2005 pro bono annual review - latham & watkins · cheryl coeand associate jessica haferadvised...
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Annual Review2005 Pro Bono
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T a b l e o f C o n t e n t s
Message from the Chairman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Pro Bono Year in Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Global Pro Bono . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Office Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Protecting a Student’s Civil Rights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Human Rights & Refugee Practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Battling Housing Discrimination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Justice for Immigrants in the Post-9/11 World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Disaster Recovery Work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
The Trials of Pro Bono . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Equal Justice Works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Pro Bono Committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 1
At Latham & Watkins, our pro bono commitment is a hallmark of our
firm. Providing quality legal services to those most in need and least
able to pay is an integral part of being a lawyer, and at Latham we
take that responsibility seriously.
Since 2000, Latham has provided more than $200 million in pro bono
legal services to low-income individuals and nonprofit organizations
and to advance access to justice, which makes us one of the largest
providers of free legal services in the world, a distinction of which
we are quite proud. Our pro bono accomplishments include both
litigation and transactional successes, large as well as small,
encompassing almost every area of public interest law. Our pro bono
practice is as broad and diverse as the attorneys in our firm and the
communities we serve.
As you read this annual review of our pro bono efforts, I hope you
will get a sense of our deep tradition of community involvement and
outstanding public service, and join us in celebrating the firm’s many
pro bono accomplishments of 2005. �
Message from the Chairman
RR oo bb ee rr tt MM .. DD ee ll ll
Robert M. DellChairman and Managing Partner
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2 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
Pro Bono Year in Review
Since 2000, Latham personnel haveprovided more than $200 million inpro bono legal services.
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 3
Pro Bono Year in Review
Every year our attorneys, paralegals and staff donatethousands of hours of their time and expertise to helpthose who might otherwise be denied access to justice.By providing free legal services to low-incomeindividuals and nonprofit organizations without theability to pay, we uphold the traditions of our firm andthe ideals of our practice. At Latham, pro bono iscentral to our culture and an integral part of ourpractice of law.
This was another impressive year for our pro bonoprogram. In 2005, Latham attorneys and summerassociates provided more than 117,000 hours of freelegal services valued in excess of $41 million, withparalegals and other professional staff logging anadditional 11,000 pro bono hours. In total, Lathampersonnel provided more than 128,000 hours of freelegal services, valued in excess of $43 million. Morethan 1,100 attorneys and 180 summer associates in 18offices across eight countries, including approximately76 percent of the firm’s US attorneys and 38 percent ofour European and Asian attorneys, provided pro bonoservices in 2005.
Latham’s pro bono program stands out as an exampleamong private law firms of how a commitment to probono can go hand in hand with profitability. Whilecontinuing to achieve strong financial results, Lathamhas demonstrated year after year its unwaveringcommitment to pro bono legal service. Latham’s probono program is consistently ranked as one of the top pro bono programs among private law firms,demonstrating that committed lawyers at a global lawfirm can make a difference in all types of publicinterest matters. Since 2000, Latham personnelincluding attorneys, summer associates, paralegals andother professional staff have provided more than700,000 hours of pro bono assistance, totaling morethan $200 million in free legal services.
As detailed in thisreport, Latham’s probono accomplishmentsinclude litigation andtransactional successesranging from humanrights and refugeeissues, children’s rights, foster children adoptions,homelessness prevention and landlord/tenant issuesto community economic development, nonprofitcorporation counseling and representation, land usepermitting and approvals, family law, assistance tovictims of domestic violence, consumer law, publicbenefits, international law, civil rights, disability-related cases, and criminal trial and appellateproceedings including death penalty litigation.
Latham partners with local, national and internationallegal services providers, bar associations, human rightsand civil rights organizations, federal and local courtsand other nonprofit and community groups to identifypro bono projects and community needs. Thesecommunity organizations are an essential part of ourpro bono practice. Our pro bono program relies on theefforts of the dedicated people at these organizationswho devote themselves to serving the legal needs ofthe poor and disadvantaged in our communities.
Our dedication to pro bono reflects a fundamental partof our firm’s culture. Latham encourages all of ourattorneys to participate, and associate pro bono hoursare treated the same as commercial billable hours forpurposes of associate pace, evaluation and bonuses.There is no cap on pro bono hours.
As a signatory of the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge,Latham has committed to provide, at minimum, theequivalent of 60 hours per US attorney per year in probono legal services. We have met this goal every yearsince making the commitment in 2000. We also havemade significant strides in expanding our pro bonopractice in Europe and Asia. By providing free legalservices in our communities, Latham attorneys,paralegals and staff across all of our offices continueour tradition of community involvement and publicservice. �
Attorneys at Latham & Watkins recognize that, aslawyers, we have a duty to help ensure that the doorsof justice are open to all, regardless of income.
M e s s a g e f r o m t h e P r o B o n o C o u n s e l
AA mm oo ss EE .. HH aa rr tt ss tt oo nn
2005 Firm Pro Bono Highlights*
Hours 117,000
Participating Attorneys 1,120
Participating Summer Associates 184
Participating Offices 18
Value of Services Provided $41.7 million
* Includes only pro bono service by attorneys and summer associates
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4 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
Global Pro Bono
As Latham continues to expandinternationally, so too our pro bonopractice continues to develop internationally.We are proud of the increasing local pro bonowork in our offices in Europe and Asia, as wellas important multinational projects handled byteams of our attorneys around the globe.” — Jim Kearney
Pro Bono Committee Chair
‘‘
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 5
A Post-Conflict Legal System in SudanOver the last year, Latham & Watkins has beenassisting the Civil Authority of the New Sudan(CANS), also known as the Sudanese PeopleLiberation Movement (SPLM), in its nation-buildingendeavor, helping to establish the rule of law for a newconstitutional democracy in Africa. Decades of conflictand civil war based upon geographic divisions, ethnicdifferences, religious and political ideology, andcompetition over resources left most portions ofSouthern Sudan without basic civil institutions, withoutaccess to basic services such as electricity or telephoneservice, without educational opportunities and withoutthe rule of law.
Following an internationally brokered peace agreementsigned in January 2005, Latham represented CANS, the new leader of the recently establishedGovernment of Southern Sudan, in its efforts to design a post-conflict legal system. Through thisgroundbreaking project — accomplished in partnershipwith Nathan Miller, Executive Director of Rule of LawInternational, a US-based non-governmentalorganization — Latham analyzed issues involved increating a new national legal system, drafted heavilyannotated constitutional text and advised on strategiesto enable our client to adequately articulate and defendits interests in four separate post-conflict constitutionalprocesses at the federal and state levels.
Assembling a multinational team of more than 50Latham attorneys and 25 summer associates spanningnine offices around the world, we mobilized our globalresources for our client, bringing together firmexpertise in finance and banking, environment andland resources, and human rights, among other subjectareas. Our global team provided unwaveringdedication, as well as round-the-clock support for ourclient, as the people of Southern Sudan worked todevelop a new economic and political structure.
Meeting room for the SPLM Southern Kordofan Stateconstitutional drafting committee
Headquarters of Southern Sudanese government attorneys
Global Pro Bono
‘‘How does a newgovernment build a legalsystem from scratch when it can muster no more than ahandful of lawyers? For CANS, it was by strategically utilizing thetremendous resources and expertiseof the Latham team. The ideas,enthusiasm and professionalism that Latham brought to the tablewere simply invaluable.”
— Nathan Miller Executive Director, Rule of Law International
Photo
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Latham attorneys in Europe and Asia contribute significantly to theircommunities through pro bono legal services. Over the last severalyears, the firm’s pro bono program has developed into a global practice,with attorneys now participating in 18 offices across eight countries. The firm also has taken on an assortment of compelling internationalpro bono matters that impact developing countries and concernimportant global issues.
In 2005, more than 140 of the firm’s attorneys in Europe and Asia —representing approximately 38 percent of our attorneys based in theseregions — participated in the pro bono program, providing more than $2.9 million in free legal services.
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Glo
bal P
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6 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
Ashoka
Social Entrepreneurship Around the World. Ashoka is
a global, nonprofit organization which identifies and
invests in social entrepreneurs — supporting them,
their ideas and institutions through all phases of their
careers. Ashoka has created fellowships for more than
1,700 Ashoka Fellows in 60 countries, resulting in
projects that have transformed the lives of millions of
people in thousands of communities worldwide.
For more than 20 years, Latham has been providing
global legal services to Ashoka on a full range of
matters. Coordinated by retired Washington, D.C.
partner Bill Kelly and New York partner Kenneth
Schuhmacher, our work with Ashoka during the past
year has spanned the globe and included several
innovative projects such as:
• In the United States, Washington, D.C. partner
Cheryl Coe and associate Jessica Hafer advised
Ashoka on corporate and tax issues, while New
York associate Andrew Miller advised on a project
funding agreement to develop Ashoka’s Irish Youth
Venture project. Senior Policy Specialist Laura
Davis worked with the SEED Foundation to pass
legislation to allow the transfer of certain
underutilized acreage in the RFK Stadium complex
for use by a public boarding school. Orange County
associate Julie Dalke assisted with Ashoka’s
worldwide trademark portfolio.
• In Germany, Hamburg partner Andrea Jaeger-Lenz
and associate Christian Meyn advised Ashoka
Deutschland gGmbH on establishing its German
program, including assistance on contractual issues
and providing employment law and tax advice. The
team is currently helping to establish the Youth
Venture program in Germany and assisting with
Ashoka’s European trademarks.
• In England, London partner Michael Bond and
paralegal Jack Mathew advised Ashoka on the
winding-up of a UK trust and registration of a new
UK charitable entity. The team has also assisted
with employment, IT and general corporate issues,
and is helping with the replication of Ashoka UK’s
operational structure in Sri Lanka.
• In France, Paris associate Julien Vaucheret
advised on the establishment of a French
nonprofit association loi de 1901.
International Senior Lawyers Project
In conjunction with the International Senior Lawyers
Project, New York attorneys Jim Kearney and Jeroen
van Kwawegen, with the help of summer associate
Parul Mehta, provided assistance to two Indian
NGOs — the Voluntary Action Network India and
the Human Rights Law Network — in their bid to
limit the impact of proposed Foreign Contribution
Management and Control legislation that would
have had a significant impact on their ability to
provide social assistance to some of the world’s
poorest people. The team analyzed various
provisions of the proposed legislation against the
backdrop of provisions in international treaties and
covenants guaranteeing freedom of expression and
freedom of association including the Universal
Declaration on Human Rights, United Nations
General Assembly Resolution 53/144 and the formal
declarations of Commonwealth principles.
We are proud to use our
skills as attorneys and our
capabilities as a global law firm
to help pro bono clients like
Ashoka, which brings the idea
of social entrepreneurship to
life – worldwide. The
collegiality and reward
of pro bono work are
tremendous.”
— Andrea Jaeger-LenzPartner in the Hamburg Office
‘‘
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 7
A Global Study of Pro Bono
Latham & Watkins assisted the Pro Bono Institute in
preparing a report on culture, regulations and practices
governing pro bono work in various countries around
the world. Drawing on the firm’s global resources, New
York partner Jim Kearney and associate Manfred
Gabriel assembled a team of attorneys including
partner Matteo Bay and associates Melissa Cacciotti
and Igor Taccani in Brussels, partner Mitchell Stocks
in Hong Kong, associates Ben Davies and Johan
Mattsson in London, associates Maya Steinitz, Jeroen
van Kwawegen, Lillian Gutwein and Michael O’Leary
and summer associates Jason Strickland, Ingrid
Waldman and Marc Suskin in New York, associates
Cécile Angulo, Fabrice Fages, Maxime de
Guillenchmidt and Valentine Tassy in Paris, and
partner Hisao Hirose and associate Koji Ishikawa
in Tokyo, as well as foreign interns Veronika Nutt
from Switzerland and Harmen Holtrop from
the Netherlands.
This global team worked together to write numerous
white papers provided to key opinion leaders from
various countries in order to elicit comments and to
initiate a dialogue regarding the importance and
benefits of providing pro bono legal services. The
Latham team also organized videoconferences with
opinion leaders from several national bar associations,
large European law firms and universities. These
videoconferences have led to significant local pro bono
initiatives in the Netherlands and in France. The white
papers were eventually combined into an extensive
report entitled “A Survey of Pro Bono Practices and
Opportunities in Selected Jurisdictions,” which was
presented at the Pro Bono Institute’s annual seminar in
Washington, D.C. in March 2005.
