CBA Record September-October 2026

THE YOUNG LAWYERS SECTION

theme with minors who had been hospitalized because of abuse when assisting them in obtaining release from prolonged hospitalizations. There, Baker says, “I saw bullying’s corrosive effect on young students,” as students suffered self-harm, body dysmorphia, eating disorders, or died by suicide or other means. School Shooting Fuels a New Anti-Bullying Endeavor In the aftermath of the 2018 school shooting in Parkland, Florida, Baker’s frustra tion and outrage fueled a new endeavor. After researching school shootings, Baker learned that 92% of school shooters were by current or former students at the targeted school. Depending on the data source, extreme and repeated school bullying motivated between 60% to over 90% of the shootings. This data resonated with Baker as he considered his experiences with institutional ized minors. He approached Diane C. Geraghty, his former constitutional law professor and co-founder of the Civitas Child Law Center at Loyola University Chicago School of Law. When he suggested that Civitas house an Anti-Bullying Project to prevent and intervene in bullying, Geraghty agreed, if Baker would fund it. The project began with a focus of direct casework, research, and promoting aware ness by establishing a hotline and blanketing schools with posters displaying the hotline and website. The program then was introduced to school administrators charged with addressing behavioral issues and special needs students. The program sought to notify schools of its existence and its utility as a safety net for “children, youth, young adults, and families in crisis, including those experiencing and engaging in bullying behavior.” Today, the project is one of the busier programs at Civitas, working in myriad ways to disrupt instances of school bullying before they escalate into more dangerous out comes. The clinical team—a mix of full-time faculty and staff, outside counsel, law student volunteers, and pro bono counsel like Baker—intervene through direct repre sentation, networking and community collaboration, and policy and systemic reform. For example, the project succeeded in a request for review before the Illinois Human Rights Commission of a departmental dismissal of a bullying complaint. It also negoti ated a safety plan with a school district to protect a student who suffered bullying and harassment on campus. In another successful intervention, the program successfully represented a student who faced school expulsion after defending himself from school bullying, in the absence of institutional support. Begin Your Own Pro Bono Odyssey Baker’s pro bono progression demonstrates how, at any stage, our careers are a culmina tion of our skills, interests, and capabilities. Young attorneys may not be able to launch a full-blown clinic to address a social concern. Rather, as Baker did, we can serve clients from our best position at any given career stage. We might start with inconsistently sourced matters before tapping into reliable sources for referrals. All the while, pro bono work supports an expansion of our practical skills and confi dence while changing lives—either with one client at a time, or eventually at scale such as by representing organizations like NHS, or by influencing policy, as with the Anti Bullying Project. To start, we just need a problem to solve and a client to serve—and both are abundantly available. Practitioners interested in learning more about the Anti-Bullying Project may contact Miranda Johnson, Clinical Professor of Law at Loyola University Chicago School of Law, at mjohnson11@luc.edu. Individuals interested in contributing to the program may contact John Osterlund, Head of Development at Loyola University Chicago School of Law, at josterlund@luc.edu.

David A. Baker

of court for his efforts before his own pro bono counsel obtained his release. That case generated significant interest, and the firm eventually appointed a full-time pro bono coordinator, yielding an even more diverse pool of cases and referral sources.

Maintaining Pro Bono and Fee-Based Practices

Baker’s pro bono work developed alongside his fee-based practice. As he took fee-based cases involving charities, he also took on pro bono tax or regulatory matters for charitable organizations. In a notable pro bono case, Baker helped protect the Naperville Heritage Society from efforts to curb or even dis mantle its stewardship of the parkland that occupies downtown Naperville, Illi nois. Founded in the 1930s to preserve Naperville’s historic central city and parks, NHS grew into a multi-acre downtown museum complex. However, some com munity members sought to shut down the NHS due to political conflicts over certain museum programming. After over three years of pro bono litigation representation, Baker helped to secure a perpetual operat ing agreement for the NHS, preserving its historical value and ensuring that NHS will continue to serve the community. His volunteer work with hospitals revealed instances in which legal or social issues often trapped vulnerable elderly patients or minors in medical facili ties long past an appropriate date of dis charge. He started to notice a consistent

CBA RECORD 35