General – Duane Morris Pro Bono

November 12, 2019November 11, 2019 by Valentine A. Brown

Duane Morris and Northern California Innocence Project Celebrate Reversal of a Wrongful Conviction

Duane Morris and Northern California Innocence Project Karla Baday Trial Team

The San Francisco office hosted a reception to celebrate Karla Baday’s release from prison after serving 17 years for a crime that she did not commit. Working alongside the Northern California Innocence Project, Duane Morris attorneys, Andrew Gordon, Christine Ross and William Berman represented the client pro bono in overturning her wrongful conviction. In 2002 Ms. Baday was convicted of multiple counts of child sexual abuse and received a sentence of 45 years to life. These offenses allegedly took place on a single day in less than a 2 hour period against 3 children of her former partner. At trial, one child testified the abuse never happened and other testimony was inconsistent. Our client, who spoke little English, was profoundly hampered in her defense by the appointment of an attorney who failed to cross-examine the prosecution’s witness, call available defense witnesses, challenge the unqualified prosecution expert witness, and consult or present any experts in support of the client.

The Duane Morris team entered the case successfully prevailing in a writ of habeas corpus proceeding. They argued that the client’s conviction was based on false medical evidence and that she had been prejudiced at trial by ineffective assistance of counsel. The team also found newly discovered evidence that further demonstrated our client’s innocence. Upon reversal of the client’s child molestation conviction by the trial court, she was released from prison where she was serving a 45-year-life sentence.

A the celebration, Karla Baday said, “I want to thank Duane Morris and Northern California Innocence Project for believing in me and helping me get my freedom back.

Karla Baday speaking at Duane Morris about her ordeal.

Working with you was such an awesome experience. You made me feel that my life matters and that someone cares enough to take the time to find the truth. I don’t even have enough words to express how I feel. I will always have you so close to my heart. Now I can live my life again and enjoy every moment with my family. Thank you so much once again. God bless everybody.”

@Innocence @CA_innocence @DMProbono @Probonogal @Vbimmigration

February 18, 2019February 17, 2019 by Valentine A. Brown

Pro Bono makes the Profession: A Profile of Arfat Selvam, Managing Partner of the Duane Morris Singapore Office

Arfat Selvam, Managing Partner in the Duane Morris & Selvam, LLP Singapore office was recently profiled by the Law Gazette of the Law Society of Singapore. In 2017 Ms. Selvam was Pro Bono Ambassador for the Society. In this profile, Ms. Selvam answers questions on her pro bono work: How did she get started in pro bono? And why does she think it is important? She also provides advice for young lawyers, law firms and her hopes for the pro bono landscape in Singapore. To read the profile, click here.

Mrs Selvam has over forty years’ experience in corporate finance having been at the forefront of the development of the financial services market in Singapore. Her wide array of experience includes mergers and acquisitions, corporate restructures, takeovers, funds raising in the capital markets, privatisations, financial services, cross border investments, financial services and international joint ventures.

Mrs. Selvam was president of The Law Society of Singapore in 2003 and a former Director of the Stock Exchange of Singapore Limited. She was also a member of the Senate of the Academy of Law, the Board of Legal Education, and was formerly on the Board of the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority. Arfat is a Fellow of the Singapore Institute of Directors. She is a director of JurongHealth Fund Limited and Law Society Pro Bono Services. She is also a member of the Board of Trustees of Rahmatan Lil Alamin Foundation Ltd.

To read our 2018 Pro Bono Annual Report and learn more about the Duane Morris pro bono program, click here.

May 8, 2018July 31, 2018 by Valentine A. Brown

Duane Morris Awarded 2018 ABA Business Law Section Pro Bono National Public Service Award

Duane Morris has been awarded the 2018 ABA Business Law Section Pro Bono National Public Service Award. Duane Morris was the only firm honored alongside the Exelon and Intel In-House pro bono departments. Over 1,000 attorneys were in attendance at the Business Law Section Spring Meeting Luncheon on April 13 in Orlando, FL as Kat McGee, of the Philadelphia office, accepted the award on behalf of the firm.

