Press Releases, Pro Bono
Katten Muchin Rosenman Announces Recipients of Sixth Annual Pro Bono Service Awards
August 29, 2005
Chicago – Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP today announced that it has presented its top honor for pro bono service to five attorneys. This year’s recipients are Real Estate partner Mark C. Simon and Litigation associate Jenny Louise Johnson of the Firm’s Chicago office; Litigation associates Julie Pechersky and James Tampellini of the New York office; and Corporate partner John C. McBride of the Los Angeles office.
Three distinguished jurists presented the awards: In Chicago, the Honorable William J. Bauer of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit; in New York, the Honorable Dennis G. Jacobs of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit; and in Los Angeles, the Honorable Dean D. Pregerson of the U. S. District Court for the Central District of California
In the award-winning cases, Firm attorneys provided pro bono services in a wide array of litigation and transactional matters, including:
- efforts to acquire land for the development of a homeless shelter for teens
- representation of a teen wrongfully accused of armed robbery
- representation of three deaf and hearing-impaired prison inmates in their fight for access to assistive devices
- the defense of the City of New York against allegations of unreasonable force by its police department
- helping a not-for-profit organization in Los Angeles to provide critical services for homeless families
- assisting a community resource center in providing safe, constructive activities and educational opportunities for teens in South-Central Los Angeles
- assisting with the tsunami relief effort in Sri Lanka
"These individuals have truly demonstrated our firm-wide commitment to providing those in our communities the legal services they need but may not be able to afford," said Vincent A. F. Sergi, the Firm’s National Managing Partner. "This group of attorneys has demonstrated an extraordinary dedication of time and service to their pro bono clients and we are extremely proud of their efforts."
The Pro Bono Service Awards include a $1,000 honorarium, which each recipient donated to a charity of their choice. The following summaries highlight the recipients’ pro bono work:
Mark C. Simon
Partner, Real Estate – Chicago
For the past year-and-a-half Mark C. Simon has worked with the Community Economic Development Law Project (CEDLP) to help La Casa Norte, a local organization, to secure a property on North Avenue in Chicago. The property will be used to build a homeless shelter for Hispanic teenagers. Mr. Simon has worked to obtain the financing for this project, which is scheduled for completion in 2006.
In addition to his work with the CEDLP and La Casa Norte, Mr. Simon has represented the Chicago Community Loan Fund in loans to not-for-profit organizations; Acorn Housing to obtain credit lines, facilitating the redevelopment of homes in inner-city neighborhoods; and helped Victory Outreach to acquire a new church in the Chicago-area.
At any given time, Mr. Simon is handling at least one pro bono project. He has also mentored numerous young associates in doing the same kind of work. He plans to donate his honorarium to the CEDLP, the Evanston Youth Job Center and the Youth Organizations Umbrella Inc. (YOU).
Jenny Louise Johnson
Associate, Litigation – Chicago
Jenny Louise Johnson recently represented a 13-year-old boy who was charged with armed robbery and held in custody pending trial.
In the boy’s case, the victim was a taxi driver, attacked by a group of juveniles who stole $25 and hit him over the head with a pipe. The victim described the offenders as African-American males in their late teens and told the police that the male who assaulted him was wearing a white T-shirt and black pants. The description lacked any other identifiers such as height, weight or hairstyle.
45 minutes after the attack occurred, the boy was stopped while walking down a street two blocks away from the scene of the crime. He was on his way home from a friend’s house and was wearing a long-sleeved football jersey and light blue jeans. He had no blood on his clothing and no money. Despite this, he was apprehended, handcuffed and taken to the hospital, where the victim identified him as the assailant.
During cross examination of the victim at trial, Ms. Johnson questioned him on his recollection of the descriptive features of the assailant, including height, clothing and hairstyle. She asked the victim if the person who had assaulted him had hair. The victim looked at the boy in the courtroom, who had a full head of hair and answered, yes. Although the boy’s hair had grown back by the time of trial, his head had been completely shaven on the day of the alleged offense, as demonstrated in the mug shot taken at the time of his arrest. After being held in custody for over two months for a crime he did not commit, the boy was acquitted of all charges and released.
