REPORTER Winston & Strawn Takes Leadership Role in Haiti Relief
In This Issue Winston & Strawn Takes Leadership Role in Haiti Relief
1
From the Chair
2
Awards and Honors
3
Leadership
4
Pro Bono By the Numbers
5
Inmate Civil Rights Project
5
Habeas and Post-Conviction Project
6
Asylum Project
7
Non-Profit Counseling and Defense Project
9
Criminal Defense Project
10
Practice Groups in Action
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VOL. 15 SUMMER 2010
T
he firm has provided significant relief to the citizens of Haiti in the aftermath of the tragic 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck just 10 miles west of Haiti’s capital Porte-au-Prince and its two million inhabitants on January 12, 2010. The Winston & Strawn Foundation and firm attorneys and staff made a combined donation in excess of $100,000 to Partners in Health, an international nongovernmental organization (NGO) that has provided medical and other services to Haitian citizens for several years and has played a principal role in providing earthquake relief services.
Patrick Murray meeting with Haitian villagers to discuss land rights and local issues.
In addition to financial relief, the firm – led by Paris corporate partner Patrick Murray – has taken on an instrumental role in providing legal assistance to foundations, businesses, and other organizations providing assistance to Haitians. Patrick accepted the role of Volunteer Haiti Program Coordinator for the International Senior Lawyers Project (ISLP), a New York-based pro bono organization that provides legal assistance to organizations operating internationally largely through retired attorneys. [Winston hosts ISLP in our building in Paris, and also helped organize it as a French not-for-profit.] ISLP has a number of projects underway, including in the areas of zoning, land use, and earthquake construction codes, which Haiti does not currently have. continued on page 9
Pro Bono Reporter
FROM THE CHAIR Reflections on the Role of Pro Bono Work at Winston & Strawn Kimball Anderson
I am pleased to report that last year Winston & Strawn lawyers were extraordinarily generous with the time they devoted to pro bono matters. Total pro bono hours reached an all time high of 55,000, and we averaged 73 pro bono hours per lawyer. Our pro bono ranking in The American Lawyer was 51, which is our highest ranking in five years. This year, however, we would like to do better. We would like to do better not only because the legal needs of the poor are increasing (the number of persons under the federal poverty threshold is at a 12-year high), but also because the pro bono business is good business for large law firms. Having served as Chair of the Firm’s Pro Bono Committee since 1984, I often have written about the institutional benefits of a robust pro bono program, which include training, résumé building, and networking with judges and clients. Frankly, pro bono also benefits marketing and recruiting. To assist in our marketing and recruiting efforts, Winston & Strawn would like to make it into the top 20 of The American Lawyer’s “A-List” rankings this year. This is a very achievable goal for our firm; currently, we are ranked at 49. The “A-List,” as most of you know, consists of 20 law firms who are doing it all. They enjoy, among other things, good profitability, associate satisfaction, diversity, and robust pro bono programs. Pro bono scores, for purposes of the “A-List” rankings, are doubleweighted. To obtain a high pro bono score, law firms must show a high percentage of lawyers contributing at least 20 hours per year on pro bono matters.
The percentage of Winston & Strawn lawyers who devoted at least 20 hours to pro bono matters last year was only 54 percent. As you can see, we have plenty of room for improvement. This year, the firm is asking all lawyers to perform at least 20 hours of pro bono work. Contrary to popular belief, quality pro bono opportunities are available for both transactional lawyers and litigators. Our Pro Bono Counsel, Greg McConnell, can find you a rewarding bono project. Call Greg today to learn about compelling pro bono client stories and challenging legal issues. During my 33 years at Winston & Strawn, I have experienced great emotional and professional satisfaction from doing pro bono work. The intangible rewards that come from, for example, freeing an innocent person from prison, arguing a pro bono case before the U.S. Supreme Court, and taking homeless families off the streets, are incalculable. And for those who want more tangible rewards, the firm recently has updated its policy for crediting pro bono work. Effective immediately, all approved associate pro bono work will receive credit toward base salaries and bonuses. Up to 50 hours of approved associate pro bono work will be credited toward base salary billable hour thresholds, and the remainder of approved pro bono work typically will be credited toward bonus billable hour thresholds. I know that Dan Webb, Tom Fitzgerald, and many of our practice group leaders are personally committed to the firm’s pro bono program and to seeing Winston & Strawn selected to the “A-List.” Let’s make it happen. As Winston Churchill famously said: “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.”
About the Pro Bono Reporter Content for the Reporter was prepared by Greg McConnell, Pro Bono Counsel. Nicole Pérez, in Graphic Resources, developed the layout, design and production. Please contact Greg (
[email protected]) or Nicole (nperez@ winston.com) if you would like additional copies of the Reporter, or have questions about the information presented.
Pro Bono Reporter
AWARDS AND HONORS
Los Angeles County jails and disabled persons seeking access to the San Bernardino courts.
Washington, D.C. Partner Greg Jacob Honored for His Advocacy on Behalf of Abused and Neglected Children
Washington, D.C. Office Recognized as One of “40 at 50” Firms by the D.C. Circuit Judicial Conference
Partner Greg Jacob was honored by First Star as a 2009 Shine the Light honoree. Greg received the award at First Star’s second-annual Shine the Light on Children’s Rights benefit. He was honored for “his landmark pro bono work on behalf of children who are victims of sexual or physical abuse, through the national nonprofit organization Justice for Children.” First Star was founded in 1999 to help improve life for child victims of abuse and neglect. See a description of Greg’s efforts on page 7.
