Double, double, toil and trouble

A Halloween of historical figures . . . and a bear

Which OneJustice staffer swept the 2014 costume contest?

Ok, so we didn’t actually have any witches at the OneJustice staff Halloween parties this year. But we did have lots of creative costumes, including some historical figures, animals, fictional movie characters, a boxer, a burglar, static cling, and . . . a bear.

And for the winners of this year’s costume contest, we bring you (drum roll please . . . )

First place in San Francisco: Amelia Earhart (aka Lauren Roberts, Staff Attorney for the Rural Justice Collaborative)
First place in Los Angeles: the unicorn (aka Kelsey Williams, IMPACT LA Project Fellow)
Second place: Yoko and John Lennon (aka Arbour Decker, Donor & Corporate Relations Manager and Ruby Kimberly, Justice Bus Program Associate)
Third place: Bear (otherwise known as Mike Winn, Senior Staff Attorney)

Check out the photo montage for more spooks (and laughs). Wishing you the most spooktacular and fanta-boo-lous Halloween ever!

He didn’t want to miss the bus

Meet Joe Casey – Justice Bus Rider extraordinaire

He’s traveled over 800 miles to reach those in need.

We would never leave you off the bus, Joe!

No doubt about it – we think all of our Justice Bus Riders are pretty darn special. All 1,312 of them!

They travel hundreds of miles to bring life-changing legal help to rural communities. They give so generously of their time, energy, and skills to help poor Californians facing terrible legal problems. They are the solution to the lack of legal assistance for hundreds of veterans, children, families, and seniors each year.

As a result, we have a special place in our hearts for these volunteers – we call them our “Justice Bus Riders.” We think they are justice super heroes.

So we’ve decided that we will feature some extraordinary Justice Bus Riders here on the blog – so you can also get to know them. We’re starting with a true Justice Bus hero – Joe Casey. Joe, who will be starting this fall as a new associate at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, has been on SIX justice bus trips – all during his three years as a student at Stanford Law School. He went on four trips with Stanford and two trips with law firms during his summers. He has traveled over 800 miles on these trips to reach communities like Watsonville, Modesto, and Gilroy.

We sat down with Joe recently to ask him some questions about being a Justice Bus Rider extraordinaire.

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Joe, tell us about one of the clients you were able to help during your Justice Bus Trips?

Joe on the Justice Bus (on his way to assist rural seniors in 2012).

Helping a retiree prepare his will was a very satisfying experience. He was preparing for surgery and was visibly relieved to get his affairs in order. He was extremely appreciative for the assistance, and I was very thankful that OneJustice made the trip possible.

What’s the strangest or funniest thing you have witnessed on a Justice Bus Trip?

Sometimes, eager students can almost be a bit too earnest. For example, certain immigration forms require asking applicants questions like whether or not they have ever been “habitual drunkards.” I remember one client looking a student in the eye and asking whether or not having a few drinks a week makes him a “habitual drunkard.” Other questions on the immigration form relate to willingness to bear arms on behalf of the United States and affiliation with the Communist Party. I couldn’t find a single client who could answer these questions without breaking into laughter.

What motivates you to do pro bono work and why do you volunteer with the Justice Bus Project?

Our amateur rendering of Mike Winn as a rural justice super hero!

There is a serious justice gap in California. While Silicon Valley is very prosperous and has a glut of legal services, lawyers are hard to come by across large swaths of our state. The gross disparity in legal resources as seen through the lens of geography convinced me that the Justice Bus is an effective means of ensuring that people who don’t live near thriving economic and legal centers can also receive the legal aid they need.

What fictional social justice hero do you most admire and why?

I think my favorite fictional social justice hero has got to be OneJustice’s own Michael Winn. I just imagine Mike slipping off into the Canadian woods under the cloak of nightfall, notebook in hand after a hearty steak dinner, looking for injustices he can help to right. (Note: You have to have heard one of Mike’s inspiring speeches to the Justice Bus riders to fully understand that reference.) Seriously, you might consider creating a OneJustice comic book presenting (lightly fictionalized) accounts of real iniquities that the OneJustice team has helped to set right. And in the comics, the OneJustice team could have their own (magical, justice-seeking, flying) bus!

Thank you, Joe, for your years of participation in the Justice Bus Project – we look forward to many more years of working together to bring life-changing legal help to those in need!

Q: Where can you find both crock-pot chefs and avid road cyclists?

