Squire Patton Boggs is proud to announce the winners of its annual Pro Bono Awards. The awards reflect the firm’s long-standing commitment to providing pro bono services and showcase the breadth and diversity of the work undertaken by its lawyers to support those with limited resources.
US Award Winners
Partner of the Year - Stephen Fazio
Stephen Fazio leads the Cleveland office’s relationship with the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland, having served on the organization’s Board of Directors for many years. He is currently the president emeritus of the Board of Directors. Through his efforts, Stephen finds new pro bono opportunities for the Cleveland office and is also a resource for associates.
Counsel/Principal of the Year – Batoul Husain
Batoul has been involved in a significant criminal justice case involving the application of the Armed Career Criminal Act’s 15-year mandatory minimum sentence on a client convicted of possession of a firearm. Batoul was part of the legal team that prevailed on this issue before the district court, a decision appealed by the government, and she has since worked with co-counsel to seek affirmance of the district court and to uphold the 6-year sentence received by the client.
Associate of the Year – Kathryn Brown
Katie devoted substantial hours working on a federal criminal appeal and a state post-conviction matter. She argued the appeal of the denial of a motion to suppress on behalf of the client in the Sixth Circuit, and worked on a state post-conviction matter from Michigan Law School’s Innocence Clinic involving a conviction for felony-murder where our client was denied effective assistance of counsel at trial.
US Pro Bono Liaison of the Year – Colter Paulson
Colter directs the Sixth Circuit Clinic at University of Cincinnati Law School, where he not only teaches students about criminal appellate practice, but also leads student case teams for indigent criminal defendants in the courts of appeals. In addition, in his role as pro bono liaison for the Cincinnati office last year, the office increased pro bono work by 45%.
Lifetime Achievement Award - Marilyn Stimson (Executive Assistant – retired)
Marilyn retired from the firm earlier this year. She had a significant impact on the pro bono program, playing a role in developing processes that are now an integral part of our intake and tracking of pro bono matters.
International Award Winners
Partner of the Year – Daniela Sabelli (Milan)
Daniela co-ordinates the firm’s pro bono activities in Milan, mentoring associates, and presenting at pro bono and ESG conventions and workshops. She is the founder and secretary of an Italian education non-profit organization that helps students with limited resources and assists on an ongoing basis various non-profit entities with the goal of exposing, combating, preventing and overcoming gender-based violence.
International Pro Bono Associate of the Year – Katarína Ottová (Bratislava)
Katarina provided pro bono legal services to a non-profit organization in a significant case.
International Pro Bono Trainee/Graduate/Paralegal/Solicitor Apprentice of the Year - Genevieve Mascarenhas (Perth)
Genevieve worked on nine separate pro bono matters, including a Criminal Injuries Compensation claim which led to her client being awarded the maximum amount of compensation for a case of its kind, and represented the firm’s first Criminal Injuries Compensation award under this scheme.
International Pro Bono Team of the Year – Richard Gibbon, Anna Dellapa, Carla Skeldon and Habib Saeed (Dubai)
The team successfully represented a Person of Determination in her dispute with a UAE University over its refusal to provide the client with confirmation that she had passed her year-one exams because her parent had lost her job and fallen impecunious due to serious illness and was unable to pay the client’s tuition fees.
More information regarding Squire Patton Boggs’ pro bono services can be found here.