COVID-19 Pro Bono Work
Starting as early as March 30, 2020, we began providing pro bono assistance to non-profits and small businesses specifically related to COVID-19. As we ramped up our expertise in the various areas of law affected by the pandemic, we made sure to share that expertise with pro bono clients. In addition to 25 separate advice matters for organizational clients, we also participated in three COVID-19 brief advice clinics, assisted two individuals, one with an estate issue and one with a clemency petition, and we completed a multi-jurisdictional, multi-agency research project on best practices in response to COVID-19-related hate crimes against Asian-Americans. We also held a webinar for non-profits on the CARES Act. In total, our attorneys contributed 1133.4 hours towards helping community groups get through the pandemic.
Our 75th Anniversary Celebration
In celebration of our 75th anniversary, we took the opportunity to do something special with respect to our pro bono and philanthropy. Thus, we launched two initiatives that were designed to give back to our communities in honor of our Diamond Anniversary.
First, we announced the "75 for 75 Pro Bono Drive," through which we set a goal of having 75% of our attorneys participate in the pro bono program in 2020. This represents about a 10% increase (or about 90 more attorneys) over our usual annual participation rate of 65%. Little did we know that most of this participation would have to take place remotely. But our lawyers came through, and we pivoted to remote pro bono work, as we did with our billable work. In the end, we achieved our goal! In 2020, 78.5% of our lawyers contributed to the pro bono program. We thank all of those who participated and we thank our legal aid partners for finding new and creative ways to serve their clients and provide us with pro bono opportunities in a global pandemic.
Second, we made three $25,000 “Diamond Donations” to organizations that reflect our Seyfarth story, for a total of $75,000. The first recipient, Best Buddies, which supports people with developmental disabilities, reflects our long legacy of giving back. The second recipient, Kids In Need of Defense (KIND), which helps unaccompanied immigrant children navigate the U.S. immigration system, reflects our deep commitment to pro bono. It also reflects our commitment to innovation, as KIND was our first pro bono client for which we did a SeyfarthLean process improvement project. The third recipient, Girl Up, reflects our international expansion and our place in the world as a global citizen. Girl Up, which is a program of the United Nations Foundation, empowers girls to advocate for themselves and girls around the world.