The Washington, D.C. office was recognized as one of only 20 firms achieving “40 at 50” status (40 percent of attorneys with at least 50 hours pro bono during 2009) at the Judicial Pro Bono Recognition Breakfast hosted by the D.C. Circuit Judicial Conference Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Chief Judges Royce Lamberth and David Sentelle.
Washington, D.C. Team Recognized for Work on Inmate Civil Rights Case
Chicago Office Recognized by DuSable Museum with Inaugural “Outstanding Service Award”
Gerry Peterson accepts DuSable Award. Left to right: Tom Mills, Mark Smith, Adam Hess, and Mike Dyson
Washington, D.C. attorneys Mike Dyson, Adam Hess, Rebecca Ross, and Mark Smith were recognized by the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs at its annual Wiley Branton Awards Luncheon. They were recognized for their efforts in securing a significant financial settlement for a Washington, D.C. inmate housed at Rivers (N.C.) penitentiary who was stabbed by his cellmate while sleeping in his prison cell.
Los Angeles Office Named Pro Bono Counsel of the Year by the Disability Rights Legal Center The Los Angeles office was recognized by the Disability Rights Legal Center as “Counsel of the Year” for its efforts as lead counsel on class action matters seeking accommodations for disabled inmates in the 3 | Winston & Strawn LLP
The DuSable Museum of African American History honored the firm with its inaugural “Outstanding Service Award.” The award is one of the Chicago African American History Makers Awards, which “pay tribute to individuals who have cast and are casting an indelible imprint on the African American community, while strengthening the legacy of our forefathers across the globe.” Gerry Peterson has led the firm’s substantial legal assistance to the museum.
Pro Bono Reporter
The firm’s Chicago, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. offices hosted award events to recognize the efforts of pro bono volunteers in those offices. The following individuals received the highly coveted “Cube of Justice” for display in their offices: • Chicago: Kathleen Barry, Amanda Conley, Katie Diggins, Ellen Duff, Elizabeth Erickson, Bill Ferranti, Kristen Grisius, Sherene Jodrey, Dave Koropp, Alan Lindquist, Justin Leinenweber, Pete McCabe, Ray Perkins, Jim Potter, Melissa Smith, Monica Scott, and Susan Wyse • San Francisco: Robyn Callahan, Krista Enns, Scotia Hicks, Joe Karp, Michelle Leung, Brad Marsh, Seema Patel, Matt Scherb, Nick Short, Tyson Smith, Tom Solomon, Bob Spagat and Anna Wroblewski • Washington, D.C.: Mike Bhargava, Garry Boehlert, Lauren Butcher, Tawanna Davis, Mike Del Negro, Jeetander Dulani, Will Durbin, Greg Ewing, Eric Gotting, Adam Hess, Greg Jacob, Neema Kumar, Jay Levine, Nadine Lewis-Reiter, Rachel Miras-Wilson, Rishi Nangia, Rebecca Ross, Daniel Shea, Mark Smith, and Diana Vidutis
LEADERSHIP Los Angeles Partner Neal Marder Joins the Board of Bet Tzedek Partner Neal Marder joined the board of directors of Bet Tzedek (“the House of Justice”), one of the nation’s premier legal services organizations. Bet Tzedek provides free legal assistance to more than 10,000 people of every racial and religious background at its headquarters in the Fairfax area, its office in North Hollywood, and at more than 30 senior centers throughout Los Angeles County.
Neal Marder
Chicago, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. Offices Honor Outstanding Volunteers
Charlotte Office Steps Up for Access to Justice Campaign Nearly 70 percent of the attorneys in the Charlotte office participated in the 2009-2010 Charlotte “Access to Justice Campaign,” which produced approximately $250,000 in funding for the Charlottearea offices of Legal Aid of North Carolina and Legal Services of Southern Piedmont. The campaign is a critical source of funding to the local legal services community and directly impacts the number of low-income people that will receive legal services from these organizations, which are facing increasing client demands in this difficult economic climate.
Chicago Office Continues Substantial Support for Chicago Bar Foundation Investing in Justice Campaign Attorneys in the Chicago office once again contributed substantially to the annual Chicago Bar Foundation Investing in Justice Campaign. This year, the campaign raised a new record amount of more than $1.1 million. These funds are distributed to nearly 40 pro bono and legal aid organizations in the Chicago area. Foundation board member Sam Mendenhall and partners Kimball Anderson and Dan Webb led the firm’s effort.
Pro Bono Counsel Greg McConnell presents the Cube.
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Pro Bono Reporter
PROJECTS IN ACTION INMATE CIVIL RIGHTS PROJECT
Pro Bono by the Numbers
Team Secures Jury Verdict for Inmate Denied Religious Diet
Joe Siders
After a two-day jury trial in the Southern District of Illinois, a team of Chicago attorneys obtained a jury verdict on behalf of our client for violations by a prison chaplain of his First and Fourteenth Amendment rights. Our client, an African Hebrew Israelite, sued two Illinois Department of Corrections officials for denying him a religious vegan diet for more than 13 months and later providing him with a nutritionally inadequate religious diet. Despite virtually no evidence of physical injury to our client, the team convinced the jury to award both compensatory and punitive damages for the violation of our client’s constitutional rights. The team included associates Joe Siders, Mohammed Ahmed, Cate Lindemann (and former associate Amy Hartman); paralegal Schantel Deal-Jones; trial site specialist Mike Thompson; and partner Cathy Joyce. Partner Julie Soloway worked extensively with the expert dietician in the case.