A: At OneJustice!

Please extend a warm welcome to our new team members: Fred & Megan

We’re excited to introduce you to the newest members of the OneJustice team! Please join us in extending a warm welcome to Fred Sahakian, Operations Manager, and Megan Kent, our new Equal Justice Works AmeriCorps Fellow, who is part of the national Veterans Legal Corps. We would have loved to take pictures of them in their Halloween costumes – but we’ll have to wait until our Halloween party to discover their alternate identities!

We asked them some questions to get to know them better, and we figured you’d like to meet them, too.

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So Fred, tell us what drew you to work of OneJustice?

Fred Sahakian, Crock-Pot Cooking Specialist (and our new Operations Manager)

I was very excited about the opportunity to work at OneJustice. The programs we offer make significant positive impacts in the lives of Californians, and the results can be seen quickly. I was also interested in being part of an entrepreneurial organization that finds new and improved ways of addressing the challenges of equal justice.

What is your job portfolio at OneJustice?

I will be responsible for our operations management, which includes: our finances, human resources, facilities, and information technology. I have worked in both direct and indirect client services, so I know how important it is to have operations and support working smoothly. I am passionate about policy and administration and hope to help even more Californians in need.

What did you do before coming to OneJustice?

Before coming to OneJustice, most of my career was spent within the New York State Courts. I began my public service as a paralegal with the Legal Aid Society and worked with law guardians who represented neglected and abused children. At the same time, I was a union representative, which ignited my passion for public policy and administration. I decided to pursue a career in government and non-profit management and accepted a position with the New York State Office of Court Administration. Over the course of 13 years, I worked my way up from an administrative assistant to developing and managing a new innovative department dedicated to improving statewide agency operations.

And not to pry, but tell us something a little quirky about yourself!

I recently discovered crock-pot cooking and am having fun trying new recipes, especially baby back ribs.

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And Megan, what led you to the OneJustice Fellowship?

I was drawn to OneJustice because of our commitment to the “Access to Justice” movement. It is critical that our society find innovative ways to address systemic issues that affect low-income and under served populations. All of OneJustice’s programs do just that–both by developing programs to meet unmet legal needs in rural areas and by supporting other non-profit legal services organizations that form part of the “Access to Justice” movement. I am very excited to join such a great organization!

Megan, our new Equal Justice Works AmeriCorps Legal Fellow, Veterans Corp

Megan, Serious Cyclist & Bike Owner (and our new Equal Justice Works AmeriCorps Fellow, Veterans Legal Corps)

Tell us about your position at OneJustice; what will you be working on?

As an Equal Justice Works Americorps Legal Fellow, I’ll be responsible for the Justice Bus Project in Southern California, including a strong focus on bringing life-changing legal help to veterans in rural areas. I hope to build on the excellent work of my predecessors by continuing to expand the SoCal program while at the same time providing high quality legal services to isolated communities throughout the area.

What was your career path that led to OneJustice?

I graduated from Lewis & Clark law school in May. While in law school, I focused on public interest legal advocacy and impact litigation. I advocated on behalf of farmworkers, worked extensively on impact litigation issues within the field of immigration law, and worked with civil rights attorneys to uphold state and federal civil rights laws. Prior to law school, I served as a social worker and educator to address a myriad of social justice issues. For example, I worked with families at an abuse and neglect prevention and intervention non-profit, and then later advocated on behalf of survivors of human trafficking. I’m thrilled to join the OneJustice team in order to continue to address social justice issues within the legal system!

And tell us something about that you is not work-related!

I am an avid road cyclist, MTN biker, and bike commuter. I own 5 bikes (though I’m a little embarrassed to admit that!). Shoot me an email if you want to go for a ride sometime!

Thanks so much, Fred and Megan – we’re so happy to welcome you to the OneJustice team!

We can’t go back and prevent the violence

But we can help them put their lives back together.

We won’t save everyone. But that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t try.

One year ago, Kelsey Williams opened up a brand-new legal clinic in Los Angeles. Working closely with O’Melveny & Myers LLP and Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, as well as a group of dedicated legal services nonprofits, she launched the “IMPACT LA” project to offer a free, monthly legal clinic for domestic violence survivors, held at the Jenessee Center (a domestic violence intervention nonprofit) and staffed 100% by pro bono volunteers. October is Domestic Violence Awareness month, and so we asked Kelsey to share her experience starting and running this new project that provides free assistance to survivors facing pressing legal problems relating to immigration, public benefits, and housing.

