LOUISIANA LAWYER AWARDED FELLOWSHIP TO
HELP RESIDENTS AFFECTED BY HURRICANE KATRINA

WASHINGTON, D.C. (May 22, 2006) – One of nine experienced public interest lawyers who will provide legal services to Gulf Cost residents in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita has been selected by Equal Justice Works. Ranie Thompson has been appointed as an Equal Justice Works Katrina Legal Fellow at Southeast Louisiana Legal Services in New Orleans, Louisiana.

As her Fellowship gets underway, Thompson will advocate for public benefits and access to health care for survivors of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. She will work with advocacy groups to secure FEMA and other public benifits, as well as develop a community response to the loss of government-provided health care in the disaster area.

"In New Orleans, people are returning home and dealing with health related issues that they never experienced before the hurricane," said Thompson. "At the same time, access to health care has been drastically reduced. I am thrilled to work on these problems and help my community."

Previously, Thompson was a staff attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Mississippi in Jackson and managing attorney at Acadiana Legal Service Corporation in Lake Charles, Louisiana. She earned a bachelor's degree from Jackson State University and a law degree from the University of Iowa College of Law.

"Ranie will play a key role in helping the most vulnerable – the disabled, sick and jobless – get the health care and survival income they need to recover from Hurricane Katrina," said Mark Moreau, Co-Executive Director of Southeast Louisiana Legal Services. "Her addition to our legal team fills a major gap in our disaster legal services. We are so grateful to have this vital support from Equal Justice Works and its partners."

The Equal Justice Works Katrina Initiative has been established to address the many legal needs of the areas hardest hit by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Through three programs under the initiative, Equal Justice Works is placing a total of 19 lawyers and 65 law students at nonprofit organizations located in Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas and Alabama 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.

The Equal Justice Works Katrina Initiative is made possible through the support of a $1 million matching grant from the JEHT Foundation. The following groups have contributed to fund the program: The 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; Pfizer Inc; and Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP. For more information about the initiative, visit www.equaljusticeworks.org/katrina-initiative.

Equal Justice Works, a nonprofit, nonpartisan 501(c)(3) organization, was founded in 1986 by law students dedicated to working for equal justice on behalf of underserved communities and causes. Today, Equal Justice Works is the national leader in creating summer and postgraduate public interest opportunities for law students and lawyers as well as in urging more public interest programming at law schools. For more information about Equal Justice Works, visit www.equaljusticeworks.org.

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