Multi-Office Team Secures Settlement for Deliberate Indifference to Inmate’s Diabetes Treatment
Krista Enns
A team of associates from multiple offices negotiated a settlement of claims raised by our client, a California state prison inmate and an insulin-dependent diabetic, alleging that prison medical professionals consistently refused to check his blood sugar, an act of deliberate indifference to his diabetes in violation of the Eighth Amendment. In pressing the client’s case, the team took many depositions across the state and fought several discovery battles. San Francisco associate Nick Short led the successful opposition to the defendant’s motion for summary judgment. To prepare for trial, former Los Angeles associate Yasin Mohammad and San Francisco associate Robyn Callahan joined the team, but at a court-ordered settlement, conference negotiations led by Mohammad Khatib were successful in reaching a financial settlement. San Francisco associate Krista Enns oversaw the team’s efforts, along with San Francisco partner Bob Julian. Paralegal Anna Wroblewski and former project assistant (now Hastings law student) Ryan Williams also provided invaluable support for the team.
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55,550
aggregate number of pro bono hours during 2009
73
Average pro bono hours per attorney during 2009
54
Percent of attorneys who devoted at least 20 pro bono hours during 2009
51
2009 pro bono ranking by The American Lawyer
49
2009 “A-List” ranking by The American Lawyer
Pro Bono Reporter
Teisha Covino
New York associates Teisha Covino, Andrea Lee and Lauren Fraid, under the supervision of Vincent Sama and Catherine Schumacher, obtained a significant settlement for our client, an inmate at Arthur Kill Correctional Facility. Our client was forced to undergo an improper strip search at the direction of three corrections officers while being held at the George Motchan Detention Center on Rikers Island. After submitting to the strip search, our client alleged that he was attacked by one of the corrections officers and an altercation ensued. That altercation resulted in serious and lasting injury when our client’s bare foot was allegedly stomped on. He filed federal claims alleging a pattern of physical abuse in and further alleging that correctional facility management failed to take measures to curb the pattern of brutality, resulting in his injuries. Our team filed an amended complaint, served and responded to interrogatories, and engaged in extended settlement negotiations on behalf of our client.
Team Secures Significant Settlement Against DCFS for Wrongfully Removing Toddler
Jason Burke
A team of attorneys including associates Joanna Wade, Chaitanya Maddali and Jason Burke; under the supervision of partner Julie Bauer, won a substantial financial settlement for a family that sued the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) for wrongly removing their daughter from their home. The child took a tumble while learning to walk and hit her head on a coffee table. When a red bump appeared, her mother took her to a pediatrician who made an allegation of abuse to the DCFS hot line. Initially child welfare investigators and local police officers visited the Evans home and found the child safe and well-cared for. Days later, however, DCFS social workers took the child from her parents for several hours. The parents alleged that the social workers illegally threatened them with the continued custody of their daughter and placement in a shelter unless they signed a safety plan restricting their custodial rights.
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HABEAS AND POST-CONVICTION PROJECT Firm Prosecutes Habeas Claim on Behalf of Yemeni Guantánamo Detainee For the past year, a team of attorneys from the Washington, D.C. and Chicago offices has represented Sabry Mohammad Ebrahim Al Qurashi, a Yemeni man who has been detained by the U.S. military at Guantánamo Bay for more than eight years for his suspected involvement with al-Queda. He is currently being held under the Authorization for Use of Military Force Act of 2001, which the government asserts allows the U.S. military to indefinitely detain individuals it claims are part of al-Queda and other terrorist organizations. The team includes Kimball Anderson, Mike Bhargava, Garry Boehlert, Lauren Butcher, Ben Carr, Greg Ewing, Eric Gotting, Rachel Miras-Wilson, and Rebecca Ross, (and former attorney Lina Genovesi); with assistance from Tawanna Davis, Nadine Lewis-Reiter, Daniel Shea, and Diana Vidutis.
Lauren Butcher
New York Team Gains Significant Financial Settlement for Inmate Subjected to Strip Search
In 2000, our client had traveled to Pakistan to purchase perfume for resale in Yemen. After the September 11th attacks, he was arrested by security officials in Pakistan. Throughout his detention, our client has asserted that he was beaten by the Pakistani security forces into making a false confession that he had attended an al-Qaeda training camp. He also asserts that he was tortured at a U.S. military base in Afghanistan, and later abused at the Guantánamo military facility. Despite having never been formally charged of any crimes, our client received access to legal counsel only in June 2009 when Winston attorneys first visited him. Since then, the team has worked extremely hard to build his trust, learn and investigate his story, and prosecute a habeas petition on his behalf in the district court for the District of Columbia. They have presented substantial evidence in written briefs and through argument to the court that our client is not guilty of any crimes against the United States and that any confessions he made should be suppressed because they were the result of torture. The habeas petition remains pending in the district court to determine whether our client is being legally held by the United States.