Duane Morris was nominated by Start Small Think Big in recognition of the firm’s pro bono service in 2017. Over 10,400 hours of pro bono legal assistance were provided to more than 400 nonprofits and small business entities started by low-to-moderate income individual furthering the economic development in low-income areas.

One of the many ways Duane Morris contributed was pioneering a plan to assemble teams of legal and financial advisors to provide holistic, integrated advice to Start Small clients with more complex investment and related issues. Start Small Think Big stated, “Duane Morris itself is entrepreneurial in its pro bono efforts with attorneys consistently thinking outside the proverbial box concerning how to increase access to legal services for low-income clients.”

PB 2018 ABA Award
Kat McGee accepting the award on behalf of the firm.

June 27, 2016 by Duane Morris

SCOTUS Strikes Down Texas Statute in Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt; Duane Morris Amicus Brief Cited in Opinion

In a 5-3 decision today, the Supreme Court of the United States in Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt, No. 15-275, slip op. (June 27, 2016) reversed a decision of the Fifth Circuit and overturned as unconstitutional a Texas law that (1) required physicians to have “active admitting privileges” at a hospital within 30 miles of the location at which they provide abortions and (2) required facilities to meet standards adopted for ambulatory surgery centers. The Court wrote that each of the requirements “places a substantial obstacle in the path of women seeking a previability abortion, each constitutes an undue burden on abortion access, and each violates the Federal Constitution.” A team of Duane Morris attorneys, including Philip H. Lebowitz, Erin M. Duffy, Katharyn I. Christian McGee, Alison Taylor Rosenblum, and Erica Fruiterman, filed an amicus curiae brief pro bono on behalf of medical staff professionals in support of petitioners Whole Woman’s Health, et al. discussing the credentialing and admitting privileges process for physicians. In its decision, the Supreme Court cited Duane Morris’ amicus brief, noting, “Other amicus briefs filed here set forth without dispute other common prerequisites to obtaining admitting privileges that have nothing to do with ability to perform medical procedures.” The brief was one of only a handful of amici curiae briefs cited in the decision out of a total of 41 such briefs filed on behalf of petitioners.

April 12, 2016April 5, 2016 by Valentine A. Brown

USPTO Patent Pro Bono Program a Welcome Addition for Inventors in Pennsylvania

In March, the USPTO launched the Pennsylvania Patent Pro Bono Program through the Philadelphia Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts, a non-profit community based legal services provider for the arts and invention community.

cronkpeter — Guest Blogger: Peter J. Cronk, , Duane Morris Patent Attorney

The Patent Pro Bono Program provides free legal assistance to low income inventors. The Program is a product of the America Invents Act (AIA). Under this legislation the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office began working with intellectual property law associations across the country to assist qualifying independent inventors and small businesses. In February of 2014, President Obama issued an executive action calling for expansion of the pro bono programs into all 50 states. As a result of the President’s executive action, new pro bono programs have been springing up all over the country.

Generally, most programs require that an inventor have: (1) income below 300% of the Federal poverty level; (2) knowledge of the patent system; and (3) the ability to describe his or her invention so that someone could make and use the invention. The income threshold is based on how many people are in the inventor’s household. Right now, the Federal poverty level for a one person household is $11,670, so 300% would be $35,010. Because each regional program is operated independently, inventors are strongly encouraged to contact their program directly, review their program’s website, or check out the USPTO’s website to learn about the eligibility criteria. To learn more about USPTO, please visit their website.

Continue reading “USPTO Patent Pro Bono Program a Welcome Addition for Inventors in Pennsylvania”

April 5, 2016April 5, 2016 by Valentine A. Brown

Amicus Curiae Briefs: Weighing In on Novel and Important Questions

newmanthomas — Guest Blogger: Thomas R. Newman, Esq.

