The ABA Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service has recognized Husch Blackwell as an ABA Free Legal Answers Pro Bono Leader firm for 2021, the fourth year in a row the firm has earned this recognition.
Each year, the committee recognizes individual attorneys, law firms and law departments that have provided extraordinary pro bono services through ABA Free Legal Answers. In 2021, Husch Blackwell attorneys answered 486 civil legal questions, helping ensure that low-income individuals receive needed legal assistance. Associates Yasmin Stiggons of Chattanooga and Bernardo Zito Porto of Kansas City, as well as firm alumna Sally Townsley of U.S. Silica Holdings Inc., also received individual ABA Free Legal Answers Pro Bono Leader recognition for the volume of questions they answered in 2021.
“Husch Blackwell attorneys and staff transitioned to working from home in March 2020 with the rest of the nation, and Free Legal Answers was a perfect fit for our attorneys working in the new virtual environment,” said Margaret Richards, Husch Blackwell’s director of pro bono services. “With most of the in-person legal aid clinics suspended again in 2021, many vulnerable people continued to experience unmet legal needs. Fortunately, our attorneys jumped right in—online, that is—and gave back to our communities by doing so.”
Throughout 2021, a total of 668 Husch Blackwell attorneys & professionals across the firm participated in performing 25,890 total hours of pro bono legal assistance, providing access to legal services to 392 organizations and 493 individuals.