Pro Bono Reporter ASYLUM PROJECT
Susan Berkwitt
A team of New York corporate attorneys, including partner Susan Berkwitt, associates James Hu Young and Erin Simmons, and secretary Jacquie Hammer, won asylum for a Cameroonian teacher and political dissident. Our client was imprisoned, brutally tortured, and threatened with death because of his political opinions, his activities as an active member of an opposition political party that sought progressive democratic reform, and his Bamileke ethnic heritage. He fled to the United States in December 2008 after being subjected to repeated persecution and successfully sought asylum.
Will Durbin and Neema Kumar Secure Asylum for Former Member of Malagasy Cabinet Neema Kumar
Washington, D.C. associates William Durbin and Neema Kumar secured asylum for a Malagasy (Madagascar) man who was a minister in the cabinet of the former president. After months of civil unrest, a militarybacked coup overthrew the president and installed a controversial dictator. Even before the power grab, the dictator’s supporters subjected our client and his family to threats, surveillance, harassment, and intimidation because of his affiliation with the president. Once in power, the dictator named the client and many of the president’s associates on a list barring travel and alleged numerous trumped-up charges. Fortunately for the client, he was already safely in the United States attending a World Bank conference. Many of his former colleagues were not so lucky, and they were imprisoned without due process. Fearing the same or worse would befall him and his family, the client successfully sought asylum in the United States.
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For the past five years (including while working at the Department of Labor), partner Greg Jacob has represented several clients (mother and children) in connection with procedurally and emotionally challenging custody/relocation proceedings pending in various state courts. One of these matters recently came to a highly successful conclusion when, following years of litigation in Hawaii state courts, the family court in Maui, Hawaii entered an order allowing our client (the mother of the child in the proceedings) to relocate to San Francisco with her now eight-year-old child, providing her protection from suspected child abuse by the child’s father.
Greg Jacob
New York Corporate Team Wins Asylum for Cameroonian Dissident
Greg Jacob Litigates for Safety of Abused Children in Custody and Relocation Matters
The client and the father of her child had been involved in custody proceedings when in September 2005, the Maui family court ordered an ex parte custody transfer of the child from the client to the father, who at the time was being investigated by the Maui police department for suspected child sexual abuse. Just two days into the investigation, the father’s attorney and the guardian ad litem (GAL) went into the court ex parte seeking an emergency custody transfer. The order was granted even though the father presented no supporting evidence other than the GAL’s own supporting declaration and unsupported allegations that the mother was a flight risk. Thereafter, the case proceeded through a Byzantine legal path that led to appeals with the Hawaii Court of Appeals, the Hawaii Supreme Court, a two-day trial, and return to the Court of Appeals, which ultimately ruled that the ex parte transfer had been unconstitutional and ordered that full custody be restored to the mother.
Pro Bono Reporter
Adam Hess, Jay Levine, and Rishi Nangia Secure Asylum for Azerbaijan Journalist
Seth Richardson
Rishi Nangia
Washington, D.C. associates Adam Hess and Rishi Nangia, supervised by Jay Levine, successfully obtained affirmative asylum for an Azerbaijan journalist. In recent years, the Azerbaijan government severely restricted freedom of the press and independent media, and subjected many journalists to violence and politically motivated arrest. Our client, who reported on controversial military and human rights issues in Azerbaijan, was detained, harassed, and threatened by government officials for several years. Several of his friends and colleagues were killed or injured in violent attacks, and his family members have been mistreated and harassed by government officials. After coming to the United States in 2008 to work for Voice of America, our client successfully applied for asylum.
Seth Richardson and Erin Ranahan Win Asylum for Turkish Christian Los Angeles associates Seth Richardson and Erin Ranahan won asylum for a 36-year-old citizen of Turkey, his wife, and
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Kristin Nowicki Wins Asylum for Mexican Woman Abused by Her Husband Chicago corporate associate Kristin Nowicki won asylum for a Mexican woman who was a victim of domestic violence at the hands of her husband for nearly 30 years. Her husband is an official with a Mexican government agency and despite repeated attempts to seek help from authorities, our client was not able to procure Mexican government intervention and protection from the abuse. After she fled to the United States in 2008, her husband began threatening to kill her. Kristin was able to show that local government officials and police in Mexico are reluctant to enforce domestic violence laws and tend to view domestic violence as a private matter.
Kristin Nowicki
Chicago associates Aesha Pallesen and Sherene Jodrey won asylum for a 33-year-old Pakistani woman who was targeted in Pakistan because she spoke out against the legitimization of domestic violence against women under fundamentalist interpretations of Islam. Herself a survivor of domestic abuse, our client was working in the United States as a domestic violence counselor and advocate when she was interviewed by a New York Times reporter for a published article about domestic violence in the Islamic community in which she was identified by name and quoted. The article came to the attention of certain religious authorities in Pakistan, and a fatwa, or religious decree, demanding her death was issued by an influential religious leader in her hometown of Lahore, Pakistan. Militant religious groups, primarily Lashkar-e-Islam, threatened her and her family and made it clear that if she returned to Pakistan, she would be killed in accordance with the fatwa’s decree.
two young children, who sought asylum based on religious persecution. During the past 12 years, our client was arrested, harassed, and beaten many times by the Turkish government authorities for sharing the gospel and proselytizing. While attending a religious conference in Armenia, he also made himself a target for harm after he apologized for the Armenian “genocide” on behalf of Turkey, an extremely volatile and controversial issue in Turkey.