Duane Morris pro bono attorneys regularly prepare amicus briefs on behalf of community-based organizations, professional associations, and industry groups in cases with important social implications. Most recently we participated as amicus counsel in Kingdomware Technologies Inc v. United States, U.S.Docket No. 14-916; Whole Women’s Health v. Cole, U.S. Docket No. 15-274 and Froio v. McDonald, 27 Vet.App. 352 (May 29, 2015). Thomas R. Newman, a regular pro bono contributor, has written an article on the importance of amicus briefs in various types appeals. The article was published in the New York Law Journal on March 1, 2016. The article was coauthored by Steven J. Ahmuty, Jr. a partner at Shaub, Ahmuty Citrin & Spratt.

When an appeal involves legal issues that are novel or of statewide importance, appellate counsel should consider soliciting amicus curiae (“friend of the court”) participation in support of their client’s position. The first step is to identify potential amici who would be willing to submit an amicus brief to provide the court with information and perspectives beyond what is presented by the parties. For corporate litigants, in-house counsel can be a valuable resource for identifying potential amici and assisting appellate counsel in soliciting amicus participation. Continue reading “Amicus Curiae Briefs: Weighing In on Novel and Important Questions”

February 15, 2016February 11, 2016 by Valentine A. Brown

Attorneys Honored With Keta Taylor Colby Award From Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area

Partner Jolie-Anne S. Ansley of the San Francisco office and Christopher B. Yeh of the Los Angeles office were named Keta Taylor Colby Award recipients by the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area (LCCR). Continue reading “Attorneys Honored With Keta Taylor Colby Award From Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area”

February 12, 2016February 11, 2016 by Valentine A. Brown

Florida Offices Receive Florida Chief Justice’s Law Firm Commendation Pro Bono Service Award

The firm’s Miami and Boca Raton offices were awarded the 2016 Supreme Court of Florida Chief Justice’s Law Firm Commendation Pro Bono Award on January 28, 2016. This award recognizes a law firm that has contributed significant hours and effort to pro bono legal services to individuals or groups that cannot otherwise afford those services and shows an extraordinary commitment to provide access to the courts for all Floridians. Continue reading “Florida Offices Receive Florida Chief Justice’s Law Firm Commendation Pro Bono Service Award”

February 1, 2016February 1, 2016 by Valentine A. Brown

Pennsylvania Legislators Begin Passing Reforms to Aid Victims of Trafficking

As discussed in our earlier post, New York and Illinois are noteworthy for their early adoption of state laws to help put an end to human trafficking and prosecute traffickers. However, many states are still struggling to make policies that will stop traffickers.

In Pennsylvania, the battle to reverse age old polices that harmed trafficking victims is starting to turn. Progress has been made due to a package of three different proposals that state senators, such as Senator Daylin Leach, have been pushing in the last eight years. Senator Leach’s interest in solving this problem comes from the responsibility he feels as Chairman on the Senate Judiciary Committee to make policies that are just and correct policies that are unjust. As society changes, the laws of the past can become unjust, and even cruel, so rigorous reassessment of current statutes is vital. Continue reading “Pennsylvania Legislators Begin Passing Reforms to Aid Victims of Trafficking”

January 27, 2016February 4, 2016 by Valentine A. Brown

US Federal Response to Human Trafficking Has Focused on Foreign Trafficked Persons

As discussed in our previous posts, Human Trafficking is a global problem. Attorneys at Duane Morris have regularly represented victims of trafficking in immigration matters, including U and T visas as well as in Violence Against Women Act petitions for various immigration benefits. While the federal response has been meaningful, it has failed to solve all of the problems, for example, the U visa available to victims of crime is capped at 10,000 per year and as a result, significant backlogs have developed in that visa category. In spite of significant work left to do, there are many laws which have been passed in the United States to recognize the global nature of the problem. Continue reading “US Federal Response to Human Trafficking Has Focused on Foreign Trafficked Persons”