U.N. Global Compact
The United Nations Global Compact, an entity
established under the office of the Secretary-
General of the U.N., serves the primary function of
promulgating 10 principles in the areas of human
rights, labor standards, environment and anti-
corruption, and obtaining the written commitment
of corporations and non-governmental organizations
throughout the world to support these core values. It
has recently been recognized by a resolution of the
U.N. General Assembly.
Latham is advising the Global Compact’s corporate
responsibility initiative with respect to governance
issues and with respect to the establishment of the
Foundation for the United Nations Global Compact,
a not-for-profit organization that supports the
Compact’s activities and mission. In addition, Latham
has advised the Global Compact in connection with
its trademark and branding policies, the negotiation
of a trademark license between the Foundation and
the U.N., and in connection with the conception and
adoption of a new logo for Global Compact members
— the “We Support the Global Compact” logo —
which has been adopted as the official emblem for
use by participant companies.
The Latham team, which includes partner Jim
Kearney and of counsel Jeff Tochner in New York and
associate Matt Kasdin in London, continues to advise
the U.N. Global Compact on various legal matters.
Other Global Pro Bono Matters
Latham has taken on a number of other pro bono
matters in our offices in Europe and Asia, some of
which are described elsewhere in this report, in
addition to partnering with international nonprofit
organizations on matters related to human rights and
other important global issues. �
2005 European and Asian Pro Bono Highlights*
Hours 7,500
Participating Attorneys 140
Participating Offices 8
Value of Services Provided $2.9 million
* Includes only pro bono service by attorneys and summer associates in Europe and Asia
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8 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
Office Highlights
Providing legal services to those in need is important to attorneys across allof our offices. By participating in pro bonoefforts, Latham attorneys enhance theircommunities and enhance their experiencesas lawyers and as people.”— Ora Fisher
Office Managing Partner, Silicon Valley
“
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 9
Office Highlights
Chicago
Fleeing from the Congo. Chicago
associates Jennifer Reicher Jaffe
and Julie Bailey and Silicon Valley
associate Joann Liao, under the
supervision of Chicago partner
Mary Rose Alexander, secured
asylum for a couple who fled the
Democratic Republic of the Congo
(DRC) after being imprisoned and
tortured. Our clients are members
of the Lunda tribe, which has a
long history of conflict with the
tribe currently in power. One of our
clients was rounded up after the
assassination of the DRC president,
and was twice detained and
tortured but never formally charged
with any crime. At one point the
military broke down his door, held
a gun to his head and tortured his
wife while forcing him to watch.
Latham represented the couple
throughout the four-year asylum
application process. At the
conclusion of a five-hour
evidentiary hearing, the
immigration judge granted asylum.
Flawed Identification of a Minor.
Associates Meghan Sullivan and
Matt Johnson, with assistance
from associate Alice Decker,
represented a 14-year-old
improperly charged with
aggravated unlawful use of a
weapon and unlawful possession of
firearms. The minor was arrested
on his own front porch after the
police were unable to find the true
perpetrator in the alleys and streets
near his house. The identification
evidence relied upon by the police
was speculative at best, and several
eyewitnesses as well as other
evidence confirmed that the minor
was not involved and had been
wrongly charged. After the
repeated inability of the Chicago
Police Department to respond to
challenges regarding the
identification evidence, all charges
were dismissed.
Fairness in Criminal Sentencing.
Chicago partner Bob Tarun and
associates Matthew Mock and
André Geverola successfully
represented an indigent criminal
defendant before the US Court of
Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
challenging the trial court’s overly
harsh sentence for possession of a
firearm. After convincing the
Seventh Circuit to vacate the
sentence based on the trial court’s
review of factors that should not
have been considered in the
sentencing determination, the
Latham team persuaded the same
trial court on remand to reduce our
client’s sentence to the lowest
permissible under the sentencing
guidelines. As a result, our client
became eligible for a local work
release program which will allow
him to obtain employment and
resume his education.
Disability Rights. Chicago partner
Juli Marshall and associates Nick
Gorga, Peter Moore, Laura Bauer
and Brett Doran and paralegal
Kelley Evans represent a disabled
high school student suffering
from Rett Syndrome, a rare
neurological disorder characterized
by impairment of verbal
communication, motor skills and
cognitive abilities. Our client’s
local high school refused to
provide her with statutorily
guaranteed aids, accommodations
and services, and forced her into a
segregated school far from her
home. Our client and her parents
challenged this decision under the
Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act and other federal
laws. Latham is assisting the
family before the Seventh Circuit
Court of Appeals in challenging
adverse rulings as well as
pursuing a separate suit in federal
Latham’s pro bono work spans almost every area of public interest law. Thevariety of pro bono matters throughout our offices reflects the diversity of ourattorneys, our commercial practice groups and the communities that we serve.Across our offices, we continue to expand relationships with local communityorganizations, to identify and respond to local needs as well as matters ofnational and international concern.
Reflecting only on the number of hours or monetary value of free legal servicesprovided cannot adequately explain the quality of the individual contributionsor the impact those contributions have had on so many lives and in so manycommunities. Below is a sampling of the firm’s pro bono work throughout theyear, illustrating just some of the many public interest efforts provided by ourattorneys, summer associates, paralegals and other professional staff.
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10 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
Off
ice
High
light
s district court alleging related
violations of the Americans with
Disabilities Act and the Civil
Rights Act.
Prevent Child Abuse America.
Prevent Child Abuse America
provides leadership to promote and
implement child abuse prevention
efforts at both the national and
local levels. In 2005, Latham
represented the organization in a
wide range of matters, including
advice on employment issues,
trademark counseling and
infringement litigation, corporate
governance, management of
endowment funds and negotiating
subleases for a significant office
move. Supervised by Chicago
partner Matt Walch, many Latham
attorneys and other personnel were
involved in these efforts, including
Chicago partner Robin Struve,
associates Jenny Baker, Abizer
Zanzi, Roderick Branch, Matthew
Pryor and Mia DiBella, and
Litigation Analyst Thomas
Buettner, Los Angeles partner Joel
Krischer and New York associate
Michelle Kelban.
Asylum for a Student Protester.
Associates Jacob Drouillard and
Kaitlin Verber secured asylum for a
student from the Democratic
Republic of the Congo who fled that
country after being unlawfully
imprisoned and tortured for peaceful
political activity. The team obtained
a flight manifest, produced by the
airline just before the merits
hearing, to establish that our client
applied for asylum within the
required one-year period from her
date of entry into the United
States.
Residence for an Abused and
Neglected Teenager. Working in
conjunction with the Midwest
Immigrant and Human Rights
Center, Chicago associate Paige
Ormond obtained legal permanent
residency for a Honduran teenager
who had been abused and
abandoned by the family that took
custody of him after the death of his
parents. Left to fend for himself on
the streets of Honduras, the 16-year-
old fled to the United States in an
effort to escape gang life. Latham
successfully petitioned for a Special
Immigrant Juvenile visa and
secured placement for our client in a
group home for youths. Now, at 19,
he lives independently in his own
apartment, holds a steady job and is
working toward his GED.
Asylum for a Colombian Artist.
Chicago associate Mark Ramsey
successfully represented an openly
gay artist from Colombia in
connection with his affirmative
application for asylum. Our client
suffered repeated verbal and
physical harassment in Colombia,
including having his home and art
gallery vandalized and being
attacked and severely beaten.
Fearful of the lack of effective law
enforcement and the “social
cleansing” being carried out by
guerillas in various parts of
Colombia, our client could not report
his attack. Instead, he fled to the
United States. Latham assisted with
an asylum application and interview
where our client’s request for asylum
was granted.
Frankfurt
Reorganization of an Art College.
Frankfurt partner Martin Meissner
and associate Harald Horstkotte are
assisting the Städel School of Arts in
its reorganization process, helping to
draft a new constitution to regulate
and clarify the affiliation of the
college with the city of Frankfurt
and the state of Hessen. Although
financially dependent on the city of
Frankfurt, the college is organized
as a public corporation with the
right of self-administration. In
drafting the constitution, the team is
giving thorough consideration to the
historic background of this
Latham’s commitment toprofessionalism is matched equallyby its commitment to prevent the abuseand neglect of our nation’s children.These caring pro bono attorneys arehelping us to achieve animportant national priority.”— James M. Hmurovich
Interim President/CEO, Prevent Child Abuse America
“
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 11
traditional and prestigious art
school and the implications of
higher education law, as well as
civil law and the law of public
corporations.
Advising Youth Venture. Youth
Venture is a nonprofit
organization focused on helping
young people in the United
States start new youth-led
organizations that achieve lasting
benefits for their schools and
communities. In 2005, Youth
Venture investigated expansion
to the European Union. Frankfurt
associate Malte Hilpert, along
with New York associates Eric
Andrews and Carrie Girgenti,
advised Youth Venture on
necessary changes to its Web site
to meet European regulations and
local practices, including issues
regarding transfers of personal
data. The team also helped
Youth Venture develop its Web
site privacy policy and advised
generally on information
collection practices in the
US and EU.
Charlene Nguon is, in all respects, a model high schoolstudent. She has taken multiple Advanced Placementcourses and ranks among the top 5 percent of her class.Charlene’s teachers have consistently praised hercharacter, commenting in her report cards that Charlene is “very cooperative,” has a “good attitude”and “works very hard.”
During Charlene’s junior year, she began to date anotherfemale student in her public high school. Subsequently,Charlene was suspended from school for hugging andaffectionately kissing her girlfriend on campus. Charlene’ssexual orientation also was revealed to her parents withouther permission. Ultimately, Charlene spent part of herjunior year at a different high school, and her gradessuffered significantly.
After unsuccessful attempts to resolve the situation withoutlitigation, the American Civil Liberties Union requestedLatham’s assistance in filing a complaint. Orange Countyassociates Collie James, Chris Campbell and JordanKushner, with the assistance of partner Virginia Grogan,filed a complaint in federal court alleging that schoolofficials violated Charlene’s equal protection, free
expression and privacyrights. The suit seekspolicy changes thatwould prohibit schoolofficials from revealinga student’s sexualorientation withoutpermission andselectively enforcingdiscipline or censoringstudents on the basis oftheir sexualorientation.
In an early victory for Charlene that was covered by newsmedia ranging from CNN to MTV, the court denied thedefendants’ motion to dismiss, holding as an issue of firstimpression that students have an interest in not havingtheir sexual orientation disclosed by school administratorsabsent a compelling state interest.
The case is expected to be scheduled for trial in the
fall of 2006. �
Civil Rights
‘‘Suing my high school and making my personal life the subject of a lawsuit was
one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done. Fortunately, Latham was there for me every step
of the way. They give me hope that I can change how gay and lesbian students are treated in
schools across the nation, and for their work I am thankful.”
— Charlene NguonHigh school student
Protecting a Student’s
Office Highlights
Charlene Nguon
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12 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
Off
ice
High
light
s
Hamburg
National Red Cross of Germany.
The National Red Cross
organization of Germany
(Deutsches Rotes Kreuz, or DRK),
part of the international Red Cross
organization, fulfills humanitarian
services in accordance with
Geneva Red Cross Conventions, in
particular taking care of those
victimized by wars and natural
disasters. Latham has provided
advice to the DRK on a number of
issues relating to the protection of
the symbol of the Red Cross under
German law and under the Geneva
Conventions, including questions
relating to trademark and licensing
issues. Associate Björn Joachim,
under the supervision of partner
Andrea Jaeger-Lenz, continues to
work with the DRK.
Joint Venture Agreement.
Lebenshilfe Lüneburg gGmbH is a
nonprofit organization which
provides housing and other services
for people living with mental
disabilities. Latham attorneys have
provided assistance with a joint
venture agreement joining these
service offerings with other
nonprofit organizations to improve
the quality of life for the target
population. The team, which
includes associates Christian Meyn
and Christoph Engeler and
partners Max Wilmanns and Björn
Dissars, also has provided general
assistance on other corporate and
contractual matters.
Holocaust Survivors. Our
Hamburg and Los Angeles offices
joined forces with Bet Tzedek
Legal Services in Los Angeles to
help with pension claims by Los
Angeles-area Holocaust survivors
who worked in Jewish ghettos
during World War II. Under a new
German statute — Gesetz zur
Zahlbarmachung von Renten aus
Beschäftigungszeiten in einem
Ghetto (ZRBG) — the German
government has made available
pensions for Holocaust survivors
remunerating certain work
rendered in ghettos, but the large
majority of claims for such
pensions have been denied.
