which is especially critical due to residents of
Puerto Rico displaced by Hurricane Maria with short-term or
longer term housing needs in this community.
* Continued efforts at education about fraud and
unauthorized practice of law by notaries, especially in our
Latino communities, and the importance of an attorney,
and not a notary, in the preparation of legal documents and
immigration forms. This outreach has included the "STOP
6 | Berks Barrister

NOTARY FRAUD" flyer in English and Spanish, and
appearances by Ana López-Vives, our Community Services
Manager, on "Algo Cultural" on Albright College Radio
WXAC 91.3FM, hosted by Daniel Egusquiza, Director of
Barrio Alegria, on the topic of notary fraud.
* Education and assistance in mortgage foreclosure
diversion, landlord-tenant issues, domestic violence through
Safe Berks, and immigration-related issues. We are especially
proud to have received recognition from the Pennsylvania
Bar Association on February 23, 2018 at the Conference of
County Bar Leaders for the seminar on 287(g) Agreements
and Immigration Status.
Future efforts to ensure access to and full ability of
participation in our legal system will include assisting bilingual
individuals to become certified court interpreters, and continued
expansion of pro bono volunteer attorney opportunities.
As President, I have been fortunate to be able to participate
in our Bar Association's community outreach efforts aimed at
protecting rights and ensuring the access to justice intended by
the drafters of the 14th Amendment. On February 28, 2018,
I represented the Bar Association as moderator of the annual
Batdorf Lecture at Alvernia University on the timely topic of
redistricting. The four panelists engaged in a spirited discussion of
partisan "gerrymandering," and talked about more equitable ways
to draw congressional district maps to better ensure adherence to
the principle of "one person, one vote" and to avoid the dilution of
any group's voting power.
Likewise, on April 4, 2018, I had the privilege of delivering
remarks on behalf of the Bar Association at the Naturalization
Court ceremony, organized by the Citizenship Committee
chaired by Andy Fick and Marissa Mowery. At that ceremony,


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Berks County Bar Association The Berks Barrister Spring 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Berks County Bar Association The Berks Barrister Spring 2018

Berks County Bar Association The Berks Barrister Spring 2018 - 1
Berks County Bar Association The Berks Barrister Spring 2018 - 2
Berks County Bar Association The Berks Barrister Spring 2018 - 3
Berks County Bar Association The Berks Barrister Spring 2018 - 4
Berks County Bar Association The Berks Barrister Spring 2018 - 5
Berks County Bar Association The Berks Barrister Spring 2018 - 6
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Berks County Bar Association The Berks Barrister Spring 2018 - 8
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