Quarles & Brady LLP has for many years demonstrated an enthusiastic commitment to the provision of pro bono legal services. We consider it our duty to help to ensure that justice is available to all persons, regardless of income, and we strive to provide quality legal representation for those in our communities who are least able to pay, yet most in need of those services. It is ingrained in our Firm culture.

That dedication and commitment constantly drives us to do more. Rather than be satisfied with the already high level of pro bono representation we provide, we search for other ways to serve and more projects to which we can direct our resources. It is our intent to set the bar higher.

For instance, we are an enthusiastic signatory to the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge^®, which is administered by the Pro Bono Institute’s Law Firm Pro Bono Project, of which we are a member. We have “challenged” ourselves to contribute, at a minimum, an amount of time equal to three percent of the Firm’s total billable hours, or 60 hours per attorney, to pro bono work. Additionally illustrating our commitment to the “challenge,” we offer the unique distinction of providing hour-for-hour credit to our attorneys for their pro bono service to indigent persons. Attorneys from all of our offices take part in the Challenge.

Quarles and Brady has received both office and firmwide honors in the pro bono area. Examples of firmwide and office pro bono awards, include:

• In 2010, Quarles & Brady was selected as a winner of a Beacon of Justice Award from the National Legal Aid & Defender Association for work on immigration matters.
  
  
• The Naples office was named the 2010 Law Firm of the Year by the Legal Aid Service of Collier County.
  
  
• The team of Milwaukee attorneys that represents victims of domestic abuse in court proceedings received the 2010 law firm award from the State Bar of Wisconsin.

The firmwide dedication to pro bono also was reflected statistically.

• In our 2011 fiscal year, Quarles & Brady lawyers recorded 18,615 pro bono hours — the equivalent of approximately 9 full-time lawyers — with 85 percent of those hours devoted to indigent persons or organizations that serve indigent persons.
  
  
• Firm attorneys averaged 42 pro bono hours for the fiscal year.
  
  
• We opened 225 new pro bono files in fiscal year 2011 and, including our clinic work, served approximately 500 individuals and 95 organizations.
  
  
• We ranked 20^th nationally in the Best Pro Bono Program category in the influential VAULT survey.
  
  
• In the last three years, 20 Quarles & Brady lawyers have won awards and recognition for their pro bono work.
  
  
• We “loaned” associates to several legal service providers to assist them in their important work.

The pro bono highlights below are categorized by office. Click on the links below to view specific office highlights:

Chicago
Madison
Milwaukee
Naples
Phoenix
Tampa
Tucson

Chicago

• Ninety-two percent of Chicago associates provided pro bono representation and averaged 134 hours of pro bono legal services.
  
  
• Coordinated by partner Ted Yi, the Chicago office began a partnership with the Chinatown Pro Bono Legal Clinic, staffing the clinic and providing training for others interested in the clinic’s work.
  
  
• Pro bono attorneys in the Chicago office provided legal services to dozens of organizations, including the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law and Big Brothers Big Sisters. They also represented individuals on a pro bono basis regarding guardianships, immigration/asylum issues, landlord-tenant problems and estate planning.
  
  
• Office attorneys continued their involvement in the Firm’s pro bono criminal appeals program, taking cases on referral from the Court of Appeals for the 7^th Circuit.
  
  
• Steven Hunter received a pro bono service award from the Loyola University Law School.
  
  
• Norah Jones, of the Tax-Exempt Organizations Group, provided pro bono assistance to 42 organizations, including advice to the Wisconsin Supreme Court regarding the organization of its new Access to Justice Commission and the securing of tax-exempt status for that Commission.

Madison

• Madison partners had the Firm’s highest average number of pro bono hours in the 2010 fiscal year, and 79 percent of the partners provided pro bono representation.
  
  
• The office continued as an active participant in the Dane County Family Court Assistance project, and pro bono lawyers provided a wide variety of legal services in virtually all areas of the law, including transactional work for organizations and representation of individuals in the areas of asylum, civil rights, Social Security disability, family law, labor and employment, and domestic abuse.
  
