14 Oct 2008
New legal partnership provides critical support for victims of domestic violence
DLA Piper and the Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation team up to help victims in need
Atlanta -- In recognition of Domestic Violence Awareness Month, law firm DLA Piper is proud to announce a new pro bono project in Atlanta dedicated to helping victims of domestic violence. The project, Advocates Against Violence, is an innovative partnership with the Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation (AVLF) in which our lawyers, paralegals, and other administrative staff assist victims of domestic violence in obtaining 12-month temporary protective orders to prevent their abusers from continuing their abuse.
Earlier this year, nearly 1/3 of the lawyers and staff in DLA Piper’s Atlanta office were trained to handle the temporary protective order ("TPO") cases for victims of domestic violence. Since initiating the partnership with AVLF in the spring, DLA Piper has handled five TPO cases for domestic violence victims in Atlanta, all of which were successful. The firm is expected to take on an additional five or six cases this year, and as many as 25-30 cases in 2009.
“We are delighted that DLA Piper has chosen to make the protection of victims of domestic violence their priority, and we congratulate the firm on its clear commitment demonstrated throughout every level of the law firm in designating this as their singular pro bono project in Atlanta,” said Martin Ellin, Executive Director of AVLF. “The involvement of DLA Piper attorneys and paralegals will make a significant difference in the outcome of the civil Temporary Protective Order hearings, and therefore, on the safety and the lives of abused women and their children.”
DLA Piper, which is the largest law firm in the US according to the
National Law Journal, created the Advocates Against Violence program earlier this year in order to give lawyers and staff an opportunity to make meaningful contributions to the Atlanta community. DLA Piper employees are participating at all levels, from secretarial support staff to partners. The firm has started conducting internal training programs over to ensure all volunteers in the office who want to contribute are given the opportunity to do so.
“At DLA Piper, we have a proud tradition of dedicating pro bono work to the neediest people in the communities where we work and live,” said Shawn Lanier, the DLA Piper partner heading up the project. “Partnering with AVLF, we are helping our clients to escape abuse and start a new life. This project gives our lawyers and staff an opportunity to use their legal skills to change – and maybe save – somebody’s life, and I can’t think of anything more rewarding than that.”
The Advocates Against Violence will run through at least the end of 2009, and may be extended beyond that.
About AVLF Since its inception, AVLF has worked with domestic violence victims in addressing their civil legal needs. Until the early 1990s, however, a low-income victim’s request for legal assistance to secure a protective order was available only if an Atlanta Legal Aid staff attorney was available to help, or if AVLF could secure a volunteer attorney on an ad hoc basis. Through the middle 1990s, recognizing the varied and largely inadequate response to this unique client population from the local legal community, AVLF-- under the direction of former Executive Director Debbie Segal and former Deputy Director and now Magistrate Kim Warden-- became more strategic and focused in its work on behalf of domestic violence victims, establishing a more scheduled response by private lawyers.
In the late nineties, AVLF procured specific Violence Against Women Act funding from the United States Department of Justice and launched a formal pro bono DV Project, with considerable assistance from the law firm of Arnall Golden Gregory. That project, now funded locally, continues to provide assistance to victims in their initial effort to secure emergency Ex Parte Protective Orders and especially in the 12-month Temporary Protective Order hearings.