Update: Thank you to all who attended! Check out the photos from the event on our Facebook page.
It’s that time of year again – the Covington Awards, when we celebrate the attorneys and firms who have devoted an extraordinary amount of time providing pro bono legal services to the low-income clients of Volunteer Legal Services in 2015. Click through to see the attorneys and firms we’re honoring this year:
Firms who have achieved Pro Bono Champion, Pro Bono Leader, or Pro Bono Supporter Status
We will also be awarding special recognition to 2 individuals and 1 firm who have donated an outstanding amount of time to providing pro bono legal services for VLS clients. They are:
Mysha Lubke of Baker Botts, who will be receiving the Susan P. Burton Award. In the last few years, Ms. Lubke has donated nearly 300 hours of time to working some of our most challenging family law/domestic violence cases. We are so grateful for her dedication to providing access to justice for our low-income clients. Without the help of attorneys like her, they would have nowhere else to turn for legal help.
Chris Jacobs of Advanced Micro Devices, who will be receiving the J. Chrys Dougherty Award. Mr. Jacobs has been a long time supporter of VLS, taking many pro bono cases and volunteering at multiple Evening Legal Clinics over the years. In 2015, Chris took the lead as Pro Bono Coordinator for the Austin IP Inn of Court, where he lead the project of sponsoring and staffing a pro bono Wills Clinic at St. Louise House. He also organized an IP Inn fundraising campaign for VLS , and recruited new volunteers for our Evening Legal Clinics. The impact of his services to the VLS clients he has helped is immeasurable.
Scott Douglass & McConnico will be receiving the Joseph H. Hart Award for their generous long-term support of VLS for many years. In 2015, as in years past, they donated funds equivalent to $200 per attorney in their Austin office. In addition, the firm’s attorneys have handled nearly 50 cases for VLS in the last few years, and nearly half of the firm’s attorneys also made a financial contribution to VLS in 2015. The consistent support of Scott Douglass & McConnico has allowed us to continue to reliably provide civil legal services for those who need it most.