Peter Perkowski Wins BIA Appeal and Remand for Honduran Street Youth Los Angeles partner Pete Perkowski won a remand hearing for a 19-yearold boy from Honduras who sought asylum under a new social group of “Honduran street youth,” who are subject to vigilante groups and the police who are engaged in a government-sponsored street youth cleansing campaign. The client’s family members had abandoned and persecuted him because he was the product of an incestuous union. He escaped abuse at home and ended up on the streets of Tegucigalpa. The Board of Immigration Appeals agreed with our client’s argument that he did not receive a fair hearing when the judge, despite a government stipulation, refused to allow the testimony of one of the witnesses, and refused to abide by a ruling of another judge allowing our client to file documents exceeding 100 pages insisting that the 250-page filing be reduced to 100 pages in 15 minutes.
Pete Perkowski
Aesha Pallesen and Sherene Jodrey Win Asylum for Pakistani Woman Subject to a Fatwa
Pro Bono Reporter Winston & Strawn Takes Leadership Role in Haiti Relief continued from page 1
NON-PROFIT COUNSELING AND DEFENSE PROJECT Corporate and Tax Team Merge Anacostia Community Partnership Organizations
Francesca Guerrero
Washington, D.C. corporate associate Francesca Guerrero, under the supervision of tax partner Barry Hart, advised two inter-related clergy-policecommunity partnerships organizations that address negative social issues plaguing that community. The organizations sought our counsel on how address conflicts of interest and “dualities of interest” that arose from their overlapping boards and other crisscrossing financial relationships with churches and other organizations. Francesca and summer associate Nassim Hooshmandnia reviewed and revised their policies and presented a board training on avoiding conflicts of interests. Ultimately, the organizations agreed with our counsel that many of their complications would be best solved by merging the two organizations and thereafter we completed the merger process.
A long-time friend of Haiti, Patrick is the ideal point person for the firm and ISLP. His involvement with Haiti started more than 30 years ago when Dr. Paul Farmer, one of the founders of Partners in Health, stayed with Patrick’s family in Paris while completing his junior year abroad during his undergraduate studies. Patrick has remained close with Dr. Farmer and, together, they created Zanmi Lasanté, a French NGO and sister organization to Partners in Health that focuses largely on rural issues in Haiti. Patrick’s efforts were featured in the July 2010 edition of The American Lawyer.
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Partner Imron Aly, and associates Trang Hoang and John Hsu, defended the Metropolitan Tenants Organization (MTO), a Chicagobased non-profit group that assists low-income tenants improve their living conditions, against federal government assertions it had received over-payments on a grant. MTO obtained a grant from the government to provide funds for some staffers but subsequently the government mistakenly began charging MTO for the staffers. The government demanded that MTO pay for the receipt of excessive payments and threatened to start collections proceedings. Repayment of these charges could have threatened its survival. The team investigated the claims, drafted correspondence to the government, and ultimately convinced the government to drop all claims.
Imron Aly
As ISLP’s coordinator, Patrick monitors these projects and has provided direct services on others. Other lawyers in the Paris office have provided assistance in these efforts, notably Julie Cittadini.
Team Successfully Defends Tenant Organization from Mistaken Government Charge-back
Pro Bono Reporter
Winston Pro Bono Client Featured in The New York Times
Corporate attorneys Oscar David and Nick Golem advised the Chicago Project for Violence Prevention with respect to certain corporate matters, including restructuring its legal framework and advising its board of directors in connection with the restructuring. The Project provides technical assistance and support for a comprehensive and community-based effort to reduce and prevent violence. Its focus is reducing street violence, particularly shootings and killings. The Project’s Ceasefire initiative was recently featured in a New York Times opinion column urging that CeaseFire become a blueprint “to upend the norm of murderous violence in big cities.” CeaseFire has gained national acclaim for its demonstrated record of success, including a 67 percent decrease in shootings during its first year of targeted efforts in Chicago’s West Garfield neighborhood. Oscar David is a member of the Project’s board of directors. You can learn more about the Project here, http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/11/ opinion/11herbert.html?r=1.
Mike Del Negro Defends Domestic Violence Legal Aid Provider in Contempt Hearing Mike Del Negro
Washington, D.C. associate Mike Del Negro convinced a judge presiding in domestic court to drop contempt charges against a local domestic violence legal aid provider. The group was subject to possible contempt charges by the judge for allegedly tampering with the narrative portions of clients’ restraining order petitions by inserting information outside the client’s own statements. Mike defended the agency before the (very angry) judge at a prove up hearing in which he addressed the judge’s concerns by confirming that the petition in the matter at issue, including the brief narrative, was accurate and correct; and also presented the agency’s consent form and training manual to assure the judge that staff read the petition back to individuals to verify its accuracy.
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CRIMINAL DEFENSE PROJECT Jeff Catenacci Overturns Municipal Conviction on Appeal New Jersey office associate Jeff Catenacci was appointed as appellate counsel for an indigent woman from East Orange, New Jersey, who was convicted of violating a municipal ordinance which prohibits any person from keeping, maintaining, or harboring more than six cats “of a licensing age.” Our client had rescued numerous cats and kittens in her neighborhood, was charged with violating a municipal ordinance. At trial, the State presented witness testimony that our client was harboring eleven cats in her apartment and on that basis the trial court found her in violation of the ordinance. On appeal, we successfully argued that the State failed to prove that the cats were “of a licensing age,” which was defined in the ordinance as “[a]ny cat . . . which has attained the age of seven months or which possesses as set of permanent teeth.” The court vacated the client’s conviction, and found her not guilty of the offense charged.
