Mintz is pleased to share that the firm has been named the recipient of legal services nonprofit Lawyers Clearinghouse’s 2020 Pro Bono Excellence Award in recognition of the firm’s longstanding dedication to pro bono service. Mintz will be honored at Lawyers Clearinghouse’s 32nd Annual Meeting, to be held virtually on September 24.

Mintz has partnered with Lawyers Clearinghouse for almost three decades, staffing numerous legal clinics to provide civil legal assistance to homeless and very-low income individuals and families, helping to engage more in-house legal departments in pro bono work, and collaborating on a variety of other pro bono programs. 

In addition, Mintz conceived of and fervently supports the Access to Justice Fellows Program, a project of the Massachusetts Access to Justice Commission and Lawyers Clearinghouse that enables senior lawyers and retired judges to partner with nonprofit organizations, courts, and other public service entities to increase equal justice for all. Member and Chair of the firm’s Pro Bono Committee Susan Finegan serves as Co-chair of the Massachusetts Access to Justice Commission, which focuses on civil justice for low-income and disadvantaged people, co-founded the Fellows Program with fellow Member Martha Koster, and both continue to be deeply involved.

“This award is long overdue and Mintz is so deserving,” said Lawyers Clearinghouse Executive Director Maribeth Perry. “We’re truly grateful to Mintz for everything the firm has done over the years to support our work. The firm’s belief in us, and the commitment of the Mintz attorneys who have volunteered with us, has enabled the Clearinghouse to grow and thrive while effectively serving nonprofits and people in need.”

Lawyers Clearinghouse was founded more than 30 years ago by the Boston Bar Association and the Massachusetts Bar Association to connect nonprofits working to promote affordable housing and alleviate homelessness with pro bono legal assistance provided by volunteer attorneys. The organization has expanded the scope of its services to include educational workshops for nonprofits and lawyers, legal clinics for the homeless at shelters in the Boston area, a CORI sealing and expungement program, and the Access to Justice Fellows Program.

Notably, Mintz was also recently named a recipient of the National Legal Aid and Defender Association’s 2020 Beacon of Justice Award, which recognizes law firms with pro bono programs serving vulnerable individuals fleeing to the U.S. border.

Learn more about Mintz’s pro bono efforts here.