The Equal Justice Works Katrina Initiative has been established to address the many legal needs in areas hardest hit by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. This program is placing lawyers and law students at nonprofit organizations located in Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas and Alabama in order to help the hundreds of thousands of people left without homes, jobs, access to health care and social services due to the damage from the hurricanes.

Equal Justice Works has obtained a $1 million matching grant from the JEHT Foundation to sponsor public interest attorneys to work in the Gulf Coast region for up to two years, providing direct legal services to Gulf Coast residents in need and generating pro bono opportunities for lawyers and law students.

On May 12, 2006, the Ohio State Bar Foundation Hurricane Katrina Legal Relief Fund awarded $75,000 to Equal Justice Works for the Katrina Initiative. These funds bring the total of committed donations to over $900,000, which have been matched dollar for dollar by the JEHT Foundation.

Thanks to the generosity of the Ohio State Bar Foundation Hurricane Katrina Legal Relief Fund, the seventh of the nine Katrina Legal Fellows has been sponsored and is working, providing services to people in need.

Support is still needed for the final two Katrina Legal Fellows. This important work can continue as sponsors come forward with the remaining $150,000 needed for the two-year program. These funds, provided by gifts of any amount, will also be matched by the JEHT Foundation.

For more information on how you can help, please contact:

John Dyess
202-466-3686 ext. 115
jdyess@equaljusticeworks.org

Since our last progress report on April 10, Equal Justice Works has successfully recruited one more Katrina Legal Fellow and six more AmeriCorps Attorneys:

Katrina Legal Fellow

Steven Parker will begin his fellowship with Louisiana Capital Assistance Center in New Orleans, Louisiana on June 1. Mr. Parker will develop systemic litigation and community pressure to address the crises in criminal defense representation that has resulted from the collapse of the public defense system in New Orleans and the surrounding areas following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. He will also represent individuals subjected to unconstitutional confinement and unjust treatment following the hurricanes. Mr. Parker has ten years of experience in complex criminal and civil litigation. Prior to obtaining this fellowship, he served as a senior litigation associate with Bickel & Brewer in Dallas, Texas. Previously, he was an associate in Washington, D.C. at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP, Baach Robinson & Lewis PLLC and Miller, Balis & O'Neil, P.C. In addition, Mr. Parker clerked for the Honorable Keith P. Ellison of the U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas. He earned a bachelor's degree from George Mason University and a law degree from Yale Law School.

Katrina Pro Bono Legal Corps

Louise Klaila began serving as an AmeriCorps Attorney with the Pro Bono Project in New Orleans, Louisiana on May 22. She will serve as a liaison to the area law firms and law schools. Ms. Klaila will also engage volunteers to address housing and family law issues. Ms. Klaila has over 20 years of legal experience and most recently served as magistrate officer for the Family Court Division of the Maine District Court in Portland and Machias, Maine. Additionally, Ms. Klaila served as staff attorney for Pine Tree Legal Assistance in Portland, Maine and a family law attorney for Legal Assistance Corporation of Central Massachusetts in Worcester, Massachusetts. She was also the lead prosecutor for the Passamaquoddy Tribe in Maine and an attorney for DNA-People's Legal Services, which serves the Navajo Reservation in New Mexico. She earned a bachelor's degree from Antioch College and a law degree from the University of Oregon School of Law.

Jessica Morris began serving as an AmeriCorps Attorney with Mississippi Center for Legal Services in their Jackson, Mississippi office on April 18. She will coordinate pro bono efforts for law students and lawyers across the state to provide disaster-related legal services to those affected by Hurricane Katrina. Ms. Morris will also work collaboratively with the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project to enhance the current recruitment and delivery system. Previously, she was a University of Michigan Law School Post Graduate Fellow with Mississippi Center for Legal Services and a state coordinator for the Children's Defense Fund in Mississippi. Ms. Morris also interned at the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law in Washington, D.C. She earned a bachelor's degree from Vassar College and a law degree from the University of Michigan Law School.

