11355 West Olympic Blvd. Los Angeles, CA Phone: (310)

Transcription

1 11355 West Olympic Blvd. Los Angeles, CA Phone: (310) locations Albany, NY Costa Mesa, CA Los Angeles, CA New York, NY Palo Alto, CA Sacramento, CA San Francisco, CA Washington, DC MAJOR DEPARTMENTS & PRACTICES THE STATS No. of Attorneys: 339 No. of Offices: 8 Managing Partner & CEO: William T. Quicksilver Hiring Partner(s): William T. Quicksilver EMPLOYMENT CONTACT Susan Reonegro National Recruiting Manager Phone: (212) sreonegro@manatt.com Advertising, Marketing & Media Banking & Financial Services Clean Tech/Renewable Energy Corporate Energy & Natural Resources Entertainment/Media Government & Regulatory Healthcare Insurance Intellectual Property Labor & Employment Litigation Mergers & Acquisitions Real Estate & Land Use Tax Technology Vault.com Inc.

2 Who s Who Does the firm have one or more pro bono coordinators and/or partners? If so, how many? 2 For each of your pro bono coordinators and/or partners, please specify how much of his/her time is spent on pro bono work and/ or administering the firm s pro bono program. Pro Bono Coordinator/Partner 1 All of his/her time Pro Bono Coordinator/Partner 2 All of his/her time Please provide the primary pro bono contact(s) s information below. Cristin Zeisler Partner & Director of Pro Bono Services Phone: (310) czeisler@manatt.com Gisella Soto Pro Bono Paralegal Phone: (310) gsoto@manatt.com Does the firm have a pro bono committee? How often does the committee meet? At least quarterly and additionally as needed for special projects/intakes Please describe the composition of the committee. Manatt s pro bono committee consists of the firm s director of pro bono services and other partners (or counsel) from each office who are appointed by the firm s managing partner, based on recommendations from the office administrative partners. THE SCOOP Does your firm have a written pro bono policy? Can associates bring pro bono matters of interest to the firm? How does the firm decide whether to take on a pro bono matter? Our director of pro bono services, who is also a partner, initially reviews each potential new matter, whether proposed through an established relationship with a legal services organization or through the initiative of our own attorneys, to determine whether it involves pro bono service that fits within the parameters of the Pro Bono Institute s Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge definition as further refined by the firm. When a matter passes this initial review, the members of the firm s pro bono committee and intake committee collaborate our time, resources, and expertise so that we can render meaningful, high-quality assistance to the client. Has the firm signed on to the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge? What are some of the areas of law in which your firm has performed pro bono legal work since 2010? Arts and historic preservation, Asylum, Child advocacy, Civil rights, Community economic development, Death penalty defense, Disability benefits, Domestic violence, Education, Elder law, Employment, Environment, Fair housing/tenants rights, First Amendment and constitutional issues, HIV/ AIDS advocacy, Holocaust reparations, Homeless advocacy, Immigration, Indigent criminal defense, International human rights, Juvenile justice reform/children s rights, Nonprofit corporate law, Nonprofit incorporation/tax exemptions, Nonprofit intellectual property, Parole hearings, Probate law, Public benefits, Real estate transactions, Social Security law, Veterans benefits/appeals, Voting rights Are there areas of law in which, as a matter of policy or practice, your firm does not perform pro bono work? Malpractice, Personal Injury, Workers Compensation List up to 10 of your firm s pro bono clients or partners since 2010, including legal service providers or clearinghouses. ABA Death Penalty Project Bet Tzedek, House of Justice California Women s Law Center Human Rights First Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Learning Rights Law Center Legal Aid Societies Public Counsel Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless Western Center on Law & Poverty List up to three representative examples of your firm s pro bono matters since Please limit your answer to a short paragraph per matter. Criminal Defense Cases: In the last several years, Manatt has taken up more cases representing indigent inmates and destitute defendants. In 2011, Manatt filed a parole hearing appeal on behalf of a New York State prisoner who had repeatedly been denied parole notwithstanding an exceptional Visit for company rankings, ratings and reviews to learn what it s really like to work in an industry or company and how to position yourself to land that job. 381

3 rehabilitation record. Though parole was denied, Manatt s work was recognized by The Legal Aid Society, and the lawyers were invited to participate in the Society s Criminal Defense Pro Bono project, an exceedingly rare opportunity. The same year, Manatt took over the appeal of BK, convicted of 1st degree murder in California on evidence that does not support the verdict and whose appellate counsel was woefully inadequate. On Alabama s death row since 2003, Manatt client EG received an order in 2010 for a new trial from his post-conviction judge (who also oversaw his trial) based on findings that his original counsel was ineffective on several levels and that prosecutors withheld evidence. However, EG remains on death row pending State appeal. We continue to represent EG who maintains his innocence. We also took the case of an Arizona death row inmate at the post-conviction relief (PCR) stage after prior counsel was declared medically incompetent. Granting our motion to file a new PCR petition, the judge established for the first