Latham brought the first appeal of
a Hamburg Social Court order
related to ZRBG, which may
clarify the circumstances under
which ZRBG pensions are to be
made available. Hamburg
associate Dirk Kocher leads the
representation with assistance
from associates Maria Schefe and
Sebastian Klausch, partner Björn
Dissars and Pro Bono Counsel
Amos Hartston.
London
Learning for Life. Learning for Life
is a UK charity that provides
educational support to
disadvantaged groups in South
Asia, focusing on increasing the
availability of quality education to
the most marginalized communities.
In 2005, London associates
Christopher Hitchins, Guy Dominy
and Caroline Emerton, under the
supervision of partner Stephen
Brown, advised Learning for Life
on general corporate and
intellectual property matters and
various commercial agreements
related to fundraising activities.
Latham Honored by American Immigration Lawyers Association
The American Immigration Lawyers Association honored Latham & Watkins’
Washington, D.C. attorneys with its “Outstanding Pro Bono Representation” Award
for our continuing representation of Malik Jarno, a mentally disabled war orphan
from Guinea who came to the US as a refugee at the age of 16. The Department
of Homeland Security continues to oppose asylum and the case is currently
before the Board of Immigration Appeals. The case has garnered international
media attention, and more than 70 members of Congress, along with numerous
immigration, human rights, religious and mental disability organizations, have
weighed in to support the granting of permanent relief for Malik.
The award honors partner Claudia O’Brien and associates Ben Jacqmotte, Jeff
Hamlin, Alexi Maltas, Stefanie Alfonso-Frank, Sarah Maria, Kerry Macleod,
Becky Spain and Seung Baik for their outstanding work on the case.
I never would havebeen able to pursue my claim without thesupport of Bet Tzedekand Latham & Watkins.” — Holocaust survivor
‘‘
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 13
The Roundhouse Theatre. The
Roundhouse Theatre is an
internationally renowned arts
venue in North London. Its
performers over the years have
included The Clash, The Doors,
Pink Floyd and Jimi Hendrix.
Latham attorneys are advising the
Roundhouse in connection with its
attempt to raise sufficient funds to
cover the cost of its redevelopment
as a youth performing arts venue.
Our London attorneys also have
advised the Roundhouse in areas
such as corporate, intellectual
property, finance, employment,
outsourcing and litigation. The
Latham team includes associates
Philip Watkins, Clare Kipping,
Mark Robinson, Charles White,
Christopher Hitchins and Emma
Scarratt, of counsel Andrew
Longmate and partner Nigel
Campion-Smith. The renovated
Roundhouse is due to open in
June 2006.
Human Rights Watch. Human
Rights Watch, the largest human
rights organization based in the US,
conducts fact-finding investigations
into human rights abuses in all
regions of the world. In 2005,
Latham provided counsel to
Human Rights Watch regarding UK
charities law, fundraising issues
and compliance activities. The
team includes London partners
Stephen Brown, Nick Cline,
Oonagh Whitty and John
Kallaugher and associates Scott
Campbell and Caroline Emerton.
Friends of the Lancaster Centre.
Friends of the Lancaster Centre is
part of a nonprofit group formed
in 2002 which provides facilities to
a variety of volunteer and
nonprofit organizations which, in
turn, provide needed services to
residents in the vicinity of the
Lancaster Road and North Enfield
area. London associates Omar
Shah, Christopher Hitchins and
Scott Campbell have provided
general corporate and nonprofit
advice and assisted with contract
and leasing issues.
Get Well UK. Get Well UK is a
social enterprise seeking to
facilitate the provision of
complementary therapy, including
acupuncture, osteopathy,
homeopathy, chiropractic and
aromatherapy, to all sectors of
society free through the National
Health Service, and conducting
research into the benefits of these
and other alternative therapies.
Traditionally, access to
complementary medicine in the UK
has been available only privately to
those who could afford the cost of
treatments. Partner Andrew Moyle
and associates Gail Crawford,
Roberto Grande, Ivan Waide,
Bobby Reddy, Matthew Cutlan and
Stephen Fietta provided Get Well
UK with strategic advice and
drafted the necessary contractual
documentation for the development
of an IT system to facilitate Get
Well UK’s expansion.
Los Angeles
Foster Children Adoptions. Since
1999, our Los Angeles attorneys
have completed more than 500
adoptions in cooperation with the
Alliance for Children’s Rights.
These adoptions often involve
children who have lingered in the
foster care system for several
years while waiting to have their
adoptions finalized. In 2005,
Latham attorneys and summer
associates assisted in finalizing
more than 50 adoptions.
Five Acres. Five Acres, the Boys’
and Girls’ Aid Society of Los
Angeles County, is a nonprofit
organization that has operated
programs for abused and neglected
children since 1926, constituting
the oldest nonsectarian child abuse
and neglect prevention treatment
and education center in the San
Gabriel Valley. Five Acres turned to
Latham to help secure the
necessary environmental review
and approvals for much-needed
additions to its property. Partner
Loren Montgomery and associates
Estela de Llanos Carlson and Lisa
Weinberger, with the assistance of
Land Use Analyst Patrick Michell,
worked over the course of two
years to improve relations between
Five Acres and its surrounding
community, answer all technical
and environmental review issues,
redefine the proposed project to
address community concerns and
represent Five Acres during several
contentious Regional Planning
Commission meetings. The project
was ultimately approved by
unanimous vote of the Planning
Commission and is currently before
the County Board of Supervisors.
Los Angeles associate Brad Helmsassists with the adoption of a child infoster care
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14 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
Human Trafficking Report
A multi-office team of Latham attorneys, inpartnership with the Women’s Commission forRefugee Women and Children, worked together todraft a report on human trafficking in the UnitedStates. The project involved extensive research onthe state of human trafficking and its impact in theUS, including interviews with service providersand government officials.
The report explores many areas of the humantrafficking problem, including laws pertaining to theprotection of refugees and trafficked persons in the
US, the demographics and root causes of humantrafficking, efforts to combat trafficking and assistvictims, and public awareness of the problem ofhuman trafficking. The report is expected to bepublished in 2006.
The Latham team includes Silicon Valley associatesSigne Holmbeck, Joann Liao and Lauren Walz, andsummer associates Laura Boysen, Soo-Jean Chi andKevin Mosher, San Francisco associates Randy Kim,Xochitl Arteaga, Karli Sager and Jeannie Lee, andWashington, D.C. of counsel Steve Schulman andassociates Nicole Thorpe and Jessica Hafer.
Human Rights & Refugee Practice
Over the last several years, Latham & Watkins has developed a premierhuman rights and refugee practice, with particular emphasis on addressingthe plight of unaccompanied refugee children.
Latham continues to represent dozens of individual refugees each year, andhas expanded the practice to include projects such as compliance reviews ofimmigration detention centers, working to improve the standards ofdetention of minors awaiting immigration proceedings, and representingasylum seekers around the world. Scores of attorneys from several of thefirm’s offices participate in this practice and coordinate strategy andinformation on legal developments and case issues.
Off
ice
High
light
s Discrimination Against a High
School Student. Los Angeles
partner Wayne Flick and associates
Yury Kapgan, Liv Tabari, Alex
Roje and Asha Muldro along
with paralegal Joel Shields,
represented a Jewish high school
student who, because of his
religion, was harassed and
discriminated against by his high
school baseball coach. After
informal efforts to address the
issues with the coach and school
were unsuccessful, Latham filed
lawsuits against the school district
and the coach individually. Both
cases settled favorably, resulting in
a cash payment which will cover
the cost of counseling and help
fund a college education for the
teenager, and a commitment from
the school district to expand its
anti-discrimination/anti-harassment
training and education programs.
Watts Cinema & Education Center.
Partner Susan Azad is representing
Watts Cinema and Education
Center, a nonprofit public benefit
corporation, in the development of
the WattStar, a first-run movie
theater and training and education
center to be located in the
depressed Watts area of Los
Angeles. This pioneering project
will bring much-needed
development to the Watts
community, which has been
economically blighted since the
Watts Riots in the 1960s. Revenue
from the theater will support a
training and education center
which will provide apprenticeship
opportunities to youth in
surrounding areas to facilitate their
entry into jobs in the film
production industry. In addition,
WattStar’s facilities will be able to
transmit educational programs to
neighboring schools and housing
projects. Associate Shannon Paresa
provided tax advice to the project.
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 15
Ensuring Compliance with Detention Standards
In the summer of 2005, roughly 50 Latham attorneysand summer associates from several US officescontinued the firm’s participation in the American Bar Association (ABA) Detention Center DelegationProject, helping to ensure that facilities housing federal immigration detainees are implementing andmaintaining the Detention Standards agreed upon bythe Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and theABA. The Detention Standards establish a variety ofcriteria for DHS detention centers, including access tocounsel, consulates, legal services organizations and alibrary with basic immigration and other legal materials.
Delegations of partners, associates and summerassociates, led nationally by Chicago associate LeslieRosen and locally with assistance from Allison O’Neilland Nicholas Gorga in Chicago, Courtney Vaudreuil inLos Angeles, Kristi Midboe Miller in New Jersey, LanaMorton-Owens in Orange County and RebeccaMalcolm and Allyson McKenzie in Washington, D.C.,toured facilities housing undocumented aliens awaitingresolution of their immigration status, and intervieweddetainees and detention center staff about theconditions of confinement. This multi-office projectresulted in a comprehensive report to the ABACommission, which then presented this and otherreports to DHS in the continuing effort to protect thebasic legal rights of, and improve conditions for, federalimmigration detainees.
Individual Asylum Claims
The firm’s human rights and refugee practice continuesto have at its core the representation of individualrefugees seeking asylum in the United States. Thepages of this report are replete with stories of refugeesfrom countries spanning the globe, including, amongothers, Angola, Armenia, Cameroon, Colombia, Coted’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, El Salvador, Fiji, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Honduras,Somalia, Tanzania, Turkey and Zimbabwe.
A Rare Grant of Asylum in Japan
In addition to our thriving US practice, our asylumpractice also includes Japan, where our Tokyoattorneys successfully represented a 26-year-oldasylum seeker from the Democratic Republic of theCongo whose original request for refugee status hadbeen rejected by the Japanese Immigration Bureau.Led by partner Hisao Hirose and of counsel JosephKim, Latham achieved a rare success in Japan — our client was one of only a few applicants grantedasylum in Japan in 2005. �
I will never forget our client’sgreat joy after he was
granted asylum in Japan. It’san honor to be able to providefirst-class legal services to probono clients as well as ourcommercial clients.”
— Hisao HirosePartner in the Tokyo office
‘‘
Office Highlights
AIDS Project Los Angeles. AIDS
Project Los Angeles (APLA), one of
the United States’ largest AIDS
service organizations, provides
direct services to men, women and
children living with HIV and AIDS,
as well as prevention publications,
education programs and
community forums. Latham has
advised APLA regarding a
number of corporate and litigation
matters. In 2005, Latham assisted
APLA with redrafting its bylaws
and partner Jeff Haber and
associates Brian Fox and Jennifer
Blair successfully represented
APLA in connection with a
dispute with one of its landlords.
Homelessness Prevention Project.
In coordination with Public
Counsel’s Homelessness Prevention
Project, Latham represents several
clients attempting to clear their
path to employment and regain
their ability to support themselves
and their families. For example,
associate Jeanne Berges, under the
supervision of partner Manny
Abascal and associate Jim
Dillavou, assisted a young
homeless woman seeking to obtain
her occupational license as a
vocational nurse. Our client had
recently moved into a transitional
shelter with her two small children,
and her nursing license was denied
St. Joseph Center Presents Latham with Community Service Award
St. Joseph Center presented Latham & Watkins with its Community Service
Award in recognition of the extensive pro bono contributions the firm’s Los
Angeles attorneys provided to help the Center through an entitlement process
for its new facilities. St. Joseph Center provides emergency services, childcare,
job training and senior services to 7,000 people each year through programs on
eight sites in the Los Angeles area.
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16 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
Off
ice
High
light
s
due to two prior misdemeanor
forgery convictions. Jeanne
presented a compelling story on
our client’s background to the
Deputy Attorney General and the
nursing board, explaining that our
client had been under the control of
an abusive husband who forced her
to commit petty theft to help feed
his drug abuse. As a result, the
board decided to grant our client
her license under a probationary
period. With her nursing license,
our client will now be able to earn
a living wage that will allow her
to take care of herself and her two
small children.
The Latino Theater Company.