Susan Saba began serving as an AmeriCorps Attorney with the Louisiana Bar Foundation in Baton Rouge, Louisiana on May 15. She will recruit, train and coordinate student volunteers to staff the Louisiana Disaster Legal Hotline, which received thousands of calls since its inception shortly after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Ms. Saba will also play a vital role in establishing a volunteer network of attorneys across the state and manage the process of referring cases from the Hotline to this pro bono attorney network. Previously, Ms. Saba has served: as an extern for the Virginia Legal Aid Society in Lynchburg, Virginia; as a law clerk for the United States Air Force; as a Judge Advocate General at McGuire Air Force Base in New Jersey; and as an intern at Refugee and Immigration Services in Roanoke, Virginia. She earned a bachelor's degree from Sarah Lawrence College and a law degree from Washington and Lee University School of Law.

Miles Swanson began serving as an AmeriCorps Attorney with the Pro Bono Project in New Orleans, Louisiana on May 22. He will specialize in assisting clients with bankruptcy and mortgage foreclosure issues. Mr. Swanson will also develop information technology tools to assist lawyers and law students with intake and referral services. Prior to obtaining his current position, he worked as an attorney for Common Ground in New Orleans to provide legal services to hurricane survivors in the neighborhoods hardest hit by Hurricane Katrina. Previously, Mr. Swanson interned in Washington, D.C. at the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and the Partnership for Civil Justice. He also worked in the Juvenile Special Education Clinic and the Community Development Small Business Clinic. Mr. Swanson earned a bachelor's degree from Fordham University and a law degree from the University of the District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law.

Shirley Taylor began serving as an AmeriCorps Attorney with Mississippi Center for Legal Services in their Hattiesburg, Mississippi office on April 10. She will coordinate pro bono efforts for law students and lawyers across the state to provide disaster-related legal services to those affected by Hurricane Katrina. Ms. Taylor will also work with the Mississippi Center for Legal Service's Housing Center to assess housing needs as a consequence of the hurricane. Previously, she was in private practice and served as an attorney for the Porter Law Firm in Columbia, Mississippi. She was also an attorney for Jerry Evans Law Office in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Prior to attending law school, she taught American Government to high school students for 25 years in Mississippi and was an adjunct faculty member in Criminal Justice and Economics at William Carey College. Ms. Taylor has a bachelor's degree and master's degree in criminal justice from University of Southern Mississippi and a law degree from Florida Coastal School of Law.

Crystal Utley will begin serving as an AmeriCorps Attorney with the Mississippi Center for Justice in their Jackson, Mississippi office on June 1. She will develop and implement a system of receiving and deploying volunteer law students in Mississippi and throughout the country to be part of the disaster relief legal effort, including working with provider organizations serving coastal residents to develop projects suitable for volunteer law students. Ms. Utley will also serve as a liaison for the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project on intake, referrals and hotline issues. Previously, she was an associate at Hood Law Firm, LLC in Charleston, South Carolina. Ms. Utley was also a summer associate at Armstrong Allen, PLLC and Watkins, Ludlam, Winter and Stennis, P.A. in Jackson, Mississippi and a law clerk at Shell Buford in Jackson. She earned a bachelor's degree from the College of Charleston and a law degree from Mississippi College School of Law.

To date, Equal Justice Works has raised more than $900,000, which will be matched dollar for dollar by the JEHT Foundation. Equal Justice Works thanks the following donors for their contributions to fund the Equal Justice Works Katrina Initiative:

• Association of Corporate Counsel
  
• Corporation for National and Community Service
  
• Debevoise & Plimpton LLP
  
• Greenberg Traurig, LLP
  
• Latham & Watkins LLP
  
• Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky and Popeo P.C.
  
• Nixon Peabody LLP
  
• Ohio State Bar Foundation Hurricane Katrina Legal Relief Fund
  
• Pfizer Inc
  
• Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP
  

Thanks to the generosity of ALM, public service advertisements recognizing the contributions from law firms and corporations have appeared in various ALM publications over the past several weeks. These public service advertisements will continue during the next several months.