NCBA Pro Bono Awards Have Linked Profession’s Highest Ideals With Mission of Serving the Public Since 1984

“Every lawyer hopes from the first day of practice that he or she will have some professional opportunity that can benefit a lot of people.”

Those words are as true today as they were in 1984 when Charlotte attorney John R. Wester spoke them in conjunction with the North Carolina Bar Association’s first Pro Bono Service Award. The award was presented to his firm, known then as Fleming, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson, in recognition of its pro bono service in Hyatt v. Heckler.

The firm’s legal team, which included Wester as lead counsel, Robert M. Bryan, Dan T. Coenen and Herman Spence III, was recognized at that time for devoting more than 1,400 hours of pro bono service to the case. Jane T. Harper of Legal Services of Southern Piedmont (now Charlotte Center for Legal Advocacy) served as co-counsel for the plaintiffs. The case continued on through the federal courts for 18 years and included two reviews by the U.S. Supreme Court and five opinions by the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, the last of which (Hyatt v. Shalala 6 F. 3d 250 – Court of Appeals, 4th Circuit 1993) won new disability hearings under new standards for approximately 150,000 North Carolinians.

Whether any recipients of this year’s awards will ever provide pro bono service in landmark cases remains to be seen, but to each and every one of the clients who have benefitted from their assistance, the matters were just as important.

The 2022 Pro Bono Awards were presented on Friday, June 24, at the NCBA Annual Meeting in Winston-Salem during the Awards Dinner and Presidential Installation.

This year’s recipients are:

William Thorp Pro Bono Attorney of the Year Service Award

Brandon A. Robinson (Durham)

Deborah Greenblatt Outstanding Legal Services Attorney Award

Angeleigh Dorsey (LANC Asheville)

Younger Lawyer Pro Bono Service Award

Samantha Gordon (Charlotte)

Outstanding Paralegal Pro Bono Service Award

Katie Riddle (Greensboro)

Law Firm Pro Bono Award

Alston & Bird (Charlotte & Raleigh)

Law School Pro Bono Award

Duke Law School

Outstanding Collaborative/Group Pro Bono Award

EAGLE – Emeritus Attorneys Giving Legal Expertise (Pisgah Legal Services, Asheville)

Filling the Justice Gap Award

Inner Banks Legal Services (Washington)

Left to right, Jason Hensley, Samantha Gordon, Brandon A. Robinson, Angeleigh Dorsey, Jon Heyl, Katie Riddle, and Jason Hensley is a white man with brown hair, and he is wearing a red tie and grey suit. Samantha Godon is a white woman with brown hair with blond highlights, and she is wearing a knee-length red dress. Brandon A. Robinson is a Black man with brown hair. He is wearing a pale grey suit, white shirt, clear glasses and a gold tie. Angeleigh Dorsey is a white woman with curly brown auburn-colored hair, and she is wearing a cream and white plaid suit, a shite shirt, and pearls, and she has clear glasses. Jon Heyl is a whit eman with brown hair, and he is weraing a white shirt with a black and blue striped tie, and a black jacket. Katie Riddle is a white woman with shoulder-ength blond hair, and she is wearing a plaid dress with a navy, maroon and white pattern, and she has thin black-framed glasses.

Celebrating the Pro Bono Award individual winners, front from left, are Samantha Gordon, Angeleigh Dorsey, Katie Riddle, and Mary Irvine, Pro Bono Committee co-chair. Back: NCBA Executive Director Jason Hensley, Brandon Robinson, and NCBA President Jon Heyl.

Additional information is available here on the NCBA website regarding each of this year’s recipients, who were asked to comment on their awards and the benefits of pro bono service. Here’s what they had to say:

Brandon A. Robinson

Pro bono work has been a mainstay and constant since the beginning of my legal career eight years ago, and one of the calming joys of the pandemic is utilizing NCBF’s various formats to address access-to-civil justice needs that COVID-19 has exacerbated.

NC Free Legal Answers, the COVID-19 Hotlines, and the online Telzio venue for 4ALL Statewide Service Day, allowed me to connect with more North Carolinians than ever before, due to the flexibility of time and location that it provided me.

The pandemic forced all of us to realign not only our law practices, but also our ways of giving back to society through pro bono engagement. This has been one of the bright rays of sunshine during a darker time, for both lawyers and the North Carolina citizens we empower.

Angeleigh Dorsey

Learning that I won the Deborah Greenblatt Outstanding Legal Services Attorney Award was a huge honor, particularly so when I see the list of brilliant, committed, and passionate attorneys, including many of my mentors and colleagues, who received this award in prior years. I’m in awe of those lawyers and the many legal services attorneys who quietly do this work with the same dedication and passion each day. It’s not easy what we do.