Jeff Catenacci
Nick Golem
Oscar David
Oscar David and Nick Golem Advise Chicago Project for Violence Prevention
Pro Bono Reporter
PRACTICE GROUPS IN ACTION
After Nine Years of Prosecution Allan Fanucci Secures Patent for Novel Image Support Medium
U.S. Patent
APPELLATE
Dec. 8, 2009
Sheet 65 of 90
US 7,629,400 B2
Fig. 64.
Jeetander Dulani Secures Habeas Relief For Imprisoned Client Denied Right of Confrontation Jeetander Dulani
Based on briefing and argument by Jeetander Dulani, under supervision of Jay Levine, a panel of the Seventh Circuit unanimously reversed the district court’s denial of our client’s petition for a writ of habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2254. Our client’s habeas claim was based on the state court’s violation of his Sixth Amendment confrontation right. Our client was one of several individuals charged and convicted in Wisconsin state court for a retaliatory shooting that killed one person and wounded two others. At trial, the court allowed a police detective to testify and introduce statements from two named co-actors, who were not available for cross examination, but who both placed our client at the scene of the crime with a weapon in his hand. The state appeals court held and the district court affirmed that these co-actor statements were not hearsay because they were introduced to provide context for our client’s reaction during the rest of his interview with the police, not to refute his defense that he had withdrawn from the conspiracy at issue. Further, relying on Tennessee v. Street, 471 U.S. 409 (1985), the state appeals court, and later the district court, held that the nonhearsay purpose for introducing the co-actor statements meant that there was no violation of our client’s confrontation right. On appeal, the Seventh Circuit held that the co-conspirator statements were hearsay, and that the state court’s admission of the co-actors’ statements therefore violated our client’s constitutional right of confrontation.
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Allan Fanucci
New York Partner Allan Fanucci secured a unique patent (U.S. patent No. 7,629,400) for our client, Sidney Hyman, for a method of preparing an image support medium for the creation of aesthetic images that are works of art for display. The patent was issued December 9, 2009, after more than nine years of prosecution. This support medium includes a polymer in an amount sufficient to enable the image to have at least one aesthetic element, with the polymer being an image support stabilizer, a synthetic absorbent or conductive polymer, or a transparent or synthetic translucent polymer wherein a property of the polymer is enhanced to facilitate the creation or preservation of the image. This 310-page patent covers various ways for making non-traditional canvas or other image supports in various forms. Part of the novelty of the invention is the use of light emitting diodes in the image support medium to enable the work of art to emit visible light effects to enhance its appearance.
Pro Bono Reporter
Veronica Harris Establishes Standard for Retaliation Cases Raised by Prisoner Employees Veronica Harris
Los Angeles associate Veronica Harris convinced a panel of the Seventh Circuit that the proper standard for considering a retaliation claim by an inmate working at a prison facility is whether the prison’s actions met legitimate penological interests, and not the more liberal “public concern” test, which had previously been applied in such cases. Our client, a prison law librarian, claimed that he was removed from his law clerk position in retaliation for using his First Amendment right to criticize library policies, such as the law clerks assistance to other inmates with preparing their own legal documents, and the librarian’s order that law clerks remove their materials from the law library. The court agreed that the proper test to consider his retaliation claim was whether he engaged in speech “in a manner consistent with legitimate penological interests.” Nonetheless, the court held against our client, noting that his comments were unprotected speech and inconsistent with legitimate penological interests. 12 | Winston & Strawn LLP
Glynna Christian and Erin Simmons Negotiate Collaborative Agreement for Art In General New York partner Glynna Christian and associate Erin Simmons assisted Art in General negotiate a collaboration agreement with the New York Aquarium. Art in General is a nonprofit organization that assists artists with the production and presentation of new work, with an emphasis on creating a space where artists exhibit unconventional work and exchange ideas with their peers. The arrangement with the New York Aquarium is a unique partnership between the two organizations that will result in an exhibit involving ephemeral and performative aquatic art installations in the tanks at the New York Aquarium.
Glynna Christian
Bryna Dahlin
Chicago associate Bryna Dahlin successfully argued in the Seventh Circuit that our client should receive a hearing as to whether he received constitutionally adequate counsel and should be re-tried in a Wisconsin criminal court. Our client, who owned a small home improvement business, was charged with several counts of felony theft for allegedly taking money from clients of his business and failing to provide services. At a plea hearing, his appointed counsel pled “guilty” to the charges, but had failed to explain to our client possible defenses to the charges and the significance of a guilty plea. Subsequently appointed counsel failed to rescind the guilty plea despite several requests from our client, and the court entered a guilty plea. Applying the standard under Strickland v. Washington, the court found that our client was prejudiced by his counsel’s failure to rescind the guilty plea and ordered the case remanded to the district court for an evidentiary hearing on whether counsel provided ineffective assistance.