In the face of stiff competition,
Latham secured unanimous
approval from the Los Angeles City
Council on a fully negotiated 20-
year lease of the city-owned Los
Angeles Theatre Center (LATC) to
our nonprofit client, the Latino
Theater Company. Led by partners
Edith Perez and Don Baker, the
team’s success will result in the re-
opening of the LATC, a federally
registered historic building in
downtown Los Angeles. In addition
to providing space for live theater
and dance performance and
production, the LATC also will
serve as the permanent home for
exhibitions of the Latino Museum.
The Latham team included
associates Lisa Weinberger, May
Chan, George Avila and Lindsey
Drake, paralegals Ane Priester and
Joseph Palombi, Land Use Project
Manager David Thompson, and
summer associates Scott Lawrence,
Rebecca Torres and Bethany Turke.
Habeas Appeal for Wrongly
Convicted Youth. In 1997, our
client, a 16-year-old with no record
of gang affiliation and no criminal
record, was convicted of murder
and attempted murder stemming
from a gang-related shooting in Los
Angeles. Despite eyewitness
statements and ballistics evidence
confirming that there were only
two guns fired, and overwhelming
evidence that the two shooters
were known gang members, the
District Attorney’s office tried three
people for the crimes, including our
client. Only one witness testified
that he “looked like” the shooter,
who was seen firing a gun with his
left hand. Our client is right-
handed.
In 1999, Juvenile Hall chaplain
Sister Janet Harris brought our
client’s case to the attention of Los
Angeles of counsel Bob Long.
Latham investigated the conviction
and quickly recognized numerous
problems, including the
performance of our client’s trial
counsel, new witnesses who
indicated that our client was not
involved in the shooting, and other
witnesses whose statements
undermined the eyewitness
identification of our client. In three
habeas corpus petitions and during
an eight-day evidentiary hearing,
Bob, along with partner Marcus
McDaniel and associate Ian
Graham, argued that the trial
counsel had failed to conduct a
timely or reasonably thorough
investigation, failed to call
witnesses who could have provided
exculpatory evidence, failed to
adequately cross-examine
witnesses and failed to point out to
the jury that our client is right-
handed. After seven years of
advocacy by Latham attorneys, the
California Court of Appeal
concluded in 2005 that these errors
and omissions had deprived our
client of a fair trial, vacating his
conviction in its entirety. The state
has appealed.
Latham attorneys have showered theirexceptional talent and supportupon the Inner City Law Center. I can't evenimagine where we would be without them.” — Thomas A. Freiberg, Jr.
Board President, Inner City Law Center
“
Sister Janet Harris and Los Angelesassociate Ian Graham discuss the habeasappeal of a convicted youth
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 17
Moscow
AIDS Foundation East-West. Since
2002, the Moscow office has been
working on a number of pro bono
projects with AIDS Foundation
East-West (AFEW), an
international, non-governmental
humanitarian public health
organization whose mission is to
make a major contribution toward
reducing the impact of HIV/AIDS
in Eastern Europe and Central
Asia. AFEW takes innovative and
proactive steps in developing,
implementing and promoting tools
for effective HIV/AIDS prevention
and treatment designed for the
specific conditions in its target
countries. Most recently, Latham
has advised on the impact of a new
Russian law on non-governmental
organizations and provided advice
on tax issues in connection with
grants extended by AFEW. These
projects were handled by Moscow
of counsel Lev Simkin and
associate Igor Sosnovsky.
Friends of Russian Orphans.
Friends of Russian Orphans
(FORO) is a charitable organization
dedicated to aiding orphans in the
Arkhangelsk region and elsewhere
in Russia. FORO’s mission is to
provide programs in Russian
orphanages that will improve the
lives of the growing number of
disadvantaged children in the
region, helping the orphans to
become healthy, productive
Russian citizens. Latham advised
FORO regarding certain banking
issues and procedures in Russia as
well as on new Russian laws
regulating foreign non-
governmental organizations.
Moscow associate Alessia
Tepikina, under the supervision of
associates Wendy Atrokhov and
Alexei Novozhilov, assisted FORO
with these matters.
New Jersey
Returning an Abducted Child.
In a case referred by the National
Center for Missing & Exploited
Children, Latham assisted a
Mexican woman whose six-year-
old son was abducted from her
lawful custody by the child’s father
and brought to New Jersey.
Initially, Latham filed a federal
court petition for return of the child
pursuant to international child
abduction statutes. The father,
however, again disappeared.
Through the use of a private
investigator, the team tracked the
father to Staten Island, filed a
petition in New York State Family
Court and, after a hearing,
obtained an order to have the child
and the father taken into custody
pending the outcome of a petition
to enforce our client’s foreign child
custody order. Following the order,
the father agreed to return the
child to his mother. Under the
supervision of New Jersey of
counsel Joe Hopkins, the team
included associates Eric
Westenberger and Jonathan
Peck and legal secretary Tania
Corbacho, who provided
invaluable foreign language
support.
Detained in Transit. Under the
supervision of New Jersey partner
Alan Kraus and associate Michael
Macmanus, New Jersey associate
Kellie Ortega and New York
associate Oded Mizrahi
represented a minor from the
Democratic Republic of the Congo
who was detained in Newark
International Airport en route to
join her family in Canada. Using an
age determination technique
disavowed by the majority of the
medical community, a dentist at the
airport examined our 16-year-old
client’s wrists and teeth and
determined her to be older than
18 years of age. Based upon this
incorrect age determination, our
client was held in an adult
detention center for nearly two
years while her claim for asylum
was denied. Latham appealed the
case to the US Court of Appeals for
the Third Circuit and applied on
her behalf for permanent residence
in Canada, a process rarely granted
Anti-Defamation League Presents Award to Bob Dell
On May 9, the Anti-Defamation League
(ADL) honored Latham & Watkins
Chairman and Managing Partner Bob
Dell with its Distinguished
Jurisprudence Award, given to
members of the legal community who
have exhibited humanitarian concerns
and whose actions exemplify the
ADL’s mission. Among other
accomplishments noted by the ADL,
Bob has been instrumental in the
growth and development of Latham’s
pro bono program.
Paul Dawes presents Bob Dell with theADL’s Distinguished Jurisprudence Award
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18 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
Off
ice
High
light
s
by the Canadian government.
Ultimately, her application for
permanent residence in Canada
was granted. The team then
worked with the detention center
and the Department of Justice to
arrange for our client to finally re-
join her family in Canada.
Voting Rights. Latham filed an
amicus curiae brief and
participated in oral argument in
support of a challenge to the use of
certain Direct Recording Electronic
(DRE) voting machines in New
Jersey. Because it was impossible to
perform a meaningful recount of
votes cast on the machines, the use
of such DRE machines violated the
New Jersey constitution and
election laws. New Jersey
associates Michael Macmanus and
Jason Rockwell, paralegal Suzanne
Christel and Silicon Valley
associate Lauren Walz, supervised
by Washington, D.C. partner Rick
Bress, prepared the amicus brief.
With support from partner Alan
Kraus and associate Daina Borteck,
Jason participated in oral argument
before the New Jersey Superior
Court, Appellate Division, in
support of the arguments. During
the proceedings, New Jersey
passed legislation requiring that all
DRE voting machines be retrofitted
to include a voter-verified paper
record to be used in the event of a
recount.
New York
Protecting Women from Domestic
Violence. Under the Violence
Against Women Act (VAWA),
immigrant women who are married
to US citizens or permanent
residents and who have been
subject to physical abuse or
extreme cruelty by their spouses
can petition to obtain residency
independent from their abusers,
freeing them from their
dependence on their abusive
spouses. Our New York attorneys
have established a partnership with
Sanctuary for Families, a nonprofit
organization that helps women and
children who are victims of
domestic violence, to provide legal
assistance to those seeking
independence from their abusers.
Through the VAWA program, New
York attorneys and summer
associates prepare and file VAWA
self-petitions on behalf of
immigrant women.
Associate Alison DeGregorio
joined her VAWA client, a Polish
immigrant, who spoke at a rally
on Capitol Hill in support of
immigration reforms. Summer
associate Beatriz Ivanova-Loaisiga
also attended the rally. Our client
bravely spoke about how she
finally found the courage to leave
her abusive husband and how
profoundly she misses her five-
year-old daughter, who remains in
Poland. Under the current system,
families seeking immigration relief
often remain separated for several
years before being reunited.
New York associate Alison DeGregorio, Cuc Vufrom the Service Employees International Union,client Dorota Szewczyk and summer associateBeatriz Ivanova-Loaisiga at an immigrationreform rally in Washington, D.C.
Photo
: T
racy S
tratt
on
Latham Adoption Initiative Honored by MFY Legal Services
As part of New York State Chief Judge Judith Kaye’s “Adoption Now” initiative,
Latham’s New York attorneys work in partnership with Pfizer, Inc. and MFY Legal
Services to provide legal representation to low-income parents seeking to adopt
foster care children.
Under the coordination of partner Michele Penzer and associates Rob Lia,
Bonnie Schreiber and Jessica Woodhouse, more than 20 adoptions were
successfully handled by Latham attorneys, paralegals and summer associates in
the New York office in 2005.
In October, MFY Legal Services honored participating attorneys at its “Scales of
Justice” awards ceremony, including 68 current and former Latham attorneys, for
helping with foster care adoptions.
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 19
Puerto Rican Legal Defense Fund.
Partner Blair Connelly and
associates Juan Gonzalez and
Andrew Warren represent the
Puerto Rican Legal Defense Fund
(PRLDF) in a federal court action
against the Town of Brookhaven
and Suffolk County alleging civil
rights and fair housing violations.
As part of the town’s crackdown on
undocumented day laborers who
often live in overcrowded houses,
Brookhaven used ex parte orders
from the NY State Supreme Court
to evict these primarily Latino
individuals without prior notice or
an opportunity to be heard. PRLDF
successfully obtained a preliminary
injunction against this unfair and
discriminatory practice and the
team is currently working to uphold
that injunction against various
legal challenges.
Freedom of Speech in
Cyberspace. Latham worked with
the American Civil Liberties
Union (ACLU) in a constitutional
challenge to the Child Online
Protection Act (COPA), a federal
law that criminalizes the sending
to minors, via the World Wide
Web, materials that may be
deemed “harmful” according to
vague “contemporary community
standards.” Latham has
represented the ACLU in this
matter since the late 1990s, when
the team first obtained a
preliminary injunction against the
statute on First Amendment
grounds. The US Supreme Court
upheld the preliminary injunction
in 2005. The case is now back
before the district court, and
Latham is preparing for trial on
the issue of whether COPA should
be permanently enjoined. Partner
Chris Harris leads the First
Amendment team, which has
included associates Michele Pyle,
Mark Goldberg, Joe Widman,
Katharine Marshall, Jeroen van
Kwawegen, Elan Dobbs, Addison
Golladay, Stevie Laughlin and
Ben Sahl.
Section Eight Housing. The
Riverdale and Osborne Towers
Housing Development Fund
Corporations are two not-for-profit
corporations developed in the
1960s which operate Section Eight
housing developments in Brooklyn,
New York. Partner Bob Kennedy
and associates Dennis Craythorn,
Margaret Sarratt and Jennifer
Sperling are advising Riverdale
and Osborne Towers on
reconstituting their Boards and
resolving various legal issues
designed to ensure that Riverdale
and Osborne Towers will be
preserved as affordable housing for
hundreds of low-income individuals
and families.
NYC2012 Olympic Bid. Partner
Kirk Davenport and associate
Michael Kuh headed up a team of
attorneys providing legal counsel to
New York City’s bid to host the
2012 Olympic Games. Of counsel
Jeff Tochner and associate Alison
DeGregorio took the lead
negotiating complex intellectual
property agreements related to use
of the Olympic mark and related
properties, while associate Oded
Mizrahi researched international
law issues involving International
Olympic Committee (IOC)
agreements. Tim Hia and Sharon
Lau of the Singapore office offered
guidance to the NYC2012 team as
they prepared for the New York
delegation’s trip to Singapore for
the meeting of the IOC.
New York associate Michael Kuh andNYC2012 delegate Senator HillaryRodham Clinton of New York at theNYC2012 host city announcementviewing
I am deeply grateful forLatham’s compassion,professionalism and empathy.You helped awaken a new life in me in asociety that respects me and values me asa human being.”— Asylum client from Colombia
‘‘
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20 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
Off
ice
High
light
s Education and Health in
South Africa. Since 1999, Latham
has represented Ubuntu Education
Fund, a nonprofit organization
dedicated to working with the
people of the Eastern Cape
Province of South Africa to develop
quality education and healthy
communities in the new South
Africa. In 2005, Latham assisted
Ubuntu in the preparation of its
first employee manual, the filing of
petitions for immigrant visas for
South African employees and the
execution of a collaboration
agreement. The Ubuntu team
includes New York partner Bill
Voge, associates Eric Newcomer,
Tim Pitrelli and Ingrid Waldman,
summer associate Donna Bunbury
and London associate Clare
Kipping, who assisted on various
UK general corporate and tax
matters.
