CBA Record September-October 2022

Chicago Bar Foundation Report

Pro Bono and Public Service Heroes Take Center Stage By Mehroz Mohammed, CBF Summer Law Student Extern M ore than 400 people gathered recently to honor seven heroes in our legal community at the Justice Thomas L. Kilbride Public Service Award

academic excellence of each institution she served but also to fostering a com f mitment to giving back to the community of each individual student. During her time at DePaul, she has created programs and instituted reforms that have increased the bar passage rate and the admissions +U,(O+U2U0)* s* pULL s* )PU *WP//L5* national ranking, while continuing to nur f )(+U )PU Lsp *WP//L5* L/0Q*)s0VO0Q W/2f mitment to public service. She has also *OQ0OuWs0)Ln O0W+Us*UV zb^ O0O)Os)O'U* s) the school. Edward J. Lewis II Pro Bono Service Award Shelisa Thomas started as an associate at =MsVVU0g #+-*g =Ls)Ug YUsQPU+ . aL/2 LLP after graduating cum laude from Northwestern Pritzker School of Law in 2019. She already has committed more than 1,800 hours to pro bono work. One of her most notable achievements is securing the resentencing and release of Corzell Cole earlier this year. Cole was convicted of murder and attempted murder at age 19 on an accountability theory of liability based on the actions of someone who was with him at the )O2U s0V PsV rUU0 uQP)O0Q )PU*U W/0'OWf tions for almost 20 years before he met Thomas. Thomas and her team worked )/ Ps'U !/LU5* /+OQO0sL *U0)U0WU 'sWs)UV and to secure his release in March 2022

Judge Catherine Schneider has been dedi f cated to legal aid, pro bono, and access to justice since she graduated from Loyola University School of Law in 1994. Of particular note, Judge Schneider served as a volunteer attorney, associate board member, and treasurer at CARPLS and served there for 10 years before becoming a judge. During her time as a LUQsL sOV LspnU+g *PU *sp u+*)Ps0V P/p VOSuW(L) O) ps* S/+ -+/ *U LO)OQs0)* )/ 0s'Of gate the legal system. When she heard sr/() )PU =(-+U2U !/(+)5* #WWU** )/ ](*f tice Commission, a project started by Jus f tice Kilbride himself, she jumped at the opportunity to simplify court processes S/+ *ULSf+U-+U*U0)UV LO)OQs0)* s0V Ps* s -s+)OW(Ls+Ln rOQ O2-sW) s* W/fWPsO+ /S )PU !/22O**O/05* a/+2* !/22O))UUe Jennifer Rosato Perea, Dean of DePaul University School of Law, has been a force for good in legal academia for many nUs+* s0V O* /0U /S )PU u+*) Zs)O0s Lsp school deans in the country. Affection f s)ULn M0/p0 s*

!"# s0V !"a5* JH)P #00(sL @+/ "/0/ and Public Service Awards Luncheon. The event again underscored that no matter where we are in the legal profession, we have a unique ability to make our com f munity a better place by improving access to justice for those most in need. Kimball R. AndersonandKarenGatsis Anderson Public Interest Fellowship XOW/LU =2O)P5* W/22O)2U0) )/ -(rLOW interest work has been apparent since her days as a law student at the Washing f ton University School of Law. As a staff attorney at Cabrini Green Legal Aid, she provides legal and educational services to youth in the southern suburbs of Cook County. She also helps people with past contact with the criminal justice system to move forward by helping them seal and expunge juvenile or criminal records. Smith embodies what it means to be committed to public service. She is empathetic, passionate, and dedicated to PU+ p/+Me #* )PO* nUs+5* +UWO-OU0) /S )PU Anderson fellowship, which includes a $50,000 award to help repay law school debt, she will be able to continue her work with CGLA, providing legal aid to the communities in Chicago that need it the most.

22 September/October 2022