The new issue of our pro bono newsletter is hot off the presses! Learn about all the innovative and impactful ways we partner with the private bar to provide access to justice for North Carolinians in need.
Table of contents
Give the gift of justice this holiday season
Let’s celebrate!
Our partners
Our volunteers
Now hiring: Join our Pro Bono team!
Charlotte Triage Pro Bono Partnership
Sign up for courthouse clinics on 12/16, 12/19
Housing volunteers serve Helene survivors
Program Spotlight: Disaster Legal Services
Volunteer Spotlight: Kate L. Eaton, Bridges EXP
Pro Bono Go
Housing conditions advice (attorneys only)
Brief advice in rural DV Protective Order cases
Grandparent guardians seek custody of grandchildren
The new issue of our pro bono newsletter is hot off the presses! Learn about all the innovative and impactful ways we partner with the private bar to provide access to justice for North Carolinians in need.
Items in this issue include:
Meet our 2024 Pro Bono Hero Award winners!
Join our Pro Bono Programs team!
Tropical Storm Helene update
Meet our local pro bono coordinators!
Drink Legalade!
CLE Calendar: Serving those affected by Tropical Storm Helene
Charlotte Triage Pro Bono Partnership: Thank you, Lawyer on the Line volunteers!
Program Spotlight: Pro bono for nonprofits
Volunteer Spotlights
Bárbara Herrera, Morrisville
Diana Santos Johnson, Waldrep Wall, Winston-Salem
Pro Bono Go
Housing conditions advice (attorneys only)
Brief advice in rural DV Protective Order cases
Grandparent guardians seek custody of grandchildren
Much of our pro bono activities are run by our central Pro Bono Programs team, which is based in our Raleigh headquarters, but four of our field offices have staff members who manage pro bono in their offices’ service areas. Keep reading to learn more about them!
Sharon C. Council – Durham Office
Office service area: Caswell, Durham, Franklin, Granville, Person, Vance and Warren counties
Sharon has served as the pro bono coordinator in our Durham office for over 30 years. She has led numerous successful local projects to recruit attorneys, such as the Count-Me-In Pro Bono effort, where 50 cases were referred to the Durham Bar over four months in 2011. She has partnered with Womble Bond Dickinson, Moore & Van Allen, GSK and other large organizations to refer housing and expunction cases, and she has long-running pro bono partnerships with the law schools at Duke, NC Central and UNC. She personally coordinates the pro bono efforts of NC Central’s Elder Law Clinic, which provides wills and advanced directives to Durham seniors. In 2018, Sharon received the NC Equal Justice Alliance’s John Lea Award, which honors staff of legal aid groups who demonstrate dedication to their organization’s mission, make outstanding contributions, and show exceptional involvement in the low-income community.
Renee Gabriel-Morrison – Greensboro Office
Office service area: Davidson, Guilford, Montgomery, Randolph, Rockingham and Rowan counties
Soon after joining us in 1999 as a paralegal in our Greensboro office, Renee’s many talents earned her a promotion to pro bono coordinator, in which role she has become the face of pro bono in the office’s service area. An innovator, Renee has recruited criminal law attorneys to handle expunctions and has been active with Thrive GSO a city-sponsored reentry program in Greensboro. She has gained enough expunction expertise to allow her to draft petitions for our staff and volunteer attorneys. Since its inception, she has coordinated the office’s award-winning Randolph County domestic violence program, which involves a rotating group of four attorneys who represent domestic violence survivors in court. Renee brings experience and excellence to her job and has helped maintain relationships with local bars that have long-lasting positive effects for our clients.
Claudette Harvey – Gastonia Office
Office service area: Cleveland, Gaston and Lincoln counties
Claudette wears many caps in the Gastonia office: receptionist, paralegal, office manager and all-around support person. On top of all that, she manages to find time to serve as the office’s pro bono coordinator! Claudette has a heart of gold and goes above and beyond to find pro bono volunteers for clients. She’s helped facilitate representation for clients who need wills, estate work, expungements and various consumer matters. Perhaps her most impressive work is with a small but mighty group of volunteer attorneys who tackle cases in one of our most challenging practice areas: child custody. Thanks to Claudette’s efforts over the years, numerous adult survivors of domestic violence, as well as children who have lived through abuse and neglect, have now found a sense of safety and stability in their lives.
Teresa Poor – Smoky Mountain Offices
Office service area: Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Jackson, Macon and Swain counties, and the Territory of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians
Teresa Poor has been Pro Bono coordinator at Legal Aid of North Carolina’s Smoky Mountain Offices for more than a decade. In addition to numerous other duties with the office, she has cultivated relationships with the private bar and facilitated pro bono or affordable representation in numerous cases. Teresa has been particularly effective in referrals of social security and bankruptcy matters but has done an excellent job in other areas as well. In one notable recent example, Teresa arranged for pro bono divorce and equitable distribution representation for a survivor who had been shot multiple times at her workplace by her abuser. Teresa has also worked tirelessly in making sure clinics with the UNC Law pro bono program run smoothly.