Shelter for the Homeless. Sister
Marion Agnes Daniel, an 82-year-
old Roman Catholic nun, recently
worked with Latham attorneys to
close an unusual real estate deal.
Over the course of eight years,
Sister Marion and Nazareth
Housing worked to transform a
crumbling parish school on the
Lower East Side into a residence
for 15 homeless families. Partner
Jamie Hisiger and associate Dara
Denberg crafted the complicated
leasing agreements involved in this
transaction, which culminated with
the December 2005 dedication of
the freshly renovated “Marion
Agnes House.”
Northern Virginia
Legal Assistance to
Servicemembers. Northern
Virginia associate Greg Harris is
working with the Clinic for Legal
Assistance to Servicemembers at
George Mason University School of
Law in the representation of a US
Army sergeant who faced identity
theft and billing dispute issues
stemming from the misuse of his
cellular phone account while he
was deployed in Iraq. The billing
dispute has been resolved and the
person who improperly used the
phone services has agreed to make
restitution payments to the
sergeant and his family.
Student Radio Board. Partner
Kevin Boyle and associate Eric
Andrews represent Northern
Michigan University and its
Student Radio Board, advising
them on general FCC compliance
issues and reporting requirements
in connection with the operation of
WUPX-FM, the university’s
student-run radio station.
Orange County
Resources for Victims of Domestic
Violence. Human Options is an
Orange County-based organization
providing services to battered
women and their families through,
among other things, an emergency
shelter, transitional housing and a
community resource center. Partner
Linda Schilling, associates Michele
Johnson, Lana Morton-Owens and
Nicole Vanderlaan Smith, and
paralegal Marian Pritchard worked
with Human Options to identify the
legal needs of domestic violence
victims and to assess the volume of
such needs in Orange County.
The team simultaneously worked
with Chapman Law School in an
effort to establish a domestic
violence legal clinic. The goal of
this clinic will be to address the
legal needs identified, in part,
through dialogues with area
resources for domestic violence
victims.
Marion Agnes House for homeless families in New York City
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 21
Off
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High
light
sO
ffice
‘‘Because of our partnership with Latham, we were able to open our doors in 2005 and immediately begin to
provide high-quality fair housing legal services to victims of
discrimination throughout the New York metro area.”
— Diane L. Houk Executive Director, Fair Housing Justice Center
ROCK Orange County. Latham
attorneys provided corporate,
employment and contract
representation for Run for Orange
County Kids (ROCK), the
organization that sponsors and
produces the Orange County
Marathon and a related two-day
health and fitness expo. With more
than 10,000 participants, the
Orange County Marathon has been
instrumental in raising funds for 10
children’s charities. Partners Jonn
Beeson and Joseph Farrell and
paralegal Sally Burns negotiated
vendor contracts and employment
agreements for ROCK and
provided various corporate advice
and nonprofit compliance
representation.
South Coast Children’s Society.
South Coast Children’s Society
(SCCS) is a nonprofit organization
that provides care and treatment to
abused and neglected children at
several facilities throughout
Orange County. The landlord at
one of these facilities sought to
evict SCCS and terminate its long-
term leasehold interest, worth more
than $1 million, alleging that the
Office Highlights
For the past year, Latham & Watkins has worked with HELP
USA’s Fair Housing Justice Center (FHJC), in a partnership
arranged through New York Lawyers for the Public Interest,
to combat housing discrimination in the New York
metropolitan area.
The FHJC takes walk-in discrimination cases and conducts
investigations into rental practices, real estate sales, lending
and other housing-related services to identify and document
unlawful discrimination. Testing, through strategic use of
actors posing as potential renters, is conducted in response
to complaints, as well as based on systemic investigations
developed and implemented by the FHJC.
Latham attorneys represent victims of housing discrimination
referred by the FHJC and receive training, mentoring and
support from the FHJC in ongoing matters.
Under the supervision of New York partners David Brodsky
and Kurt Rogers, several Latham attorneys participate in the
battle against housing discrimination. In a recent case
handled by associates
George du Pont,
Andres Alvarez, Adam
Burk, Alexa Klein and
Margaret Sarratt,
Latham represented a
family subjected to
harassment and
discrimination by their
landlord because of the
race and ethnicity of
their houseguests,
including racial slurs, threats and physical intimidation, and
a notice terminating the tenancy. In another matter, the
team negotiated a settlement before the New York State
Commission on Human Rights on behalf of a victim of
housing discrimination based on age, sex and marital status.
As another example, associate Meaghan Chmura assisted a
family whose application for subsidized housing was denied
because of physical and mental disabilities. Having filed a
housing discrimination complaint with the US Department
of Housing and Urban Development, Latham resolved the
matter through supervised conciliation. Associates Courtney
Oliva, Margaret Sarratt and John Arden also made
important contributions to the housing discrimination project
in 2005. �
Battling Housing Discrimination
Project coordinators Kurt Rogers, AndresAlvarez, FHJC Legal Director PamelaSah, David Brodsky, FHJC ExecutiveDirector Diane Houk and John Arden
Diane Houk and associate Andres Alvarezdiscuss housing matters
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22 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
lease had been assigned to SCCS
without the landlord’s prior written
consent as required by an
undisclosed lease addendum.
Orange County associates Jordan
Kushner and Matthew Cooper,
assisted by partner Joseph Farrell,
represented SCCS in the matter
and obtained a favorable
settlement just as a trial in the case
was set to begin.
Camp Okizu. Orange County
partner Paul Singarella and
associate Shanda Beltran represent
Camp Okizu, a summer camp for
children stricken with cancer, in
securing necessary permits from
the California State Water
Resources Control Board. The
proposed water permits, which
would allow the Camp to continue
diverting water from an adjacent
creek to small storage ponds for
fishing, swimming and irrigation of
its playing fields, were challenged
by local farmers and operators of a
downstream recreational reservoir.
Through years of negotiation
regarding the permit terms and
environmental review, Latham was
instrumental in resolving disputes
regarding the Camp’s water
permits, and continues to assist
with the permitting procedure.
Justice for Immigrants in the
Ibrahim Parlak is a Turkish Kurd who was tortured and
imprisoned in Turkey in the 1980s for his participation
in the Kurdish rights movement. Since the Immigration
and Naturalization Service (INS) granted Mr. Parlak
asylum in 1992, he has resided in the US, building a
successful restaurant business in Michigan. He is also
the proud father of a seven-year-old American
daughter and is beloved by his community.
Beginning in 2002, 10 years after Mr. Parlak was
granted asylum and shortly after September 11, the
newly established Department of Homeland Security
(DHS) sought to deport Mr. Parlak on the basis of the
same facts on
which the INS
had granted him
asylum in 1992.
In July 2004,
DHS arrested
Mr. Parlak,
labeled him a
terrorist and
held him without
bail based upon
his activities
prior to coming to the United States.
Post-9/11 WorldFour years after the attacks of September 11, 2001,the United States continues to grapple with legalissues related to individual rights in the context ofthe battle against terrorism. The case of IbrahimParlak exemplifies the real-life conflicts thatdevelop when individual rights clash withgovernment vigilance.
‘‘In difficult times, when great caution is necessary,mistakes can be made. But I am thankful that in America we have a justice system to
correct these mistakes. I am also thankful that I do not have to face my struggle alone.”
— Ibrahim Parlak Restaurant owner
Off
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High
light
s
Top: Ibrahim Parlak reunited with his friend and daughterBottom: Ibrahim’s neighbors welcome him home
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 23
Right to a Fair Asylum Hearing.
Despite the request of a 17-year-old
immigrant for the opportunity to
obtain an attorney in connection
with his removal proceedings,
an immigration judge proceeded
without an attorney and denied
the boy’s asylum application. The
Midwest Immigrant & Human
Rights Center appealed the case to
the Board of Immigration Appeals
(BIA), which affirmed the
immigration judge’s decision in a
one-sentence order. A team of
Latham attorneys, led by Orange
County associate Chris Campbell
and including associates Lana
Morton-Owens and Sondra
Hickey, appealed the case to the
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and
separately moved to reopen the
case with the BIA based upon
newly discovered evidence. Citing
a new psychological evaluation
concluding that our client suffers
from major depression and
psychosis, lacks the ability to focus
or concentrate and has severely
disturbed thought processes, the
team argued that our client had
been denied due process, including
in connection with his request for
representation. The BIA agreed,
holding that the immigration judge
abused her discretion in several
respects, and remanded the case
for a new merits hearing.
Chicago partner David Foster along with associates Jay
Marhoefer and Cindy Sobel took the case on a pro
bono basis, joined by other attorneys working pro bono
or on a reduced-fee basis including a former US
Attorney, a former special counsel to the FBI’s counter-
terrorism unit and leading immigration and civil rights
attorneys.
The case quickly turned into one of the most widely
followed individual rights cases in the post-9/11 world,
and sparked national debate on the enforcement of US
immigration laws in this new environment. Mr. Parlak’s
two-day deportation hearing in December 2004 received
extensive local and national media attention, including a
cover story in The New York Times Magazine and an
interview on ABC-TV’s “Nightline.” The immigration
judge eventually ruled against Mr. Parlak in his
deportation case. Latham appealed the case to the
Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), outlining dozens of
errors of fact and law in the immigration judge’s
decision. The BIA denied relief, and Latham has
appealed to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.
In May 2005, Latham obtained a habeas corpus order
holding that the government was violating Mr.
Parlak’s constitutional rights by detaining him without
bond while the fight against his deportation
continued. The habeas challenge emphasized that a
model immigrant like Mr. Parlak could not be
detained indefinitely while his immigration appeals
were pending, particularly when no evidence existed
that he was a threat or flight risk. In June 2005, Mr.
Parlak was finally released on bail and reunited with
his family after more than 10 months in jail. When Mr.
Parlak returned home, supporters gathered at his
restaurant to give the Kurdish immigrant a warm
welcome, greeting him with cheers, hugs and tears.
The case is currently before the Sixth Circuit, where
Mr. Parlak is appealing the deportation order and the
government is appealing Mr. Parlak’s release. On
another front, Mr. Parlak’s many supporters have
galvanized a movement, “Ibrahim for Citizen,” the
goal of which is to pass a private bill in Congress that
will confer citizenship upon Mr. Parlak. His supporters
have collected hundreds of affidavits attesting to his
qualifications to become a US citizen, and Michigan
Senator Carl Levin and Representative Fred Upton
introduced the bill in Congress, which under
administrative procedures has resulted in a stay of
Mr. Parlak’s potential deportation until at least
February 2007. �
Office Highlights
‘‘There can befew things morerewarding than
seeing a seven-year-old
girl, who has spent the last
10 months visiting her
father for only 20 minutes
each week through a
sheet of thick glass in jail, jump into
his arms and walk with him into the
light of freedom, and knowing that I
was a part of that.”
— Jay MarhoeferAssociate in the Chicago office
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24 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
Off
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High
light
sO
ffic
e Hi
ghlig
hts
Asylum for a Jehovah’s Witness.
Orange County associate Chris
Campbell, under the supervision of
former of counsel Allan Litovsky,
obtained asylum for a woman from
Armenia. Our client had suffered
life-threatening physical violence
by a paramilitary organization, was
denied police protection and even
basic medical assistance by state-
owned hospitals, was fired from her
government job and suffered
physical violence at the hands of
her husband, all because of her
religious beliefs as a Jehovah’s
Witness.
Paris
Les Braves. French sculptress
Anilore Banon was given
authorization to mount a memorial
sculpture on Omaha Beach as part
of the 60th anniversary
commemoration of the Normandy
Landing by the Committee for the
Normandy Landing (Comité du
Débarquement) as well as by
French and American authorities.
Paris partners Valérie Bouaziz
Torron and Mark Beckett and
associates Jérôme Barzun and
Julien Soisson advised Ms. Banon
on the creation of a company to
finance the project, including
assisting with company formation
and drafting and negotiating a
private donor sponsorship
agreement and intellectual
property agreements.
The stainless steel memorial
entitled Les Braves (“The Heroes”),
which stands 9 by 15 meters and
weighs 15 tons, now pays tribute to
the courage of the American forces
who landed in Normandy in 1944.