CORPORATE
Corporate and Tax Team Serves Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Attorneys from several offices have provided substantial assistance to the Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (“GBC”), an international NGO that joins the corporate sector, governments, and civil society together in the fight against the targeted diseases. In the London office, Zoë Ashcroft and Norah Mugambi advised GBC with respect to various policies and employment contracts for employees working out of its Kenya office. In the Hong Kong office, Ben Fishburne advised on its corporate structure in China. In the Washington, D.C. office, Barry Hart and Francesca Guerrero advised on the tax and corporate compliance implications of a program for GBC members to participate in meetings with heads of state specifically focused on the health of women and girls and related to targeted diseases and economic development issues.
Norah Mugambi
Bryna Dahlin Wins Remand for Defendant Whose Counsel Refused to Rescind Guilty Plea
Tim Hicks and Dean Warren Counsel North Carolina Supportive Housing Group Charlotte attorneys Tim Hicks and Dean Warren counseled Exodus Foundation, a faith-based agency that offers transitional and permanent supportive
Pro Bono Reporter
Employee Benefits Attorneys Update Nonprofits’ Pension and Savings Plans Erin Kartheiser
Recent changes to ERISA reporting requirements have prompted requests for necessary plan document reviews by the firm’s employee benefits lawyers. Matt Wright and Erin Kartheiser (and former associate Dan Salemi) reviewed and updated Gilda’s Club 401(k) pension plan to add information required under ERISA. As part of the review, they updated the formal plan documents and adoption agreement, and the plan’s Summary Plan Description, which contains the key terms of the plan for purposes of informing plan participants of their rights under the plan.
Associates Alexis Backs and Erin Kartheiser provided similar assistance to the Thresholds, a Chicago-based nonprofit that provides services to persons with severe mental illness. The team revised Threshold’s 403(b) savings plan Summary Plan Description and its 401(a) plan.
EMPLOYMENT
Cardelle Spangler
Cardelle Spangler and Lauren Neubauer Gain Financial Settlement in Age Discrimination Claim Upon appointment from the Northern District of Illinois, partner Cardelle Spangler and associate Lauren Neubauer represented a 59-year-old man who alleged that he had been illegally discharged from his janitorial position at a company
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Lauren Neubauer
San Francisco Attorneys Advise Edgewood Center for Children and Families A team of attorneys have assisted Edgewood Center for Children and Families on multiple issues, including various employment matters. Associate Eric Suits has assisted Edgewood regarding various wage/hour issues, including the treatment of volunteers and interns. Partner Jim Baker assisted Edgewood draft employment arrangements with senior management. Edgewood Center is the oldest children’s charity in the western U.S. It helps children and families overcome severe challenges like abuse, neglect, mental illness, and family crisis.
Eric Suits
EMPLOYEE BENEFITS
servicing O’Hare airport on the basis of his age. After amending the client’s complaint to include allegations of worker’s compensation retaliation, our attorneys took extensive written and deposition discovery. Ultimately, the court directed the matter to settlement conference, at which time we secured a favorable financial amount for our client.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY Team Restores Name to Little House on the Prairie Museum After an intense battle, a multioffice team obtained a settlement on the eve of trial for The Little House on the Prairie Museum in Independence, Kan. in an action brought against it in California federal court. The action was brought by Friendly Family Productions, the producer and owner of all merchandising rights to the LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE television series, for the Museum’s use of THE LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE trademark/ tradename for museum services and related clothing and toys. The net result was that our client is free to conduct its business as it has in the past without interference and will receive a significant payment without diminishing its right to sell the clothing,
Steve Durchslag
Tim Hicks
housing and counseling to homeless recovering addicts, alcoholics, and formerly incarcerated people, regarding its obligations to respond to formal inquiries made by private individuals under the Freedom of Information Act. They also advised the client regarding other privacy concerns of participants in its programs.
Pro Bono Reporter
Tom Lane
REAL ESTATE Christi Graff Advises Latino Housing Organization Convert Foreclosed Residential Properties into Affordable Housing
Christi Graff
Partner Christi Graff is assisting the Latin United Community Housing Association (LUCHA) in connection with the conversion of foreclosed residential properties in Chicago into affordable housing units. LUCHA was approved to receive the foreclosed properties from Mercy Housing, a national low-income housing organization, and will receive constructions loans from the Chicago Community Loan Fund to rehabilitate the properties. Ultimately, LUCHA will sell the properties to individual, low-income buyers. LUCHA has been
14 | Winston & Strawn LLP
Real estate associate Andrea Briski assisted Seguin Services, Inc., a Chicago-area nonprofit that serves developmentally disabled persons, secure title over property generously donated by the Richard Scheck Family. The family donated commercial property for Seguin’s use as “The Betty Scheck Senior Center.” The center opened in May 2010 and currently serves 45 seniors with developmental disabilities and other special needs. This was the largest single donation to Seguin in its history, valued at $1.62 million.
Andrea Briski
Partners Glynna Christian and Tom Lane, and associate Erin Ranahan successfully assisted Girls Incorporated (aka “Girls Inc.”) with its efforts to cease the infringing use of its trademarks and copyright materials by various individuals and organizations located in California, Florida, Louisiana, Michigan and on social networking sites. Girls Incorporated is a national nonprofit youth organization dedicated to inspiring all girls to be strong, smart, and bold. With roots dating to 1864, Girls Incorporated has provided vital educational programs to millions of American girls, particularly those in high-risk, underserved areas.
