Six law students to complete virtual legal aid fellowships through Foundation funding
Six Florida law students will have the opportunity to work in civil legal aid programs this summer through The Florida Bar Foundation’s Summer Fellows Grant Program. “Summer fellows have a unique opportunity to hone real-world legal skills and develop awareness of civil legal aid issues through their work with legal aid programs,” said Kate York, […]
Continue readingKathy Para to be awarded the Jane Elizabeth Curran Distinguished Service Award
Kathy Para, retired director of pro bono for Jacksonville Area Legal Aid, has won The Florida Bar Foundation’s 2020 Jane Elizabeth Curran Distinguished Service Award. The award is named for the Foundation’s first executive director, recognizing individuals who, over their careers, have achieved meaningful, effective and lasting increases in access to civil justice for the […]
Continue readingCovid-19 and Legal Aid
Legal Aid and Covid-19: What You Need to Know Florida Bar Foundation staff are working remotely and can be reached by email, phone and our Contact Us form. Florida legal aid programs are open. Find your local legal aid provider. Resources for Lawyers All Florida Bar offices are closed as of March 19 with […]
Continue readingGuardians ad litem funded by Foundation change one life at a time
“It wouldn’t have been a happy story or a success story,” says Melissa Whitted, reflecting on what it would have been like for her and her husband to adopt their now seventeen-year-old twins without the help of legal aid. Whitted, who works as a dispatcher for Lynx Transportation in Orlando, and her husband had raised […]
Continue readingLegal aid programs prepare, respond in face of COVID-19
As the reality of stay-at-home orders, social distancing and closed businesses set in for Floridians in mid-March, the state’s civil legal aid programs and the Foundation came together to prepare for providing legal services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Foundation and legal aid staff members acted quickly to transition to remote work. In an email to […]
Continue readingMessage from the President – Spring 2020
I hope this newsletter finds you and your family healthy during this unique and unprecedented time. While there have been and will continue to be many challenges, I am buoyed by the resiliency and hard-working spirit of the organizations the Foundation supports. In March, as the significance of the coronavirus became clear, the Foundation’s board […]
Continue readingFoundation announces Florida Pro Bono Law School Challenge alumni, student winners
The Florida Bar Foundation announced the winners of the 2020 Florida Pro Bono Law School Challenge April 29. The University of Miami School of Law won the top honor, the MVP Pro Bono Champion Award, for matching the most students with its own alumni. Florida State University College of Law won for most student engagement. […]
Continue readingFoundation honors two lawyers, one non-lawyer with 2020 Medal of Honor
The Honorable Peter T. Fay, the Honorable James Lawrence King and Dr. Mimi Graham have been selected as recipients of The Florida Bar Foundation’s 2020 Medal of Honor Award, the Foundation’s highest honor. Hon. Peter T. Fay and Hon. James Lawrence King Fay, a senior U.S. circuit judge of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, […]
Continue readingMarch 2020 Board Meeting Report
Quarterly Board Report March 27, 2020 (and April 9, 2020) Via virtual meeting The Florida Bar Foundation Board of Directors met on March 27, 2020, via remote transmission because of the COVID-19 situation. The meeting was initially scheduled to take place in Fort Lauderdale and be hosted by Greenspoon Marder and Buchannan, Ingersoll & Rooney. […]
Continue readingHave you been affected by the opioid crisis?
Have you or a family member been impacted by the opioid crisis? There is relief for those who have been hurt by a prescription opioid. You may be entitled to compensation. To learn how to apply, visit https://www.purduepharmaclaims.com/. The deadline for applying is June 30, 2020. To file your claim electronically, visit https://efiling.primeclerk.com/
Continue readingDomestic violence survivors turn to legal aid for divorce, support
One night during the summer of 2018, Elizabeth* waited outside her home for her husband to let her back in to get her two young daughters. He had punched her and dragged her outside, barricading himself inside with the girls. (*Name and likeness have been changed to protect the privacy of actual client.) “That was […]
Continue readingMessage from the President – Winter 2020
When most of us think about legal aid, we think about lawyers on the front lines serving clients. But, there are a lot of things going on behind the scenes to ensure that those lawyers have the resources and flexibility they need to provide effective direct legal services. In December, The Florida Bar Foundation’s board […]
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