Author: Sean Driscoll
Legal Aid of North Carolina is marking the start of the National Celebration of Pro Bono, held annually throughout the last week of October, by announcing this year’s winners of our Pro Bono Hero Awards.
Launched in 2023, the awards recognize remarkable pro bono service on behalf of our clients and law firm — service that we hope serves as an inspiring example to the NC legal community. The awards also celebrate the diversity of the forms of pro bono service from which our clients and organization benefit, and the diversity of the volunteers themselves.
Allison Constance, Director of Pro Bono Programs for Legal Aid NC, said, “This year’s slate of honorees shows just how varied in form — but equal in impact — pro bono service can be.
“Whether it’s serving numerous clients in a single year or serving a single client for numerous years, helping us launch a new program or dedicating oneself to an existing one, serving our clients or serving our firm as a client, all of this year’s honorees are vital partners on our mission to provide equal justice for North Carolinians in need.”
Honeywell
We honor Honeywell for demonstrating remarkable commitment to our housing and domestic violence clients, especially through the service of Dawn Savarese and Kris Pickler, who have gone above and beyond on behalf of our clients and our firm. Learn more about Honeywell from Larissa Mañón Mervin, Regional Managing Attorney for our southern piedmont region, and Hannah Guerrier, our Charlotte Community Engagement Manager.
Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson, P.A.
We honor Robinson Bradshaw for its long record of pro bono service to our firm and clients, including this summer’s launch of our Summer Associate Pro Bono Program. Special thanks to Blaine Sanders, Julian Wright and John Wester for their leadership and support. Learn more about Robinson Bradshaw from Allison Constance, our Director of Pro Bono Programs.
Sneed & Stearns, P.A.
We honor Sneed & Stearns for its remarkable dedication to our clients and firm in the wake of Tropical Storm Helene. Immediately following the storm, partner Anna Stearns and her team immediately opened their doors to us, providing information, advice, and representation to Legal Aid NC clients and even training their staff to conduct client intake. Learn more about Sneed & Stearns from Allison Constance, our Director of Pro Bono Programs.
Aishah Reed Foster
We honor Aishaah Reed Foster of Moore & Van Allen for showing remarkable dedication to our domestic violence clients both in Charlotte and via remote service to clients in Western North Carolina. Learn more about Aishaah from Larissa Mañón Mervin, Regional Managing Attorney for our southern piedmont region.
Amily McCool
We honor Amily McCool, owner and sole practitioner of the Scharff Law Firm in Raleigh, for her extraordinary, successful and yearslong representation of a client of our Fair Housing Project, and for her and consistent willingness to help with a variety of pro bono matters. Learn more about Amily and her remarkable dedication in this case from Kelly Clarke, Director of our Fair Housing Project.
Brad Banias
We honor Brad Banias of Banias Law, LLC, for rendering remarkable pro bono service to clients of our Immigration Pathways for Victims (IMMPAV) unit in recent years. Learn more about Brad from Anna Cushman, supervising attorney with IMMPAV.
David Lindsay
We honor David C. Lindsay of K&L Gates LLP for providing pro bono legal services on employment issues to Legal Aid of North Carolina for more than 20 years. Learn more about David from Celia Pistolis, our Chief Legal Officer and General Counsel.
Jon Powell
We honor Jon Powell, Director of the Restorative Justice Clinic at Campbell Law, for always being ready, willing and able to help and inspire our Right to Education Project. Learn more about Jon from Hetali Lodaya, attorney with our Right to Education Project.
Peter Robinson
We honor Peter Robinson, a Raleigh-based international criminal trial lawyer, who goes above and beyond to serve our expunction clients, with a particular emphasis on serving clients in legal deserts. Learn more about Peter from Emily Mistr, the Director of our Second Chance Project.
Author: Sean Driscoll
The new issue of our pro bono newsletter is hot off the presses! Learn about all the innovative and impactful ways we partner with the private bar to provide access to justice for North Carolinians in need.
Items in this special Tropical Storm Helene edition include:
Tropical Storm Helene
How to Help: Serve, Give, Spread the Word
Patience and Preparation: The watchwords of post-disaster pro bono
Other News
National Celebration of Pro Bono starts soon!
Charlotte Triage marks 6th anniversary
BofA, Baker Donelson organize Triage clinics
Ashley Edwards-Davis joins Pro Bono team
CLE calendar
A Not-So-Scary Pro Bono Primer
Domestic Violence Awareness Month: True crime in the courtroom
Program Spotlight: Second Chance Project
Volunteer Spotlight: Evan Lewis
Pro Bono Go
Grandparent guardians seek custody of grandchildren
The new issue of our pro bono newsletter is hot off the presses! Learn about all the innovative, impactful — and fun! — ways we partner with the private bar to provide access to justice for North Carolinians in need.
Items in this issue include:
A fall full of wills clinics!
#StandwithLANC on our Day of Giving 2024
Submit your pro bono hours!