time in AZ that a capital defendant has the right to competent PCR counsel under the constitution and under state law. Our follow-on investigations uncovered substantial mitigation evidence and new facts that warrant a new trial as to guilt. Motions are pending. At the request of Judge Robinson (S.D.N.Y.), we represented KT, a 19-year-old African-American accused of sexually assaulting an 18-year-old Caucasian female. The woman, who was intoxicated the night of the incident, committed suicide six months after the alleged attack took place. Manatt resolved the matter with KT s agreement to a token payment and a short period of community service. Family Fraud Cases: We secured wins for at-risk clients victimized by family members. For Augie, a blind diabetic double amputee, we recovered property that was unconsciously signed over to his niece. After she enticed our chronically ill client to live with her, he entered into a diabetic coma within days. He woke to find his legs amputated and his condo and bank accounts in her name. We prepared for litigation on several grounds, including the abuse of a dependent adult. When the lawsuit was ready, she opted to comply with a letter we sent that set forth the facts and gave her a chance to return everything to Augie. Similarly, we represented the Angulo family, a low-income elderly couple, in a housing/mortgage fraud committed against them by their son. The son duped his father into signing a fraudulent deed that granted ownership of their house. We filed a complaint against the son to quiet title to their properties and filed an unlawful detainer complaint to evict him. He settled on the eve of trial. Housing Stability Work: In 2009, Manatt s pro bono legislative efforts helped to make California the first state in the nation to establish a pilot project to promote a right to counsel for low-income litigants in life-changing civil proceedings. The Sargent Shriver Civil Counsel Act enabled seven legal service teams across the state to take on 3-year projects devoted to helping low-income litigants to secure housing, safety, and family protections. The largest project, the Shriver Housing Project - L.A., offers volunteers a chance to be involved in the largest and most dramatic experiment in legal services since the 1970s. Since the Shriver Housing Project - L.A. began in March 2012, Manatt has represented more than a dozen low-income families and individuals facing eviction, in many instances staving off homelessness or negotiating for much needed repairs to be made in slum housing units. Attorneys in our San Francisco, Palo Alto, and New York offices also assisted low-income tenants with negotiating favorable settlements with public housing authorities and private landlords. Our work in Marin county led to discoveries that have launched a class action on behalf of public housing residents. List up to three pro bono matters that are highlights (e.g., a Supreme Court case). Please limit your answer to a short paragraph per matter. Antelope Valley Elevator Case: Desiree R. is a 17-year-old high school senior with a 3.8 GPA and a disease called Charcot- Marie-Tooth Disease, a genetic progressive neurological disorder that makes it impossible to ascend and descend stairs. Because of her disability, she could only access the school s second floor via an elevator, which requires a key that Desiree was repeatedly denied. We helped her file suit against her school district in federal district court, citing violations of the ADA, Section 504, and the California Unruh Act. At the preliminary injunction hearing, the Court ruled for Desiree in a rare published opinion which detailed how the school excluded her from educational and related activities on account of her disability and ordered the school to provide her with the elevator key and to implement policies and practices in compliance with the law. Desiree s story and Manatt s victory were featured on the CBS-Los Angeles 11 o clock news, which can be viewed at com/4znychp. The decision is available at 2010 WL (C.D. Cal). Title IX Class Action: Representing female high school athletes in a precedent-setting class action, Manatt and co-counsel (California Women s Law Center and the Legal Aid Society/Employment Law Center) brought the nation s first ever K 12-level Title IX case to trial. Facing significant discrepancies in sports opportunities and facilities offered by San Diego County s Sweetwater Union High School District, our young clients were forced to clean animal feces and used condoms to keep their fields useable, had limited access to weight training and sports facilities, and were denied recruitment, training, and development activities that were made available to the boys. On February 10, 2012, Judge James M. Lorenz of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California ruled in favor of our clients, determining the school district unfairly favored boys sports over girls sports at Castle Park High School by giving the boys better athletic facilities, resources and opportunities. In his order, Judge Lorenz noted: The balance of hardships weighs firmly in plaintiffs favor. The inequalities demonstrated at trial should have been rectified years ago by the district plaintiffs are entitled to injunctive relief. Holocaust Survivors Justice Network 2.0: After establishing the single largest pro bono legal effort in US history with the Holocaust Survivors Justice Network, Manatt was instrumental in implementing HSJN 2.0. The 120+ participating law firms secured over $11 million for survivors. Manatt secured over $1 million in reparations through 2011, more than any other firm. Launched in 2008 with Bet Tzedek Legal Services, HSJN provides free legal help to Holocaust survivors applying for ghetto work reparations through Vault.com Inc.