The monument is set on the beach
at a strategic point where, at high
tide, the base of the sculpture is
submerged in water, producing a
spectacular effect. Latham
continues to advise our client in
matters before the Paris
Commercial Court.
Lions Club Foundation. Paris of
counsel Cécile Amigues and
associate Jérôme Barzun represent
Lions Club Foundation, an
international nonprofit charitable
organization known for its
commitment to blindness
prevention and its actions to help
the visually impaired as well as
other forms of community
involvement. In 2005, Latham
advised the Foundation in
connection with a project to build
medically tailored homes in France
for disabled children.
San Diego
Asylum for a Somali Refugee.
San Diego associates Tom Getz and
Drew Gardiner successfully
obtained asylum for a 28-year-old
Somali refugee, whose case was
referred to the firm by Casa
Cornelia Law Center. After civil
war engulfed Somalia in 1991, our
client, a member of a minority clan,
was at the mercy of the oppressive
Habr Gedir majority clan. Our
client’s parents were brutally
murdered while fighting to protect
their home. Over the next eight
years, our client was kidnapped on
three separate occasions and forced
to work as a slave for 16-20 hours a
day under the threat of death. His
Les Braves memorial at Omaha Beach,Normandy
Latham Honored by Human Rights First
Latham & Watkins was honored by Human Rights First
(formerly the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights) as a
recipient of the Marvin Frankel Award for the firm’s
commitment to safeguarding the rights of refugees
through pro bono representation. Latham has handled 58
asylum cases referred by Human Rights First since 1991.
Right: Steve Schulman, Claudia O'Brien and RickBernthal accept the Marvin Frankel Award from HRFPresident Michael Posner and HRF Washington DirectorElisa Massimino
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 25
captors repeatedly shot, stabbed
and tortured him. In late 2004, he
escaped captivity and made his
way to the United States.
The ManKind Project. The
ManKind Project offers training for
men in developing lives of integrity,
accountability and connection to
feeling. Its goal is to challenge men
to develop their abilities as leaders,
fathers and elders in service to the
world. San Diego partner Joel
Mack and associates Agnes
Gesiko, Adam O’Farrell and Marc
Halpern assisted the ManKind
Project with a broad range of legal
issues including corporate
governance, tax, intellectual
property, contracts, insurance and
risk management, and internal
investigation support. Over the past
two years, attorneys from several
Latham offices in the United States
and Europe have assisted with this
project.
The Monarch School Project. The
Monarch School Project provides
funding for the extraordinary and
special needs of students of the
Monarch School, a public magnet
school for homeless K-12 students
located in downtown San Diego.
Although the No Child Left Behind
Act makes these types of schools
illegal, the Monarch School is one
of four exceptions to the law, all of
which are beta sites that will be
reviewed by Congress in coming
years to determine if magnet
schools for homeless children are
effective. The teachers and
administrators of the Monarch
School have found that many
homeless children will not attend
regular public schools because of
the perceived stigma of their status,
and feel more comfortable being
around others who are in similar
circumstances. Latham represents
the Monarch School Project in
connection with the acquisition of
its existing facility in downtown
San Diego to expand and enhance
the school’s capacity and the
quantity and quality of its
programs. San Diego partners
David Boatwright and Mark
Pulliam and associate Stephanie
Kuhlen represent Monarch in this
endeavor.
QuestBridge. QuestBridge is a
program that links bright,
motivated low-income students
with educational and scholarship
opportunities at top colleges. San
Diego associates Steve Chinowsky
and Tony Mauriello assisted
QuestBridge in updating its Web
site to comply with California
Internet privacy laws, including
drafting the organization’s “Terms
of Use” and “Privacy Policy.” In
addition, the team drafted non-
disclosure and business agreements
for QuestBridge.
Junior Achievement and Enterprise
Village. Junior Achievement of San
Diego is a nonprofit organization
that educates K-12 students about
American economics, free
enterprise and business. Latham
serves as counsel for Junior
Achievement in connection with its
acquisition of a new facility that
will be used as its headquarters
and will house Enterprise Village,
a virtual town in which seventh
graders from different school
districts across San Diego will come
for a day to assume town political
and business roles to gain a hands-
on understanding of how business
and politics work. San Diego
partners David Boatwright and
Chris Garrett, associate Tiffany
Barzal and Land Use Analyst Clif
Williams represent Junior
Achievement in this matter.
San Francisco
Outward Bound Corporate
Reorganization. Latham completed
an extensive corporate affiliation
transaction for Outward Bound
USA, a nonprofit educational
organization with five core
programs that build teams,
transform schools and change lives.
A team of Latham corporate
attorneys led by San Francisco
partner Brad Bugdanowitz and
including associates Errol Hunter
and Jude Egan and Project
Assistant Matt Stevenson, guided
the organization through a
transaction consisting of the
affiliation of six previously
independent chartered schools
across the United States with the
parent entity Outward Bound, Inc.
The reorganization allows the
schools to operate under a single
management structure, share
resources and administrative
services and move forward in a
more streamlined and coordinated
way. The project was overseen by
Los Angeles partner Andy
Lundberg and received assistance
from San Francisco partner James
Dutro on the structuring of the
transaction, with tax advice
provided by Chicago partner Bob
Goldman and associate Julie
Marion.
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26 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
Disaster Recovery Work
Hurricane Katrina Initiatives
Latham personnel contributed in excess of $815,000 tomore than 115 organizations aiding relief efforts in thewake of Hurricane Katrina. Through a firm-wideinitiative announced soon after Katrina struck the USGulf Coast region in August 2005, the firm instituted aprogram that matched employee donations dollar-for-dollar. The firm kicked off the program with an initialpledge of $200,000, which was followed by more thanhalf a million dollars in attorney and staff donationsand matching funds. Latham personnel contributed tothe charities of their choice, resulting in support to awide variety of charitable organizations, while thefirm’s contributions supported organizations such asthe Red Cross and Habitat for Humanity.
As part of the firm’s matching contributions, Latham isfunding two Katrina-related fellowships: (1) an EqualJustice Works Disaster Relief Fellow who will be onthe ground in the Gulf Coast region for two years,providing critical legal assistance as part of the reliefeffort, and (2) a Latham & Watkins Fellow with theLawyers Committee for Civil Rights focused onhurricane relief efforts. It is hoped that these fellowswill be able to provide assistance and relief tocountless residents of the Gulf Coast region.
Support for those affected by the disaster also was given on several other fronts, including thefollowing initiatives.
The Advancement Project. Washington, D.C.associates Joel Israel, Abena Glasgow, MichaelPonzoli, Teneille Brown, Ahmad Nassar and Ron Leeassisted the Advancement Project in ensuring thatNew Orleans tenants displaced after Hurricane Katrinawill be afforded proper notice before being evicted andhaving their possessions removed by landlords. TheAdvancement Project secured a settlement with FEMAaffording tenants 45 days notice before eviction, afterlocal authorities originally had planned to give tenantsjust three days notice. Pursuant to the settlement,FEMA also is required to provide information on thewhereabouts of all evictees and courts must sendevictees notice by mail.
The Five Friends and Brothers Foundation. New Yorkassociates James Van Doren, Jude Gorman and EliHunt, under the supervision of partner David Allinson,provided general corporate advice to and assisted withthe nonprofit incorporation of The Five Friends andBrothers Foundation. The organization was formed tofund and organize relief efforts for homeless sheltersand youth homes in New Orleans, as well as fundoffices and infrastructure for smaller nonprofits in theNew Orleans area and other nonprofit and charitableinstitutions in southern Louisiana. The Foundationtargets smaller, less-well-known charitable andnonprofit organizations in the Gulf Area largelyoverlooked by relief organizations.
The past few years have seen their share of natural disasters, from theCalifornia wildfires and the South Asian tsunami to Hurricanes Katrinaand Rita on the United States Gulf Coast. These devastating events callfor compassion, charity and community support, as well as innovativesolutions to challenging legal issues.
AIDS Legal Referral Panel. In 2005,
the San Francisco office initiated a
pro bono partnership with the AIDS
Legal Referral Panel, one of the
oldest organizations in the US
dedicated to providing direct legal
services to individuals with HIV
and AIDS. Partners Chris Yates and
Bob Sims and associates Sarah Ray,
Melissa Chan, Liz Lamzaki and
Rebecca Spain successfully
resolved unlawful detainer eviction
proceedings on behalf of two
clients, and associates Sam Lutz
and Carrie Taubman, with
assistance from partner Jim Lynch,
are taking the lead on a Rent
Stabilization Board appeal referred
by the Panel.
Assisting Immigrant Women. Our
San Francisco attorneys work with
a number of immigrant women
seeking to obtain legal residency in
the US under the Violence Against
Women Act (VAWA). Partnering
with Asian Pacific Islander Legal
Outreach, our San Francisco
attorneys work with domestic
violence victims to prepare
declarations and affidavits and
assemble documentary evidence in
support of our clients’ VAWA
petitions and waiver applications.
Our attorneys have assisted women
from several nations, including
Off
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High
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 27
Mental Health Issues for Young Victims. Chicago partnerJuli Marshall and associates Jennifer Reicher Jaffe, LopaPatel and Cindy Sobel, and San Francisco partner JerryPeters and associate Soleil Teubner are working with theCenter for the Advancement of Children’s Mental Healthat Columbia University, an organization committed toaccelerating the acceptance and effective use of proveninterventions that foster children’s emotional andbehavioral health. The Latham team has focused on theCenter’s involvement with children’s mental healthservices for the many young victims of Hurricane Katrina.The team is working to ensure that through mechanismsincluding Medicaid and the Individuals with DisabilitiesEducation Act, young Katrina victims receive timelyscreening and appropriate treatment for Post-TraumaticStress Disorder. The team has also undertaken to help theCenter become a tax-exempt nonprofit entity distinctfrom Columbia University.
Assisting Katrina Victims. In several offices, Lathamattorneys have reached out to victims displaced byHurricane Katrina, providing needed services andreferrals. Latham attorneys also are working with locallegal services organizations in the Gulf Coast region toidentify and address community needs.
Helping Tsunami Victims
The world’s most powerful earthquake in more than 40years struck on December 26, 2004, under the IndianOcean, triggering massive tsunamis in several countries.As the region moves forward with reconstruction andrecovery, efforts are underway to maintain donations andrelief. Latham attorneys assisted Unawatuna-Hilfe, anonprofit organization dedicated to supporting victims ofthe tsunami in Southern Sri Lanka who lost their families,their homes or the basis for their work, or otherwiseseverely suffered from the devastating tsunamis.Hamburg associate Christian Meyn and partner SvenOswald advised Unawatuna-Hilfe in establishing afoundation, provided advice on Tsunami Disaster ReliefGrants, assisted with the reorganization of its Board, andcontinue to advise on various other issues in connectionwith the operation of a nonprofit organization.
California Wildfire Assistance
Historically, it takes between three and five years torecover from a major natural disaster, and the 2003California wildfires which destroyed thousands of homesis no exception. In 2005, a team of Los Angeles attorneysled by partner Ursula Hyman continued to assist variouscommunity-based organizations on questions of lawhaving to do with redevelopment agencies, zoning,environmental clearance and insurance which impactedtheir residents. The team also helped to draft and testifyon legislation that requires the Governor’s Office ofEmergency Services to work with community-basedorganizations after a natural disaster.
In addition, Los Angeles associates Dan Beck andJenny Kleinberg, under the supervision of partnerUrusla Hyman, assisted Chabad, a Jewish communityorganization and school in San Diego that lost a schoolfacility and a cultural library in the 2003 wildfires. AfterFEMA denied funding for several portions of thecampus and for a large part of the library collection,Latham stepped in to assist with Chabad’s FEMAappeals. �
South Korea, Malaysia and the
Philippines. Among those who
have given their time to help these
women obtain legal residency are
San Francisco associates Jarod
Buna, Adrian Davis, Ellen Brown,
Erica Grossman, Tienlon Ho,
Adrienne Leder, Jeannie Lee,
Marc Lewis, Carrie Taubman,
Melanie Griswold and Hyun Jee
Son, summer associate June Yi and
paralegal Gina Tercero.
Parolee Rights and Gubernatorial
Power. Following our amicus brief
in the Rosenkrantz California
Supreme Court case, Latham
continued to work with the ACLU
of Northern California in the area
of parolee rights and gubernatorial
parole power by submitting an
amicus brief in In re Scott, on
behalf of the Voters Corrections
Reform Coalition, setting forth a
framework by which California
courts could construe and assess
gubernatorial parole decisions.