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Guest Blogger: Kelsey Williams, Loyola Law School Post-Graduate Public Interest Law Fellow at OneJustice

I have a confession.

Kelsey Williams, Loyola Law School Post-Graduate Public Interest Law Fellow at OneJustice

I was more than a little scared to run the IMPACT LA project. “Terrified” might be a better word. Developing any new program is intimidating, but the domestic violence focus raised the stakes even higher. I worried I wouldn’t do it justice. The learning curve was steep; I wanted the first clinic to be perfect, a seamless experience for our survivors and volunteers. I had to learn quickly and lean on our amazing partner, Jenesse Center.

In the first year of my fellowship, I’ve learned a lot of lessons: to be constantly improving is better than being perfect, and that each day brings another lesson to be learned. One day can be heartbreaking and the next, life affirming. Some lessons come easy –you can never have too many notepads; others, definitely less so– a project like IMPACT LA does not and should not get easier.

The first lesson came not in the office or at the clinic but outside of work. It’s the part of my job I was least prepared for, equivocally. It was the stories.

Lesson one: make no assumptions.

Nothing could prepare me for the most common reaction I get when I explain my work to someone – it’s a story. Maybe it’s about a friend or family member. Usually, it is about the person to whom I’m speaking. And they all start the same way, “you wouldn’t know it from looking at me, but – here’s my story. I’m a survivor.”

“One day can be heartbreaking and the next, life affirming.”

And in the beginning, they were always right. I never would have suspected them to be a survivor of domestic violence. While there is no one type of survivor, I simply didn’t realize just how many people in my personal, professional, and daily life had been impacted by violence in the home.

Of course, just based on the numbers, it’s inevitable that I know someone who has been personally impacted by domestic violence. But statistics are hard to translate into the faces of the people you see everyday. You know them too. Maybe they haven’t shared with you, but they are there. Learning that domestic violence lives among all of us made it more difficult to learn the next lesson.

Lesson two: if you do this work, you won’t save everyone. I can’t, you can’t, but that doesn’t mean we should not try.

The men and women we work with feel the impact of domestic violence long after any physical assault ends. They come to IMPACT LA because they are living with the consequences of abuse.

We worked this year with a woman who left a violent situation more than five years ago who is still untangling legal repercussions and working every day to get things back on track. To restore the future her family should have had until abuse entered their lives. We can’t go back and prevent what happened to her family. But we can try to help her now.

The majority of individuals come in to untangle the legal repercussions of the abuse they have endured. Removed from the violence they are able to regain control of their lives with the help of our volunteers and partners. But, sometimes it’s not enough.

I know now that I can’t save everyone. What I can do is carry the memory of their stories and experiences with me. I hold them in my heart as a reminder and a guide for the hard days.

The more I learn about the reality and prevalence of domestic violence, the more optimistic I become. Our world need not be full of future victims and survivors of domestic violence. IMPACT LA and great projects like Jenesse’s Youth Conversations are trying to bring an end to domestic abuse through education and awareness.

Two IMPACT LA volunteers who staffed the free clinic at the Jenesse Center on Valentine’s Day 2014.

I’m so grateful to all of these survivors who have opened their hearts to me and the strong individuals working with me to end domestic violence. The work that we do with the Jenesse Center at IMPACT LA is important. And we couldn’t do it without our supporters, volunteers, partners, and brave survivors.

Working together, we can save and rebuild lives.

If you or someone you know needs help – please reach out. You can contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233.

Our most heartfelt gratitude to the amazing staff at the Jenessee Center, our legal services partners, Bet Tzedek Legal Services, Central American Resource Center, Inner City Law Center, Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles, Levitt & Quinn Family Law Center, Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County, and Public Counsel Law Center, and all the dedicated volunteers from, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP, Jones Day, Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP, Latham & Watkins LLP, Manatt, Phelps & Phillips LLP, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP, Morrison & Foerster LLP, Nixon Peabody LLP, O’Melveny & Myers LLP, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc., White & Case LLP, and Winston & Strawn LLP.

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IMPACT LA is part of the national IMPACT (Involving More Pro bono Attorneys in our Community Together) project of the Association of Pro Bono Counsel (APBCo), which is a series of new collaborations across the country to expand national law firm efforts to increase access to justice. OneJustice is honored and thrilled to be working together with APBCo on the IMPACT LA Project.