4 the German government. Legal assistance is essential, as the applications are complex. A high percentage of survivors without representation are denied. HSJN 2.0 began in late 2009 following rulings in German federal court providing survivors previously denied pensions reconsideration and dramatically increasing available funds, making HSJN s assistance all the more critical. Throughout 2011, Manatt worked to lead HSJN 2.0 in multiple markets and to provide front-line assistance to survivors in our local communities. BY THE NUMBERS What is the total number of hours that lawyers at your U.S. office(s) spent performing pro bono legal services, as defined by the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge, in 2010 and 2011? Do not include summer associate or non-lawyer pro bono hours in your answers. Total number of pro bono hours in 2010: 24,597 Total number of pro bono hours in 2011: 20,295 What was the attorney headcount in your firm s U.S. offices? Number of attorneys as of December 31, 2010: 338 Number of attorneys as of December 31, 2011: 339 Using the number of attorneys listed above, what is the average number of pro bono hours per attorney in your firm s U.S. office(s) during the following years? Average number of hours per attorney in 2010: 73 Average number of hours per attorney in 2011: 60 What percentage of attorneys employed during 2010 and 2011 in your firm s U.S. office(s) did at least 20 hours of pro bono during that calendar year? Percentage of attorneys who did pro bono work in 2010: 71 80% Percentage of attorneys who did pro bono work in 2011: 61 70% SUPERVISION AND EVALUATIONS Is there partner supervision on all pro bono matters? Do partner supervisors or, if applicable, senior associates provide written evaluations of associates work on pro bono matters? Are those evaluations taken into account in determining salary or bonuses?, they are taken into account when determining salary, they are taken into account when determining bonuses Are those evaluations taken into account in determining advancement within the firm? Is there a pro bono requirement at your firm? What is the requirement and to whom does it apply? The firm, as an entity, has committed itself to ensuring that three to five percent of our annual billable time is focused on providing pro bono services. We expect each attorney to actively participate in our collective service efforts, while recognizing that an individual s level of participation may vary from year to year. Does the firm give billable hour credit for pro bono work? Does the firm have a maximum number of pro bono hours that can be applied toward the billable hour target? What is the maximum number of pro bono hours that can be applied toward the billable hour target? Unlimited Does the firm consider pro bono hours when determining bonuses? No PRO BONO POINTS What training opportunities are open to associates working on pro bono matters? Manatt regularly invites legal service providers and community organizations to provide in-house training sessions, which we also open to attorneys from other firms. We encourage attorneys at all levels of the profession to attend off-site training programs offered by legal services organizations (and frequently underwritten by the firm) in connection with projects that are of interest to our lawyers. We have instituted immigration, guardianship, adoption, Holocaust reparations, and veterans benefits practice groups to provide ongoing support to attorneys working in such projects for which we have a deep and ongoing involvement. In the course of our regular practice, the firm provides numerous CLE programs related to our standard practice areas. Our attorneys often use that training, as well as the experience they gain working on similar matters for both pro bono and fee-paying clients, in connection with new pro bono matters that they may handle. Does the firm offer the use of support staff in handling pro bono matters? Visit for company rankings, ratings and reviews to learn what it s really like to work in an industry or company and how to position yourself to land that job. 383