Associates Randy Kim, Sadik
Huseny and Leah Harhay, working
with summer associates Micah
Nash and Nithan Sannappa under
the supervision of former partner
Steve Treat, prepared the brief.
In October 2005, the California
Court of Appeal issued its opinion,
incorporating nearly all of the
Office Highlights
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28 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
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major points raised by the amicus
brief. The court found that the
reliability and reasonableness of
the evidence proffered by the
Executive in denying parole must
be examined by the courts,
reestablishing the courts’ role in
judicial review to ensure due
process in connection with parole
determinations.
Hospice by the Bay. Hospice by
the Bay serves terminally ill
patients, including cancer and
AIDS patients. San Francisco
partners Jerry Peters and Linda
Inscoe and associates Gregory
Cochran, Betty Pang and Soleil
Teubner, with assistance from
Washington, D.C. partner Andrew
Gantt and associate Anthony
Casarona, represented the
hospice in dealing with a variety
of structural and regulatory
issues and negotiated a merger
transaction with the widely
renowned Hospice of
Marin, the second-oldest
hospice in the US.
LCCR Legal Services Clinic.
Our San Francisco attorneys
continue to regularly participate
in the Legal Services Clinic
sponsored by the Lawyers
Committee for Civil Rights. This
clinic helps low-income clients
with civil legal needs ranging
from illegal evictions and personal
injury to debt collection and
public benefit issues. The Clinic
team includes partners Charlie
Crompton and Chris Yates, and,
among others, associates Randy
Kim, Shannon Eagan, Heather
Marlow, Risha Jamison, Xochitl
Arteaga, Melanie Rowen, Jude
Egan and Tracey Orick.
WiRED and AIDS Education.
Latham scored an important victory
for WiRED International, a
nonprofit organization that uses
information technology to transfer
medical information to developing
countries. WiRED has been running
an HIV/AIDS education program in
rural Kenya, a country with a
rampant AIDS epidemic, and has
accomplished a great deal with an
unpaid staff and a modest grant
from the National Institutes of
Health (NIH). When the NIH
cancelled WiRED’s grant without
an official decision and ignored its
appeals for an explanation or
administrative process, its thriving
Kenya program was set to be
terminated. San Francisco
associates Amy Baghdadi and Jude
Egan, under the supervision of
partner Paul DeMuro, assisted
WiRED in negotiating with the
NIH, ultimately securing enough
bridge funding to keep this
important program running until
WiRED can secure alternate
funding sources.
Pescadero Conservation Alliance.
Latham represents the Pescadero
Conservation Alliance in its efforts
to create an environmental
education and ecological
restoration center in Pescadero,
California. This field research
station is designed to bring at-risk
youth from Bay Area communities
with little exposure to wilderness to
a camp located amid coastal
redwoods and rushing salmon
Latham Honored by Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights
The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area (LCCR) presented
Latham & Watkins with its “Keta Taylor Colby Award,” which honors an attorney who provides
outstanding representation to the poor and under-represented through his or her involvement in
LCCR’s Legal Services Clinic.
Although the Keta Taylor Colby Award traditionally honors an individual attorney, this year the
LCCR staff overwhelmingly selected the entire firm to receive the award, feeling strongly that all
Latham volunteers should be recognized for their ongoing dedication to LCCR. Led by San
Francisco partner Charlie Crompton, who has been volunteering at the Clinic for 16 years, more
than 25 Latham attorneys currently provide pro bono services through LCCR, including its Legal
Services for Entrepreneurs and Asylum programs as well as the Legal Services Clinic.
Ph
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Latham has often gone aboveand beyond the call of duty in its consistent support of the Legal Services Clinic.”
— Diana TateLCCR Staff Attorney and Clinic Director
‘‘Charlie Cromptonaccepting the KetaTaylor Colby Awardon behalf of the firm
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 29
streams. The station also will host
biologists in residence conducting
research on local ecological
restoration and leading camp youth
programs. San Francisco associates
Lou Leonard and Randi Wallach,
under the supervision of partner
Rick Zbur and former of counsel
Kim McCormick, worked with
other professionals, including
biologists, engineers and
consultants, who have volunteered
their time to support this project.
The Coastal Commission is
expected to consider the field
research station’s permit request in
early 2006.
Silicon Valley
Guardianship Program. In 2005,
Latham launched a new initiative
involving guardianship cases in
partnership with the Legal Aid
Society of San Mateo County.
Latham attorneys have handled
several such cases. Associate Pete
Snow and summer associate Paul
Deeringer represented a couple
seeking legal guardianship of their
minor granddaughter. The court
granted our clients’ petition for
temporary guardianship,
preventing the minor from being
relocated without notice. Associate
Darcy Conklin and summer
associate Laura Boysen
represented a woman seeking legal
guardianship of her niece who had
been living in nearly uninhabitable
conditions with her alcoholic
parent, caring for herself and her
younger sister, both of whom have
cystic fibrosis. The San Mateo
County Superior Court granted our
client’s petition for legal
guardianship.
Abuse at the Hands of the
Presidential Guard. Associates Jill
Zimmerman and Anita Pancholi
represent a young man from the
Republic of Guinea. Due to his
father’s pro-democracy political
activities, our client suffered
repeated persecution at the hands
of the Presidential Guard. He and
his family were arrested and
beaten on several occasions before
our client, out of fear for his life,
fled Guinea and applied for asylum
in the United States. Latham
handled the asylum appeal before
the US Court of Appeals for the
Third Circuit, as well as his petition
for Special Immigrant Juvenile
Status, which was approved in
December 2005.
Big Brothers Big Sisters. Silicon
Valley partner Laura Bushnell and
associates Connie Chen and
Suzanne Tom are representing Big
Brothers Big Sisters of San
Francisco and the Peninsula in a
transaction to combine its assets
with those of the Big Brothers Big
Sisters entities in Santa Clara
County and the East Bay. Partner
Jay Pomerantz is advising on
director and officer liability issues,
while San Francisco partner Linda
Inscoe and associate Emily Dahm,
as well as Silicon Valley associate
Jay Metz and Chicago associate
Julie Marion, are advising on tax
issues.
Asylum Appeal. Silicon Valley
partner John Tang and New York
partner Blair Connelly, along with
San Francisco associate Adrian
Davis and New York associate
Michael David, are litigating the
asylum appeal of a Honduran
immigrant. Having been
abandoned as a child on the streets
of Honduras, suffered starvation
and multiple beatings, and seen his
countrymen murdered at the hands
of the police, our client fled those
atrocities and sought refuge in the
United States. Although asylum
was initially granted by the
Immigration Court, this decision
was later reversed by the Board of
Immigration Appeals (BIA). Latham
is now litigating the case before the
Latham Honored by San Mateo Legal Aid Society
The Legal Aid Society of San Mateo County named associate Darcy Conklinand Latham’s Silicon Valley office its November 2005 “Pro Bono Honorees.”
Darcy and summer associate Adrian Lu, under the
supervision of partner Jay Pomerantz, represented a
worker who was injured on the job and unable to work
for the first time in 20 years. Our client’s injury qualified
him for disability insurance benefits, but when a doctor
from the state decided that he could return to work, the
government discontinued his benefits and demanded
repayment of more than $6,000.
Entering the case at the appeal stage, Latham filed a
Petition for a Writ of Mandate, asking the San Francisco
Superior Court to direct the Board to consider a letter
from our client’s physician certifying that he was
disabled during the relevant period. The court ruled in
our client’s favor, requiring the state to set aside its administrative hearing decision
and accept the medical evidence provided by the injured worker.
Darcy Conklin
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30 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
Off
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High
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s Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals,
arguing that the BIA improperly
challenged and overruled the
immigration judge’s decision to
grant asylum.
Singapore
ForesTrade. ForesTrade is aVermont-based supplier of organicand sustainably produced tropicalspices, oils and “Fair Trade” coffee.The company works with localindigenous farmers, offering themfair prices for their products whileproviding them with economicincentives to implement sustainableand environmentally friendlyagricultural methods. Lathamassisted ForesTrade in negotiatingan export credit facility from theOverseas Private InvestmentCorporation. Partner Mark Nelsonand associate David Bills workedon loan documents for Indonesianmarket issues and coordinatedonshore documentation for theproject with local Indonesiancounsel. The deal was a valuablefirst step for ForesTrade, whichplans to enter into similar financingarrangements with otherinternational export creditagencies.
Fundación Pacita. Partner James
Redway and associate Tim Hia are
assisting with the establishment of
Fundación Pacita, which honors the
memory of Pacita Abad, a
prominent Philippine-American
artist who died of cancer at the end
of 2004. Fundación Pacita was
established to continue the artistic
legacy of Pacita Abad by
supporting the development of
dedicated painters, printmakers,
sculptors and multimedia artists
from emerging Asian countries,
and facilitating the study and
understanding of Pacita’s life
and work.
Washington, D.C.
Capital Appeal. A team ofWashington, D.C. attorneys led bypartner Abid Qureshi and formerpartner Beth Wilkinson andassociates Matthew Roskoski,Brian Stekloff, Kendall Burmanand Katharine Saundersrepresented a Virginia death rowinmate in a habeas appeal. Ourclient was convicted of murder andsentenced to death in January2001. His trial counsel conductedalmost no investigation into
potential mitigating circumstances,ignored substantial evidence thathe suffered from mentaldeficiencies and presentedessentially no case regardingmitigation. The Latham teambecame involved during thefederal habeas proceedings whenthe Commonwealth of Virginiasought to execute our clientbefore the time for filing anappeal had expired. Havingreceived an emergency stay ofexecution, the team conducted itsown investigation, pullingtogether our client’s habeasappeal in less than three months.Initial testing indicates that ourclient is mentally retarded.
Protecting Sea Lions. PartnersDavid Hayes and James Barrettand associates Sara Orr, AndreaHogan, Mollie Farrell and AhmadNassar represent the HumaneSociety of the United States (HSUS)in its challenge of the NationalMarine Fisheries Service’s issuanceof numerous research permitsauthorizing hot branding of sea lionpups, extracting teeth, samplingtissue and other intrusive activitieswithout requiring permit holders tocoordinate their research and
Latham Honored by Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless
The Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless presented
Latham with a pro bono award in recognition of the firm’s
“extraordinary efforts to make justice a reality for those strug-
gling with homelessness.”
Latham received the award based on the firm’s longstanding
support of the Legal Clinic as well as several recent matters
handled by the firm. For example, partner Ken Weinstein and
associate Leslie DuPuy represented a disabled widow with
five children facing eviction and foreclosure in a predatory
lending case, and several associates represented Legal Clinic
clients in social security disability matters.
In addition, associates Stephen Spiegelhalter and Aisha
Henry successfully represented a Legal Clinic client against a
slumlord in a three-day jury trial.
Through the Clinic,we are privileged to be ableto help people who havenowhere else to turn, andchange their lives for thebetter.” — Ken Weinstein
Partner in the Washington, D.C. office
‘‘
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 31
without verifying the effects of theresearch on the endangered Stellersea lion population. Lathamattorneys and HSUS prevailedupon the Service to conduct anEnvironmental Impact Statementfor the research program.
Asylum for an Ethiopian Woman.
Of counsel Jared Johnson,associate Stephanie Lim andparalegal Melinda Craiger, withassistance from partner Claudia O’Brien and of counsel SteveSchulman, secured asylum for anEthiopian woman who had beenarrested and tortured by authoritiesbased on her family’s politicalactivity. Her father had beenarrested and was presumed dead,and one brother was killed inprison while the other was torturedto the point of causing insanity.With the help of her Lathamattorneys, our client escaped asimilar fate and now lives safely inthe United States.
Alliance for the Terminally Ill.
A team of Washington, D.C.attorneys represents the AbigailAlliance, a nonprofit groupdevoted to gaining access todevelopmental drugs for theterminally ill. With the help of theWashington Legal Foundation, theAbigail Alliance sued the FederalDrug Administration (FDA),claiming that FDA regulationsunconstitutionally bar terminallyill patients with no approvedtreatment alternatives frompurchasing drugs approved forsubstantial human testing but notyet for full public marketing.Partner Scott Ballenger joined thecause to assist with the briefingand to present oral argumentbefore the US Court of Appealsfor the D.C. Circuit. The appealargued that terminally ill patientswith no other options have afundamental right to purchase, at
a reasonable market price, drugswhich are in the later stages ofFDA testing. The case was arguedin October 2005 and is awaiting adecision by the court. The Lathamteam also included associateAllyson McKenzie and summerassociates Derek Smith andThomas Hall on the brief, withadditional assistance fromassociates Amanda Biles andNathan Vitan in preparation fororal argument.