Andrea Briski Closes on Largest Donation Made to Developmentally Disabled Agency
TAX Tax Team Paves Way for International Health NGO to Receive In-Kind Donations Chicago tax associate Jill Rice with supervision from Dennis Kelly and support from Barry Hart and Francesca Guerrero secured tax exempt status for HKI Support, Inc., a Type 1 supporting organization of Helen Keller International, Inc., a (long-standing) Winston pro bono client that combats the causes and consequences of blindness and malnutrition by establishing programs based on evidence and research in vision, health and nutrition. HKI Support, Inc. was formed primarily to support the health care initiatives of Helen Keller International, Inc. through its solicitation of donations from health care professionals, including optical retailers, and pharmaceutical companies on behalf of Helen Keller International, Inc. Acceptance of in-kind donations of medicine, supplies and equipment (that were difficult for Helen Keller International, Inc. to process on its own) will
Jill Rice
Glynna Christian, Tom Lane, and Erin Ranahan Protect Girls Inc.’s Registered Materials
approved to receive two properties and hopes to receive as many as 10 to 15 additional properties over the course of the next several months.
Barry Hart
toys, and dolls as it has in the past. The case involved complex issues of trademark priority, nominative trademark fair use, trademark acquiescence, trademark abandonment, trademark dilution, and tortious interference with business relationships. The team included partners Steve Durchslag, Virginia Richard, and Steve Atlee; associates Stephanie McCallum, Joon Oh, Marc Trachtenberg, and Rob Newman; with support from Grace Rubalacava and Kolette Flynn.
Pro Bono Reporter
TRUSTS & ESTATES Team Provides Significant Assistance to Indigent Mother Dying of Stomach Cancer
Susan Drewke
A team of litigation and trusts & estates attorneys provided immediate assistance to a wife and mother of three children who recently died after a battle with stomach cancer. At the time she was referred to partner Alexis MacDowall, she had been recently diagnosed with stage 4 cancer and was facing foreclosure proceedings on the home in which she and her family lived. The trusts team, including partner Susan Drewke and associates Jenny Pickell and Carly Graham (and former associate Brad Preston), quickly
helped the client put in place necessary legal directives, including a will, a revocable trust, powers of attorney for health care and property, a living will, a HIPAA authorization, and an assignment of tangible personal effects. The team also prepared for the client’s execution a designation of standby guardian of a minor with respect to her eldest daughter, who is the child of her first husband, which was effectuated after her recent death.
Alexis MacDowall
advance the nutrition and eye health programs organized by Helen Keller International, Inc. The team also advised HKI Support, Inc. with respect to its current operations, including the impact on its exempt status of its acceptance of a contribution of emergency food aid from UNICEF for distribution in Niger.
A litigation team, including MacDowall and associates Kristy Mace and Katherine Croswell, addressed the foreclosure proceedings, which threatened to leave the client and her family homeless during her difficult battle with the cancer. The ultimate goal is to negotiate an arrangement that will allow for the family to make an easy transition.
Pro Bono Committee Members The firm’s Pro Bono Committee has provided valuable leadership and direction to the firm’s lawyers and executive management since 1984. Unique among firm committees, the Pro Bono Committee is comprised of partners, associates, and paralegals, with representatives from all offices. Kimball R. Anderson
Luke A. Connelly
David A. Honig
Leda M. Mouallem
Steven D. Atlee
Michael T. Dyson
Dave E. Koropp
Norah Mugambi
Susan Berkwitt
Christi Graff
Thomas Lane
Ashlea Raymond Pflug
Chicago
Los Angeles
New York
Wilder Kendric Berry
New York
Washington, D.C.
Chicago
San Francisco
Chicago
New York
San Francisco
London
Los Angeles
Chicago
Washington, D.C.
Barry J. Hart
Greg McConnell Chicago
Washington, D.C.
Eric Bloom
Paul H. Hensel
Sam Mendenhall
Jennifer N. White
Margaret H. Claybour
Jérôme Herbet
Evan R. Moses
Ethan R. York
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
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Chicago
Paris
Chicago
Los Angeles
May E. Wall
New York
Chicago
REPORTER
Kamala Haake
Los Angeles Team Secures Habeas Relief for Victim of Domestic Violence
A team of Los Angeles office attorneys, including associates Kamala Haake, Nicole Herft, and Carolin Sahimi (and former associates Julia Blakeslee and Cathy Kim), under the supervision of Steve Atlee, secured the release from prison of a 41-year-old battered woman convicted of second-degree murder. Our client,
Nicole Herft
who had been abused by her stepfather-turned-husband since the age of 12, had been imprisoned for 20 years for a murder her abuser committed. The victim of the killing was her “client,” or “john,” as she had been prostituted out by her stepfather/husband, who committed the murder as part of a robbery during the act of
Carolin Sahimi
prostitution. The team filed a habeas petition on our client’s behalf pursuant to California Penal Code section 1473.5, the first statute in the nation to permit battered women to file a writ of habeas corpus with evidence demonstrating how the battering and its effects led to their crimes. Our client’s petition was the first under section 1473.5 involving an accessory to a killing and not the actual perpetrator. Pursuant to an agreement with the Los Angeles County District Steve Atlee
Attorney’s office, our client’s initial guilty plea to second-degree murder was vacated in lieu of a plea to voluntary manslaughter with credit for time served resulting in her release.
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