5 Please indicate how many total hours and average hours per person your summer associates spent performing pro bono in 2010 and Total hours summer associates spent on pro bono work 2010: : 324 Average hours per summer associate spent on pro bono work 2010: : 65 Percentage of summer associates in your firm s U.S. office(s) engaged in pro bono work 2010: 100% 2011: 100% Please provide any additional information about pro bono opportunities available to summer associates. During a special start-of-summer information session conducted by our director of pro bono services (with active participation from numerous firm leaders), we present a wide range of pro bono opportunities from which summer associates are encouraged to select at least two matters. All summer associates also have the opportunity to work with our existing pro bono clients and to take on new matters on the same basis available to all firm attorneys. Does the firm have established programs, such as externships, that enable its associates to work in a public interest setting? No What other law-related public interest and community service programs (that are not pro bono as defined by the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge) do you offer and manage? For example, list any law school collaborations and public interest scholarships, auctions at law schools, monetary support, or fellowships. Manatt offers financial assistance to legal service organizations serving the poor in each city where we maintain offices. Firm members also serve on these organizations boards as well as other charitable institutions. We support public interest scholarship programs and auctions at the law schools from which our summer associates have come and with which we have deep and meaningful connections. In addition, firm members often lead and participate in law firm challenges issued by the alumni offices of various schools typically attaining the highest levels of support and recognition. We annually sponsor a California Bar Foundation Diversity Scholar and have a partner sitting on the Foundation s board, which also administers public interest scholarships, pipeline programs, and significant grant awards to California s IOLTA-funded programs. Our attorneys are active in various moot court programs across the country, serving as judges and coaches for the teams. Members of our appellate practice group helped to develop and continue to lead and volunteer with the Appellate Court Experience program for the California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, which provides high school students with an opportunity to deepen their understanding of the judicial system. The firm partners with the Constitutional Rights Foundation, the Orange County Bar Foundation, and Verbum Dei schools to provide law-related learning opportunities for high school students both by sending firm representatives into the classroom and by sponsoring students to work in our offices. Many of our partners and counsel serve in leadership capacities in on the pro bono/legal services/trust fund committees of state and local bars and the ABA. What non-law related volunteer opportunities does your firm offer? For example, list any work with high school students and non-legal volunteerism for organizations like Habitat for Humanity. In 2008 we launched the Manatt Volunteer Program (MVP) to provide up to three full, paid days off per year to all non-attorney staff so that they can participate in volunteer activities of their choice during the work day. MVP participants have taken time off to read to children, rehabilitate environmental habitats, teach computer skills to seniors, serve food to shut-ins and the homeless, teach arts and music courses to inner city youth and many more worthwhile endeavors. Each of our five largest offices annually undertake a major all-day community service project through organizations such as Rebuilding Together, HandsOn, NY Cares, and Big Sunday. Hundreds of Manatt attorneys, employees and their families come together for these service days. All offices regularly host collection drives to provide supplies and support to U.S. troops serving abroad, children in local foster care programs, homeless youth, disaster survivors, abused women and other in need. Beneficiary organizations include (among others) the American Red Cross, Bread for the City, Bright Beginnings, Coalition of Community Clinics, D.C. Child and Family Service Agency, FAITH, Families Forward, Habitat for Humanity, Los Angeles Regional Food Bank, New York Cares, Operation HOPE, Peace First, Para Los Ninos, Pediatric AIDS/ HIV Care, Inc., Second Harvest Food Bank and Working Wardrobes. In addition, firm employees often gather together after-hours to serve food at local homeless shelters, build Habitat for Humanity homes, participate in community beautification efforts and mentor at-risk youth. Finally, our attorneys and employees regularly team up to participate in physically active fundraisers such as walk-athons, marathons, bowl-athons, bike races, dance competitions, go-cart racing and others. Whenever a team of Manatt employees gathers together to support a cause in this way, the firm supplements their charitable efforts by making a donation to the beneficiary organizations Vault.com Inc.