Asylum for a Tanzanian Boy Scout.
Our client, a Tanzanian Boy Scoutwho left an international scoutjamboree to seek refuge in the US,was finally found eligible forasylum in 2005 after four years oflitigation. The Board of ImmigrationAppeals’ (BIA) granting of asylumfollowed a sharply worded opinionby the US Court of Appeals for theThird Circuit in August, whichvacated and remanded the BIA’searlier order denying asylum.Associate Stephen Spiegelhalterargued the case before the ThirdCircuit. Associates RebeccaMalcolm, Jeremy Barber, NathanVitan, Alexi Maltas and AmandaBiles assisted in the preparation fororal argument, while partnerClaudia O’Brien, Chicago associateJay Marhoefer and Washington,D.C. paralegal Rachel Jaffecontributed to the briefs.
Asylum for a Zimbabwean Activist.
Washington, D.C. associatesJeremy Barber, Kendall Burmanand Elizabeth Kronk obtainedasylum for a Zimbabwean manwho had been tortured andimprisoned as a result of hissupport of opposition politics andtorture survivors in Zimbabwe. Fivemonths later, the team securedderivative asylum for our client’swife and two children.
Kosher Meals for a Prisoner.
In conjunction with the BecketFund for Religious Liberty, partnerAllen Gardner and associatesJoshua Chandler, Dane Holbrook,Parker Douglas, Lara Kayayan andAli Ahmad are representing aJewish prisoner incarcerated inTexas who has been denied koshermeals. Under federal law, theprison system is required to offerreasonable accommodations ofprisoners’ religious practices, andinfringements of genuine religiousliberty interests must be justified bya compelling state interest and bethe least restrictive means offurthering that interest. The team isseeking an order in federal courtdirecting the state of Texas tocomply with the Religious LandUse and Institutionalized PersonsAct by offering a kosher mealoption for Jewish inmates. �
Latham Honored byWashington Lawyers’Committee
In recognition of the work of our
Washington, D.C. attorneys in
political asylum matters, the firm
was presented with an
“Outstanding Achievement Award”
by the Washington Lawyers’
Committee for Civil Rights and
Urban Affairs.
Latham has been working with the
Washington Lawyers’ Committee
for several years through its
Immigrant and Refugee Rights
Project.
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32 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
Latham attorneys achieved several trial victories for pro bono clients in awide range of matters in 2005. In various courts across the United States, before judges and juries, Latham attorneys protected the rights ofdisadvantaged parties and nonprofit community organizations withoutthe ability to pay in litigation through final verdicts. These successes reflectthe talent and skill of the participating attorneys, who through their effortsand dedication made tremendous contributions to their communities.
Defeating a Slumlord
Superior Court, District of Columbia. After three years
of litigation, Latham secured a trial victory on behalf of
our client from the Washington Legal Clinic for the
Homeless against a Washington, D.C. slumlord who
evicted our client, identified him as a snitch to
dangerous drug dealers in the building, locked him out
of his apartment, threw away his belongings and
unjustly retained his security deposit.
Led by Washington, D.C. associates Stephen
Spiegelhalter and Aisha Henry, under the
supervision of partner David Barrett, the team
conducted a three-day jury trial and won a verdict of
$11,826 in compensatory and $100,000 in punitive
damages in a case that originally began as a $900
claim in Small Claims Court. Associates Kevin
Stogner and Lara Kayayan, paralegal Stacey Barnes,
Technology in Practice Support Supervisor Jamil
Wohabe and partner De Smith rounded out
the team.
Supporting Community Housing Solutions
Superior Court, State of California. The Association for
Community Housing Solutions (TACHS) is a nonprofit
organization that develops and builds supportive
housing for mentally ill homeless people in San Diego,
including Reese Village, a 19-unit apartment complex
in east San Diego. During the course of the Reese
Village project, TACHS discovered that its civil
engineer negligently prepared the civil plans and,
through delayed attention in correcting the errors,
caused material and costly construction delays. Unable
to achieve satisfactory recovery from the engineer
short of litigation, TACHS filed a complaint for
professional negligence in early 2004.
After several months of difficult discovery, the case
went to trial before a jury in November 2005. Led by
San Diego associates Jennifer Barry and Limor Rabie
and paralegal Kristen Fechner, under the supervision
of partner Ken Fitzgerald and associate Robert Blair,
the Latham trial team presented both lay and expert
witnesses over the course of the five-day trial. In the
end, the jury returned a unanimous verdict awarding
damages to TACHS.
Protecting a Day Laborer
Municipal Court, State of New Jersey. New Jersey
associates John Falzone, Julio Gomez and Eric
Westenberger represented a day laborer in Freehold
Borough who was arrested and charged with
criminal trespass for allegedly remaining on private
property after being ordered to leave by a police
officer. The private property owner, whose land
contained a bus terminal with a small shop and an
Italian ices store, had written a letter to the borough
administrator stating that day laborers were not
permitted on his property and should be arrested as
trespassers. The team took the case to trial, and
secured our client’s acquittal.
Reese Village, a supportive housing complex for the mentallyill in San Diego
The Trials of Pro Bono
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 33
Supporting Artistic Freedom
US District Court, Southern District of New York.
Thirty days. That’s how long BB Becker’s trial team
had to conduct expert discovery and prepare for a jury
trial in the Southern District of New York. Despite the
tight schedule, the Latham team, led by associates
Daiske Yoshida and Johanna Schiavoni, alongside co-
counsel from Denver’s Faegre & Benson, won a
successful jury verdict defeating claims for trade dress
infringement, dilution and unfair competition.
Our client, Mark “BB” Becker, sole owner and
designer of BB Becker’s jewelry, developed an idea to
engrave silver jewelry with spiritual quotations after
attending an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting where he
recited the “Serenity Prayer.” Today, BB Becker’s
collection includes jewelry with various quotations
including the Serenity Prayer, the Navajo Prayer and
quotes from the Talmud and other sources. Our client’s
designs were challenged by a San Francisco designer
of silver jewelry hand-engraved with quotations from
literary sources such as Rilke, Whitman and Lao Tzu,
who alleged that Becker could not have developed the
idea to engrave quotations on silver jewelry, and that
his jewelry designs were therefore a copy of hers. After
a contentious six-day jury trial, the jury unanimously
found for our client, in favor of fair competition and
free artistic expression.
Other members of the Latham defense team included
New York associates Sharon Ceresnie and Cindy
Caillavet, summer associate JoAnna McFadden and
paralegals Ivanna Ursino and Kristina Thornton.
Technology in Practice specialists Kaina Sainvil and
Plinio Almeida provided technical support in
connection with the trial.
Securing Access for the Junior Blind
Superior Court, State of California. Latham obtained
an important court victory for the Foundation for the
Junior Blind in a lawsuit concerning the Junior Blind’s
Camp Bloomfield, the largest and most comprehensive
camp in the US for children and teens who are blind or
visually impaired and their families. Located in the
mountains of Malibu, California, the camp provides
programs and services to develop critical life skills,
self-esteem and independence for blind children
through education, recreation, training and
rehabilitation.
Led by partners George Mihlsten and Francis Park,
Latham has been assisting the Junior Blind with
necessary permits and approvals to update the camp,
which is landlocked with sole entry via an access road
running through a neighboring property. When the
neighboring property owner refused to allow the
Junior Blind to make necessary fire and safety
improvements to the access road, and further
challenged access to the camp by blocking the
roadway and harassing camp guests and visitors, the
Junior Blind was forced to pursue legal action to
confirm its rights to the roadway.
A Latham team including Los Angeles partners Steve
Atlee and Jim Arnone, associates Scott Pearson, Jenny
Kleinberg, Andrew Kirsh and Bonnie Moore and
paralegal Susan Lawrence represented the Junior
Blind in a two-year-long litigation to confirm easement
rights to the access road. The lawsuit culminated in a
six-day trial in Los Angeles Superior Court in April
2005. In its decision, the court confirmed that the
Junior Blind has its full easement rights to use the road
and denied the neighbor’s claim to any right to enter
Camp Bloomfield. �
Our client’s courage and
our team’s dedication never wavered,
despite the pressures of
the accelerated trial schedule.
I couldn’t ask for more than
being part of a first-rate law firm
that puts its full support behind
its pro bono clients and its
associates.”
— Johanna SchiavoniAssociate in the San Diego office
‘‘
‘‘I’d be out of business if not for my pro bono attorneys.”
— Mark “BB” Becker Artist, small business owner
Jewelry with spiritual quotations designed by BB Becker
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34 Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review
Equal Justice Works
Latham’s sponsorship gave methe opportunity to create an innovativeadvocacy program for low-income pregnantand parenting teens, and has created asustainable project that will continue toprovide services to this growing and under-represented population.”— Diego Cartagena
Equal Justice Works Fellow 2003-2005
“
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Latham & Watkins • 2005 Pro Bono Annual Review 35
Monica Ramirez
Equal Justice Works Fellow 2005-2007Monica recently beganher fellowship at theImmigrants’ RightsProject of the NationalAmerican Civil LibertiesUnion in Oakland,California. She worksprimarily on issuesaffecting immigrant daylaborers, a controversialand vulnerablepopulation that suffersexploitation,discrimination and abuse at the hands ofemployers, lawenforcement and even private individuals. Monica hasbeen working to address these issues on a systemicbasis through community outreach, education,advocacy and strategic litigation.
In particular, Monica has begun conducting know-your-rights workshops at Bay Area day-labor centers toeducate workers about their employment andconstitutional rights. She is also active in working withlocal community groups, other nonprofit organizationsand the National Day Laborer Organizing Network indeveloping advocacy and litigation tools to challengethe selective enforcement of municipal and state lawsagainst day laborers around the country. Monicaalready has been involved in two specific litigationchallenges to local anti-solicitation ordinances inCalifornia that effectively ban day laborers fromexercising their First Amendment rights to solicit workin public spaces. In addition, Monica has begunworking with groups around the United States toaddress the rise in anti-immigrant sentiment andpolicies targeting day laborers nationwide.
Before starting her fellowship, Monica clerked forJudge Warren J. Ferguson of the US Ninth CircuitCourt of Appeals. She received her A.B., magna cumlaude, from Harvard University in 2001 and her J.D.from Stanford Law School in 2004.
Summer Stech
Equal Justice Works Fellow 2006-2008Summer was recentlyselected as our 2006-2008fellow. Starting in the fall of2006, Summer will workwith the Legal Aid Societyof San Diego in connectionwith the Children andYouth Advocacy Project,focusing on outreach andassistance to families inunder-served communitieswho have children withdevelopmental disabilities.
Summer will provideadvocacy and legalrepresentation in the special education processincluding in connection with Individual Education Planmeetings, mediations and related due processhearings. In addition, Summer will help providetransition education programs to youth between theages of 18 and 22 with disabilities, such as informationabout rights and obligations in a contract, renting anapartment, custody and child support and other legalissues relevant to this population. Summer will be theonly attorney in San Diego County focusing solely onthe legal needs of developmentally disabled childrenand youth.
Summer is well-suited for this fellowship, havingworked as a special education teacher in the SanDiego Unified School District prior to attending lawschool, and having worked with persons withdisabilities as a clerk with Protection and AdvocacyInc. in San Diego and Disability Rights Advocates inOakland, California. She has also worked as a legalintern for both the Special Education Legal Clinicand the Children’s Advocacy Institute at theUniversity of San Diego School of Law. Summerreceived her undergraduate degree in specialeducation from Boston University in 2000, andexpects her J.D. from the University of San DiegoSchool of Law in May 2006. �
Latham has a tradition of sponsoring public interest fellows through EqualJustice Works (formerly NAPIL), which runs the largest post-graduate legalfellowship program in the United States. Equal Justice Works places recent lawschool graduates in two-year assignments at public interest organizations wherethey implement innovative projects addressing pressing community needs.
In 2005, our 2003-2005 fellows, Diego Cartagena and Reena Ganju, completedtheir fellowships at the Los Angeles Center for Law & Justice and Sanctuary forFamilies Center for Battered Women’s Legal Services in New York, respectively.Our 2005-2007 fellow, Monica Ramirez, began her fellowship described below,and we recently selected our 2006-2008 fellow, Summer Stech.
Monica Ramirez Summer Stech
Equal Justice Works
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