Sometimes our clients have been bounced around so many places and we are the only ones who can help them. Sometimes, we can’t and all we can offer is to listen and ensure they are heard. And sometimes, when the stars align, you get the right client, and the right case, and can help many more people with a systemic change than just that individual client.

I’m not just inspired by my Legal Aid family. I’m inspired by those members of our bar who choose to help us help others. That’s why I’ve been involved in the 4ALL Statewide Day of Service since its inception. To see lawyers come together and be willing to field calls all day long – not knowing who is on the line and what sort of question they will be asked – gives me great pride in this profession. I love seeing our bar members step out of their comfort zone and just help.

Many of those callers are people who simply can’t afford a lawyer and express great appreciation during those phone calls that our volunteer lawyers take the time to offer this service to North Carolinians.

Samantha Gordon

I am so grateful to the North Carolina Bar Association for this award. Pro bono has been an integral part of my journey as an attorney in the five short years I have been practicing law. I have served as the NCBA Young Lawyers Division Pro Bono Committee Co-Chair and have been a lead volunteer for the NCBF Wills For Heroes program for five consecutive years. Through those roles, I have been able to utilize the many pro bono programs available through the North Carolina Bar Association and Foundation.

The North Carolina Bar Association and Foundation do a great job creating various formats of pro bono programs that are available to all N.C. attorneys to ensure our community has access to justice. I would like to thank all of the fundamental hands throughout the North Carolina Bar Association and Foundation who work tirelessly to make sure that these pro bono programs can be offered.

Through my work as a lead volunteer with the Wills For Heroes program, we have been able to offer a semi-virtual format to first responders throughout North Carolina, which not only makes it easier to serve those clients but also allows more attorneys to volunteer in the comfort of their own homes and offices. I would personally like to thank Kim Bart Mullikin and Alex Rogers for all the work they do for this program. Both Kim and Alex are truly committed to ensuring pro bono is available to all. This program is near and dear to my heart and has driven my desire to participate in pro bono ever since I was a law student.

I strongly believe that pro bono is a unique way lawyers can lend a hand to their community. As a lawyer, you have the power to use your knowledge of the law for the greater good of your community. Pro bono matters!

Katie Riddle

I truly believe it is an honor and a privilege to be able to take part and serve my community. I believe it is a responsibility amongst those that can serve, to serve.

Throughout my seven-year career, I have participated in a variety of pro bono initiatives, including Lawyer on the Line, a Paralegal Partnership, as a team lead and as an active Guardian ad Litem for two and a half years. I have also had the great fortune of initiating two legal pro bono projects with the NCBA Paralegal Division’s Pro Bono Committee.

I have been inspired by others, like my NCBA Paralegal Division Pro Bono Committee chairs, Rachel Royal and S. M. Kernodle Hodges, for not only their servant’s hearts but also for their work in making these pro bono opportunities possible. They, along with others, have made major strides for non-attorneys to be able to take part in pro bono activities. I am also inspired by my team of attorneys who provide consistent support and who encourage me to pursue avenues of service.

Eight individuals stand against a bright blue NCBA background. Front from left, are Michelle Loveys Dozier (Inner Banks Legal Services), Jackie Kiger (Pisgah Legal Services), and Larissa Mervin, Pro Bono Committee co-chair. Back: NCBA Executive Director Jason Hensley, Matt McGuire (Alston & Bird), Ben Finholt (Duke Law School), NCBA President Jon Heyl, and Sarah Beth Winters (Inner Banks Legal Services). Michelle Loveys Dozier is a white woman with short dark hair, and she is smiling and wearing a purple dress with gold hoop earrings. Jackie Kiger is a white woman with chin-length dark-brown hair and dark brown glasses, and she is smiling and wearing a pale pink blouse, black blazer, and pale grey pants. Larissa Mervin is a Hispanic woman with golden brown shoulder-length hair, and she is smiling and wearing a black dress and pink blazer. Jason Hensley is a white man with brown hair who is wearing a red tie and a grey suit with an American flag pin on his lapel. Matt McGuire is a white man with grey hair and a short grey beard, and he is smiling with his mouth closed and wearing thin wire-rimmed glasses, a white shirt, black suit, and lavender tie. Ben Finholt is a white man with dark hair and a brown and grey beard and mustache, and he is smiling and wearing black glasses, a white shirt, and a black suit. Jon Heyl is a white man with brown hair who is wearing a black suit and a navy-blue and grey striped tie. Sarah Beth Winters is a white woman with curly brown shoulder-length hair, and she is smiling and wearing a long button-down peach dress.

