Kasey Parks, 3L, Receives Milwaukee Bar Association Pro Bono Publico Award

Kasey Parks has received the Milwaukee Bar Association’s (MBA) Pro Bono Publico Award in the category of law student. Kasey accepted her award at the MBA’s annual State of the Court Luncheon on Thursday, October 15th.
 
The award is given to an individual attorney, an organization, and a law student based on the following criteria: developing innovative ways to deliver volunteer legal services or improve access to justice; participating in activities that improve legal services to the poor or increase access to justice; and working on legislation that increases access to justice.
 
Kasey has completed over 150-hours to date. Most of her time has been given to the Marquette Volunteer Legal Clinics (MVLC). Kasey gives her time each and every week, doing what all practitioners should by making pro bono a habit in her busy schedule (Kasey is also completing her Master’s in Business Administration, is the Article and Research Editor for the Marquette Sports Law Review, and has been a volunteer and research assistant for the National Sports Law Institute for the past 3 years.).
As a member of the MVLC’s student advisory board, Kasey is a leader among her peers. She reaches out to incoming students and explains how the life of a busy law student has room for incorporate pro bono. She is an important part of our legal community’s desire to give back.  As a law student and future attorney, her service ethic and actions are key to the culture of pro bono among the legal community. Thank you Kasey. You are worthy of this recognition.  (In the photo above, Kasey is pictured with Supreme Court Justice Annette Ziegler and Milwaukee County Chief Judge Maxine White).  
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Pro Bono: A Lot to Celebrate

Last week, as part of the American Bar Association’s coordinated effort to showcase the great difference pro bono makes, we hosted our third annual Pro Bono Celebration.  This gave us opportunity to highlight some of our community partners.  We celebrated with balloons and cake in the conference center and heard from Beth Cordes Thompson, Director of Wisconsin English Language Partners of Wisconsin and a recent beneficiary of the Marquette Legal Initiative for Nonprofit Corporations’ services;  Gerri Sheets-Howard, Director of the House of Peace where the Marquette Volunteer Legal Clinic (MVLC) is in its tenth year of operation; Jim Duff, Director of Milwaukee County Veterans’ Service Office where the MVLC has hosted a clinic since 2009; Dr. Luis “Tony” Baez, Director of the Council for Spanish Speakers where the MVLC has operated a clinic since 2008; and John Barrett, Milwaukee County Clerk of Courts, where our clinic has run since 2009. These speakers are pictured from left to right in the photo accompanying this post. I heard from multiple attendees that they were refueled after hearing about the reach of the legal services our law students and a dedicated cadre of volunteer attorneys provide.

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