6 Please list any special recognition or awards your firm has won since 2010 for its pro bono work and 2012: Bar Association of San Francisco s Volunteer Legal Services Program (2011) Legal Services for Children Pro Bono Law Firm of the Year (2011 and 2012) Learning Rights Law Center Breaking Education Barriers Award (2011) Los Angeles County Bar Association Armed Forces Committee, Law Firm Service to Veterans (2012) 2010: AIDS Legal Referral Panel Pro Bono Champion Bar Association of San Francisco s Volunteer Legal Services Program Outstanding Law Firm in Public Interest DC Judicial Council s Forty at Fifty Pro Bono Recognition Legal Aid Association of California s Award of Merit Legal Aid of Marin Outstanding Pro Bono Service Award National Law Journal Pro Bono Award New Direction s Community Hero Award U.S. Dept. of Defense Seven Seals Award Western Center on Law & Poverty Brinsley Award for Pro Bono Leadership Volunteers of Legal Services (NY) Pro Bono Service Award Individual Awards since 2010: Public Counsel Adoptions Unit Pro Bono Attorneys of the Year (Duchesneau, Cohen, 2012) California Women s Law Center Abby J. Leibman Pursuit of Justice Award (Zeisler, 2012) Legal Services (NY) Pro Bono Publico Award (German Di Shino, 2011 and 2012) American Lawyer Lifetime Achievement (Levy, 2011) Bet Tzedek Pro Bono Attorney of the Year (Zeisler, 2011) Legal Aid Society of NY Pro Bono Publico Award (Blum) Legal Service NYC Pro Bono Honoree (German Di Schino) Public Counsel Pro Bono Volunteer of the Year (Castillo, 2011) Bar Association of San Francisco s Volunteer Legal Service Program Outstanding Volunteers in Public Interest Awards (Baker, Balok, Eppler) Public Counsel Law Center Volunteer of the Year (Alonso, 2010) California Lawyer Attorney of the Year Awards (Bassak, Levy, Mayne, McMorrow, 2010) New York Lawyers for the Public Interest Pro Bono All-Star (Sheehan, 2010) Los Angeles Business Journal Nonprofit and Corporate Citizenship Award (Elson, 2011) Please add any additional information about your firm s pro bono program. We believe in the justice system. We excel at advocating, functioning, and negotiating within that system. And we are unwaveringly committed to helping others access that system. From its inception, has provided essential leadership in the communities in which it practices, while providing pro bono legal services to an ever-increasing number and variety of clients. We launched a revitalized Public Interest Initiative in 2005 by creating a full-time management position to organize and expand our involvement in pro bono, charitable, and community outreach activities on a national basis. As a result of this initiative, the firm increased its provision of pro bono services by 400 percent from 6,500 hours in 2004 to nearly 25,000 hours in As a result, literally hundreds of individuals have received legal services who otherwise would have gone without representation. Recognizing the value of this service to our community and our firm, we elevated our director of pro bono services to partner status effective January 1, Historically, our pro bono clients have run the gamut from individuals for whom we seek justice in the courts, to a wide variety of nonprofit organizations that can better serve our communities thanks to our pro bono assistance. We always have been at the forefront of the fight for justice on behalf of the poor and under-resourced. Indeed, several of our lawyers founded or were otherwise involved with creating major legal service providers (such as Public Counsel and Bet Tzedek in Los Angeles and Human Rights First in New York). Our attorneys continue to serve as leaders of these and many more legal services organizations across the country. Our attorneys serve as leaders of and provide pro bono legal services to numerous civil and human rights organizations, youth service groups, civic entities such as museums and arts organizations of almost every kind, and other, smaller entities that sometimes struggle to survive but nevertheless bring relief and assistance to vulnerable members of our society. To reflect the broad array of our attorneys civic involvement, we actively encourage our lawyers to undertake pro bono matters that are personally interesting to them. We especially support those who present pro bono opportunities for consideration by the firm. Associates who devote time to firm approved pro bono matters receive recognition and full credit for that time in the same manner as for commercial clients, with all such time counting for both billable hours and bonuses. Partners and counsel, too, receive collections credit for time devoted to pro bono clients. The firm and its lawyers treat all pro bono matters with the same level of diligence as is given to all clients. We bring our full resources to bear on every matter that we undertake for every client that we serve, regardless of that client s ability to pay for our services. We are proud of our history of service and excited by opportunities to continue serving in creative and effective ways. Visit for company rankings, ratings and reviews to learn what it s really like to work in an industry or company and how to position yourself to land that job. 385