Celebrating the Pro Bono Award group winners, front from left, are Michelle Loveys Dozier (Inner Banks Legal Services), Jackie Kiger (Pisgah Legal Services), and Larissa Mervin, Pro Bono Committee co-chair. Back: NCBA Executive Director Jason Hensley, Matt McGuire (Alston & Bird), Ben Finholt (Duke Law School), NCBA President Jon Heyl, and Sarah Beth Winters (Inner Banks Legal Services).

Matt McGuire, Alston & Bird

Alston & Bird is deeply honored to have received the 2022 North Carolina Bar Association’s Law Firm Pro Bono Award, and we would like to express our sincere gratitude to the Bar Association and its Pro Bono Committee for this honor.

The North Carolina Bar Association and Bar Foundation, along with all of the pro bono legal service providers which operate throughout North Carolina, do a tremendous job implementing programs and trainings that make it possible for attorneys to engage in meaningful pro bono projects. I want to extend my thanks to everyone who plays a critical role in building this framework and community of service so that every attorney in North Carolina can do this work. We could not do it without you.

Many of the founding members of our firm have a recognized legacy of service dating back decades, and we are proud of the firm’s history of giving back to the communities in which we live and work. This strong tradition of pro bono service continues, enriching the firm’s culture, and provides the foundation upon which we combine our passion for justice with our talents as attorneys to positively impact the numerous individuals and organizations we represent on a pro bono basis.

On behalf of the Alston & Bird, I would like to thank you for recognizing us for our pro bono work as we continue our efforts to collaborate and provide greater access to justice for the people of North Carolina and beyond.

Ben Finholt, Duke Law School

The JSRB Clemency Project is a faculty/staff and student-led pro bono project that we started in mid-2021. It is a collaboration between the law schools at Duke, UNC, and Wake Forest, plus lawyers from the Juvenile Defender, North Carolina Prisoner Legal Services, and The Decarceration Project. There has been significant involvement from the private bar as well, with over a dozen firms involved.

We couldn’t be prouder of the work we’ve been able to do over the past 10 months, with more than 50 petitions filed so far and dozens more to come. We have 152 volunteers who have given thousands of hours to this great cause.

Even more importantly, it’s working! In March, Gov. Cooper commuted the sentences of three former juveniles who had demonstrated exceptional maturity and rehabilitation in their JSRB petitions. While this means that there are still more than 40 petitions on his desk, these are the first three commutations of any kind since 2009. The Governor is to be applauded for taking action and recognizing that April Barber, Anthony Willis, and Joshua McKay are different people than they were as children who committed terrible crimes.

There remain massive racial disparities in juvenile sentencing here, as 75% of those eligible for JSRB review are Black/African-American. I hope that Gov. Cooper continues to use his power to balance the scales of justice and give hope to those in prison who are willing to make the changes necessary for successful life after prison.

Cindy Eller, EAGLE Volunteer

I have been a pro bono volunteer attorney for Pisgah Legal since moving to Asheville in 1994. Before my retirement, I handled a couple of cases a year, because as a real estate attorney, there wasn’t much need for my services by those who qualified for assistance through PLS.

Upon my retirement, however, I had the opportunity to give back to this community, which has given so much to me. I began working once a week at PLS on their Housing Advice Line (“HAL”). I give advice to clients who have questions regarding eviction notices, landlords’ failures to return security deposits, notices to vacate at the end of a month-to-month lease term, etc.

It is such a good feeling to have a client thank me profusely for answering their questions and saying they feel much better after speaking with me. I can’t think of a better use of my time and expertise than to make life a little better for those who deserve so much, but often have so little.

Sarah Beth Withers, Inner Banks Legal Services

I founded Inner Banks Legal Services in 2017, as a solo practitioner without any staff. At the time, I hoped to bridge the justice gap in Eastern North Carolina by providing high-quality bankruptcy services at an affordable rate.

Since then, the community advised that there was a need to expand the practice to include family law, estates, and domestic violence advocacy. I am proud to say Inner Banks Legal Services is now a team of 5 mission-driven legal professionals. We have served over 800 families throughout Eastern North Carolina, over 10% of those pro bono and the balance on a sliding-scale.

The opportunity to serve our community in this way is an honor. We are excited about our continued growth which allows us to meet the evolving needs of our community. Inner Banks Legal Services has helped bridge the justice gap in Eastern North Carolina, but it has also given me immense joy to serve my community over the past 5 years.

Russell Rawlings is director of external affairs and communications for the North Carolina Bar Association.