  
• Representation of three mentally ill prisoners by a team of Greg Everts, Elyce Wos and Cristina Choi caused the State of Wisconsin’s Department of Corrections to change its practices and regulations regarding administrative confinement and screening of such prisoners.
  
  
• Led by office pro bono coordinator and immigration lawyer Grant Sovern, the office began a partnership with the Community Immigration Law Center.

Milwaukee

• Fifty percent of the lawyers in the Milwaukee office recorded more than 20 hours of pro bono legal services and the office averaged 69 hours per attorney.
  
  
• Sixty-five percent of all pro bono hours in Milwaukee were recorded by nonlitigators.
  
  
• The office continued its partnership with Marquette University Law School in staffing a legal clinic on the South Side of Milwaukee and partnered with Children’s Hospital, the Medical College of Wisconsin and Marquette University to staff the Legal-Medical Partnership at the Downtown Health Center. The Milwaukee office also continued its partnership with Children’s Hospital of Milwaukee in a guardianship clinic.
  
  
• Corporate associate Chris Russell was “loaned” to Catholic Charities to work in immigration law, and health law associate Andy Monfre worked as a loaned associate at the Milwaukee County Justice Center, a walk-in clinic at the courthouse.
  
  
• The office’s Domestic Abuse Injunction team, led by Natalie Remington, received another award, this time from the State Bar of Wisconsin.
  
  
• Mike Gonring, the Firm’s national pro bono coordinator, was appointed to the board of the new Wisconsin Access to Justice Commission and chairs its Delivery of Legal Services Committee.
  
  
• Habitat for Humanity honored us for the legal work we have provided, the value of which is well in excess of
  $1 million.

Naples

• The Naples office led the Firm with 33 percent of its attorneys providing over 50 hours of pro bono services, and
  56 percent recording more than 20 hours, including 44 percent of the partners.
  
  
• Every associate in the Naples office recorded pro bono hours.
  
  
• Eric Veenstra received a Special Recognition Award from the Legal Aid Service of Collier County.
  
  
• The office continued its broad range of representation to Fun Time Early Childhood Academy and St. Matthew’s House, both organizations serving poor people. Office pro bono lawyers also provided significant representation in adoption cases and in a wide variety of other areas.

Phoenix

• The Phoenix office led the Firm in increased number of pro bono hours for the 2010 fiscal year.
  
  
• The office continued its strong partnership with the Volunteer Lawyers Program of Maricopa County, providing representation in a wide range of areas, including consumer rights, guardianships and landlord-tenant.
  
  
• Sarah Anchors and Simone Colgan Dunlap were named Top Pro Bono Attorneys by the Arizona Foundation for Legal Services & Education.
  
  
• Jaclyn Johnson, Christine Cassetta and Rachel Robertson were named Lawyers of the Month by the Volunteer Lawyers Program.
  
  
• Kate Moore provided the legal assistance for the Arizona Science Museum’s acquisition of the entire collection of the Phoenix Museum of History and the annexation of over 15,000 square feet of exhibit space.

Tampa

• The Tampa office has an ongoing relationship with Bay Area Legal Services, which refers cases in a number of areas, including housing, family law, and consumer law.
  
  
• The office also regularly takes judicial pro bono appointments from local bankruptcy judges.

Tucson

• The office sustained its long partnerships with The Southern Arizona Legal Aid Volunteer Lawyer Program and the Volunteer Lawyer Program of Pima County.
  
  
• Pro Bono legal services were provided in a multitude of areas, including veteran’s rights, landlord-tenant, guardianship and consumer’s rights. The office also helped staff the self-help clinic at the United States Bankruptcy Court.
  
  
• Gavin Milczarek-Desai continued to serve as one of Arizona’s top pro bono attorneys in the area of voter’s rights, providing nonpartisan representation to several organizations devoted to that cause.