Now hiring: Supervising attorney for pro bono
CLE calendar
Fair Housing Act and reasonable accommodations
Save the date! A Not-So-Scary Pro Bono Primer
Save the date! Domestic violence CLE in Raleigh
Comings and goings
Nicole Mueller
Avery Marsh
Program Spotlight: Right to Education Project
Volunteer Spotlight: Aishaah Reed Foster, Moore & Van Allen
We love our pro bono volunteers! Nate Pencook, Senior Associate in the Raleigh office of Nelson Mullins, recently helped one of our clients secure guardianship of their adult child with a debilitating medical condition.
The child contracted a virus in early childhood that left them immobile, prone to seizures, almost entirely unable to communicate, and more. As we noted after interviewing our client, the child is “completely dependent on caregivers for survival.”
Thanks to Nate’s advocacy — with the help of paralegal Eliana Hughes — our client can continue caring for their child with the authority needed to make decisions on their behalf.
Thank you, Nate and Eliana!
This case was handled through a partnership among Nelson Mullins, our Pro Bono Programs team, and our Medical-Legal Partnership. Learn more at legalaidnc.org/pro-bono.
Author: Sean Driscoll
The new issue of our pro bono newsletter is hot off the presses! Learn about all the innovative, impactful — and fun! — ways we partner with the private bar to provide access to justice for North Carolinians in need.
Items in this issue include:
We want to celebrate you! Report your pro bono hours
Pro Bono Fridays in Raleigh: Dates still available!
Charlotte Triage Lawyer on the Line clinic
Heir property project profiled by PBI
UNC Law hosts Lawyer on the Line clinic
Meet new case coordinator Kemiyah Harris!
Follow us on LinkedIn!
Program Spotlight: Name Change Project
Volunteer Spotlight: Kris Pickler, Honeywell
Pro Bono Go
Housing conditions advice (attorneys only)
Drivers License Restoration: Local counsel needed
Divorce assistance for DV survivor with disability
We love our pro bono volunteers! Kris Pickler, General Counsel for Global Real Estate at Honeywell, is a longtime Legal Aid NC supporter and one of our newest volunteers.
Despite being a native North Carolinian — born in Fayetteville, he has lived in more than ten NC counties in his life — Kris has never been licensed to practice law in his home state. His legal career, which has taken him from coastal resource management in the Carolinas to global real estate law for major corporations, has never required it — until now (sort of).
Three years into his leadership of the Center for Heirs’ Property Preservation board of directors — he’s served as chair since January and served as vice chair throughout 2022 and 2023 — Kris recently doubled down on his commitment to the issue by securing Pro Bono Practice Status to volunteer with our Heir Property Pro Bono Project. Granted by the NC State Bar, pro bono status allows an out-of-state or inactive NC attorney to provide free legal services to clients of a nonprofit legal aid organization (like us!).
As a volunteer with our Heir Property Pro Bono Project, Kris will join a corps of other private attorneys who help low-income heir property owners secure clear title to the homes and land they inherited informally (without a will). Clear title is crucial to helping heir property owners apply for loans, secure recovery benefits following natural disasters, and more.
In a recent LinkedIn post, Kris praised Honeywell for encouraging and supporting public service and urged other attorneys to get involved.
“Until a couple of years ago, I spent a career providing legal services primarily for companies, not for people,” he wrote. “At Honeywell, we have an exceptional leader for our Legal Department who sets a tone from the top of encouraging giving back.
“The sense of fulfillment one receives by helping indigent North Carolinians who need some legal advice or support is immense — on real property issues in my instance — but there are plenty of functional areas with opportunities available. The phenomenal team at Legal Aid of North Carolina have excellent training and resources available for legal professionals willing to help, as we know the demand for services far exceeds those willing to help in NC. Reach out to them if you’re interested!”
Thank you for your support, Kris!
If you are interested in volunteering with our Heir Property Pro Bono Project, you can learn more and sign up at legalaidnc.org/hppbp. Learn more about our other pro bono programs at legalaidnc.org/pro-bono.
Author: Sean Driscoll
Legal Aid of North Carolina seeks proposals from consultants to work with our Pro Bono Programs team to complete a six-month, targeted, internal assessment of our pro bono program.
We seek proposals only from consultants who have experience working with recipients of Planning Grants or Transformation Grants from the Legal Services Corporation’s Pro Bono Innovation Fund.
Our goal for the assessment is to gather and analyze the information necessary to develop a plan for the full integration of pro bono into our firm’s advocacy strategy and operations at the field office level, thereby achieving our vision of a pro bono program that helps meet our clients most pressing legal needs. At a time when our staff advocates are stretched thin, we believe that pro bono volunteers are an under-utilized resource and a potential solution to meeting the overwhelming needs of our clients.
The scope of work will include:
Conducting online surveys, focus-group discussions and one-on-one interviews with LANC staff and possibly some external stakeholders;
Gathering and analyzing case and volunteer statistics from our case management system; and
Analyzing information gathered from the aforementioned sources, including comprehensive intermediate and final reports.
Proposals are due September 2, 2024. LANC will select a consultant and notify proposal submitters of its decision on September 9, 2024. The assessment will run from October 1, 2024, through March 31, 2025. The final assessment report is due March 31, 2025.