The Firm’s work in the juvenile area, spearheaded by Ms. Johnson, won an award from the Children and Family Justice Center of the Northwestern University Bluhm Legal Clinic in 2004. She plans to donate her honorarium to the Center.
Julie Pechersky
Associate, Litigation – New York
Julie Pechersky currently represents three deaf and hearing-impaired inmates incarcerated in the New York State correctional system, before the Southern District of New York. In the cases Arce v. O’Connell, Figueroa v. Dean and Duquin v. Dean, Ms. Pechersky and fellow attorneys Arthur Linker, Joanna Bernard and Bonnie Chmil, are fighting for these inmate’s rights to assistive devices such as, text telephones, sign-language interpreters and visual fire alarms, to which they are entitled pursuant to a June 1996 Consent Order and Judgment. To date, Ms. Pechersky has conducted extensive discovery and has filed briefs in opposition to motions to dismiss and motions for summary judgment.
Ms. Pechersky has designated Natural Resources Defense Council to receive her honorarium.
James Tampellini
Associate, Litigation – New York
A former New York City police officer, James Tampellini recently helped represent the City of New York in its defense of a lawsuit brought by Walter Hickey, a resident who alleged that he was shot by a New York City police officer without justification.
At the conclusion of a three week trial, the jury found that the force used by the officer was reasonable and that the police actions were justified. In addition, the NYPD was cleared of all other charges.
"It was especially satisfying to be the advocates for police officers," said Mr. Tampellini. "They were second-guessed on a decision that they were forced to make in a split second. Furthermore, from an experience standpoint, the Hickey case allowed me to conduct motion practice, to take and defend over 30 depositions, as well as providing invaluable trial experience."
Mr. Tampellini plans to donate his honorarium to the New York City Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association’s Widows and Orphans Fund.
John C. McBride
Partner, Corporate – Los Angeles
In 2004, John C. McBride took charge of managing the Firm’s growing relationship with The Salvation Army Westwood Transitional Village, a transitional living center in West Los Angeles, affectionately referred to as "the Village." He has assisted in the renovation and replacement of the Village’s computer stations, arranged and hosted a Christmas party with presents for all of
the children living at the facility, and organized fund raising and clothing drives, as well as the Firm’s ongoing project to adopt families at the Village and assist them with the transition from the facility to independent living.
Shortly after Mr. McBride became involved with The Village, The Salvation Army approached him to serve on the Advisory Council for its South Los Angeles Center for Worship & Service, where he currently serves as Chair. The facility is a community resource center located in one of the neediest parts of South Los Angeles and is the only facility of its type in the area, providing educational assistance, sports, and arts and crafts for adolescent residents. In addition to rendering advice and guidance, Mr. McBride has arranged clothing and monetary donations from the Firm and other sources.
Additionally, following the tsunami disaster in Sri Lanka, Mr. McBride agreed to serve on the Board of the Tsunami Relief – Sri Lanka Fund, a nonprofit organization founded by another Katten Muchin Rosenman partner, Mark Conley. Mr. McBride is currently assisting the Fund in establishing an effective long-term disaster relief plan in Sri Lanka.
He plans to donate his honorarium to The Salvation Army Westwood Transitional Village, The Salvation Army South Los Angeles Center for Worship & Service and the Tsunami Relief – Sri Lanka Fund.
Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP (www.kattenlaw.com) is a national, full-service law firm with offices in the nation's largest centers of business, government, finance and technology. The Firm’s 600 attorneys in more than 50 practice areas provide timely and cost-effective counsel to clients in numerous industries. They serve as business advisors and advocates for a wide range of public and private companies - from entrepreneurial, emerging-growth, and middle market firms to global Fortune 100 corporations - as well as government entities, non-profits, and charitable and cultural organizations.