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Chief Justice Castille, Other Members of Civil Legal Justice Coalition to Speak on Plight of Low-Income Pennsylvanians Without Legal Representation at Public Hearing of Pa Senate Judiciary Committee May 23

Pennsylvania Supreme Court Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille will offer remarks along with other judges, low-income Pennsylvanians and the lawyers who help them, and community and business leaders at a Pennsylvania Senate Judiciary Committee Public Hearing,"Civil Legal Representation of the Indigent: Have We Achieved Equal Access to Justice?" on Thursday, May 23 at 9:30 a.m. at the Philadelphia Bar Association, 1101 Market Street, in the 11th floor Conference Center. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Stewart J. Greenleaf (R-Montgomery, Bucks) will chair the hearing.

Public interest agency clients with serious legal problems impacting their basic human needs and those of their families - individuals without access to an attorney or who otherwise could not have been helped without access to an attorney - will share their personal stories of struggle at the hearing.

Additionally, key stakeholders will testify regarding the legal community's ethical obligations to the civil side of justice and discuss the adverse impact of the growing civil justice gap, including the economic and social harm (direct and/or indirect) when critical legal needs are unmet as well as the economic and social benefits to the community when such needs are met.

Read Full Story

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Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network Excellence Awards Recognize Pro Bono Achievements

The Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network honored the ten recipients of the 2013 Excellence Awards at its annual awards banquet on Wednesday evening, March 20, 2013 at the Harrisburg Hilton.

Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and Yvette R. Long, a disability and welfare rights advocate with the Pennsylvania Welfare Rights organization were also honored with the Outstanding Leadership in Support of Legal Services Awards at the event.

The list of recipients included individuals being recognized for pro bono achievements as well as a variety of civil legal aid professionals and other friends of civil legal aid across Pennsylvania.

Those recognized for pro bono efforts include:

• Cary L. Flitter, Esq.
  Founding partner of the Montgomery County law firm Flitter Lorenz, P.C. and a leading consumer protection lawyer.
• Kathryn M. Kenyon, Esq.
  Attorney and partner with the law firm of Pietragallo, Gordon, Alfano, Bosick and Raspanti, LLP in Pittsburgh.
• The Lycoming Law Association and the Lycoming Law Foundation
  The Lycoming Law Association is the professional organization composed of attorneys in Lycoming County. The Lycoming Law Association Foundation is the charitable arm of the Association.
• David Keller Trevaskis, Esq.
  Pro Bono Coordinator at the Pennsylvania Bar Association.

Other selected to receive Excellence Awards include:

• Judy Berkman, Esq., Managing Attorney for Regional Housing Legal Services in Glenside, PA
• Elizabeth C. Goodell, Esq. and Kerry Smith, Esq. of the Homeownership and Consumer Unit at Community Legal Services in Philadelphia
• Sol María Rivera, a paralegal with Friends of Farmworkers, Inc.
• Debra Wiley, Legal Secretary in the Bedford office of MidPenn Legal Services.

Video tributes were presented for each of the award recipients during the awards ceremony in Harrisburg. Those video tributes may be viewed at the link below.

More Information on Excellence Awards

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The ABA Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service chose to launch the National Celebrate Pro Bono initiative several years ago because of the increasing need for pro bono services during these harsh economic times and the unprecedented response of attorneys to meet this demand. The annual Celebration is a coordinated national effort to meet the ever-growing needs of this country's most vulnerable citizens by encouraging and supporting local efforts to expand the delivery of pro bono legal services, and by showcasing the great difference that pro bono lawyers make to the nation, its system of justice, its communities and, most of all, to the clients they serve.

Although national in breadth, the Celebration provides an opportunity for local legal associations across the country to take the next step in their efforts to provide high quality legal services to those living on the social margins.

The website also features JUST Stories, a video quilt of stories that significantly impacted the lives of public interest and pro bono advocates and their clients. One such story is offered by Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court:

CLICK HERE to view more JUST Stories from Pennsylvania. For more information on the celebration, visit www.CelebrateProBono.org.

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Participating Organizations:

Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network
Pennsylvania Bar Association
Legal Services to the Public Committee of the Pennsylvania Bar Association
Pro Bono Center of the Allegheny County Bar Foundation
Philadelphia VIP Pro Bono Legal Services
Philadelphia Bar Association
Dauphin County Bar Association Pro Bono Program
Erie County Bar Association Legal Aid Volunteer Attorneys (LAVA) Program
Lackawanna Pro Bono, Inc. (Video Profile)
Pennsylvania IOLTA Board