Just

ice

For

All

VLS

C N

ewsl

ett

erSp

rin

g 2

016

ALA

MED

A C

OU

NT

Y B

AR A

SSO

CIA

TIO

N V

OLU

NT

EER L

EGA

L SE

RVIC

ES C

ORPO

RAT

ION

Justice for All: Celebrating Pro Bono 1

Board Member Profile 3

Updates to the VLSC Board of Directors 3 VLSC Board of Directors 3

Volunteer Spotlight: Matt Kretzer 4

In this issue:

AmazonSmile 4

Bay Area Legal Incubator (BALI) 5Guardians of Justice 2015 Donor Reception Recap 6

Domestic Violence Restraining Order Clinic Training 8

VLSC’s annual Justice for All: Celebrating Pro Bono event was held on May 5th at Scott’s Pavilion in Jack London Square. The evening featured a silent auction, a first-ever raffle, sit-down dinner, and presentation of the Volunteer of the Year award to Patricia Gutierrez de Sunseri, Rising Star award to Christina Cisneros, and the Pro Bono Leadership Award to Sally Elkington. Fifteen VLSC volunteers were presented with State Bar of California Wiley W. Manuel Certificates for performing over 50 pro bono hours in one year.

Continued...

Page 2

Justice Martin Jenkins delivered the keynote address, while VLSC/ACBA CEO Tiela Chalmers played emcee. VLSC President Michael Johnson gave opening remarks and VLSC Secretary-Treasurer Eric Handler presented the call to action. The evening’s celebration showed how equal access to justice still resonates strongly as an issue in our legal community and how important providing legal services to low-income clients remains.

Thanks to the generosity of 14 sponsoring firms and corporations, numerous individuals and East Bay businesses and organizations that donated silent auction and raffle items, and all of you who purchased tickets, bid in the auction, bought raffle tickets, or participated in our text-to-donate campaign,VLSC raised over $32,000 in one evening!

Justice for All: Celebrating Pro Bono

Jonathan Wong, Pamela Ross, Stephen Chung, and Justice James Lambden

Marshall Wallace, Judge Paul Herbert, and Judge Julia Spain

Jo-Anna Nieves, Eileen Eib, Arezou Bakhtjou, and Octavia Maxwell

Judge Thomas Nixon, Nikki Clark, and Judge Stephen Pulido

Standing ovation for Keynote Speaker Justice Martin Jenkins

2015 recipients of the Wiley Manuel Certificate

VLSC President Michael Johnson and Justice Martin Jenkins

Volunteer of the Year Patricia Gutierrez de Sunseri and Rising Star Christina

Cisneros

Judge Stuart Hing, Rhoda Hing, Pro Bono Leadership award recipient Sally Elkington, and Judge Tara Flanagan

Page 3

OFFICERS

Michael P. Johnson, President, AT&T Inc.

Janice Cho, Vice PresidentLaw Office of Janice Cho

Eric Handler, Secretary-Treasurer, Donahue Fitzgerald LLP

BOARD MEMBERS

Judge Kimberly Colwell, Superior Court of California, County of Alameda

Judge Tara Flanagan, Superior Court of California, County of Alameda

Carolyn Henel, Roisman Henel LLP

Justice James Lambden (Ret.), ADR Services

Élan Consuella Lambert, Lambert Legal Consulting

Michael Loeb, JAMS—The Resolution Experts

Cheryl Poncini,Alameda County District Attorney’s Office

Ruben Sundeen,Sundeen, Salinas, & Pyle LLP

Judge Alison Tucher, Superior Court of California, County of Alameda

Marshall Wallace, Allen Matkins Leck Gamble Mallory & Natsis LLP

Tiela Chalmers, ex officio, Alameda County Bar Association

2016 VLSC Board of Directors

Neil Rubenstein joined the VLSC Board of Directors in April 2015, shortly after his February 2015 retirement as a shareholder in Buchalter Nemer. During his 38-year career as an attorney, Neil represented banks and other companies in a wide variety of financing, business, real estate, litigation and bankruptcy matters.

Neil retired from Buchalter Nemer

Board Member Profile

We would like to thank departing Board members Brian Doucette, Scott Jackson and David Carrillo for their service. We are grateful for their contributions, and wish them well in their future endeavors!

Please also help us welcome Cheryl Poncini to the VLSC Board. We’re excited to have her join the team.

Interested in joining the VLSC Board? Contact Christina Wiellette at christina@acbanet.org, or (510) 302-2216.

Updates to the VLSC Board of Directors

in order to devote more time to community and charitable activities. In addition to his service as a member of the VLSC Board of Directors, Neil currently does pro bono legal work through VLSC, serves as a mediator for the Alameda County Superior Court, and works on a volunteer basis as a counselor for the East Bay Chapter of SCORE Association. SCORE is a national organization affiliated with the U.S. Small Business Administration that provides free counseling and low-cost workshops for entrepreneurs and small businesses. Neil is also vice president of the Board of Directors of the Altarena Playhouse, a 78-year-old community theatre located in Alameda.

Neil graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1974 and from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law in 1977.

Neil and his wife, Anna, have one son and two grandchildren.

Page 4

Why do you volunteer with VLSC?

I’m a retired bankruptcy lawyer. When I retired, I knew I would need to get involved in something to keep myself from watching television all day. I also knew that a lot of low income debtors get their bankruptcy advice from non-attorneys and paralegals that not only charge to complete the paperwork, but who also don’t know enough to be giving out bankruptcy advice.

Volunteering for the bankruptcy clinic seemed like an obvious choice for putting my skills to work and keeping me busy.

Do you have a particularly memorable VLSC client or pro bono case?

One client that sticks in my mind was an Uber driver. The trustee, through the Court, forced him to shut down his one car business when he filed bankruptcy. I helped him file a motion to force the trustee to abandon the business so he could continue earning his sole source of income. This was an easy thing for me to do, and very meaningful to the debtor.

What other community activities are you involved in?

I also volunteer as a tutor for kindergartners and third graders at the Sankofa Academy,

a public school on the border of Oakland and Berkeley. I do this through Experience Corps.

What are you listening to on your iPod right now?

I’m listening to the podcast “Reveal.” It’s a fascinating investigative reporting podcast.

What is one thing you wish our donors and supporters knew about VLSC?

I wish they knew how many people need our services and how easy the VLSC makes it to give them.

VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT: MATT KRETZER

Matt KretzerVLSC Bankruptcy Clinic Volunteer

https://smile.amazon.com/

“Volunteering for the bankruptcy clinic seemed like an obvious choice for putting my skills to work and keeping me busy.”

Page 5

What is the Bay Area Legal Incubator (BALI) and how did it start?

Bay Area Legal Incubator (BALI) is a vital new program of VLSC, in collaboration with 5 Bay Area Law Schools and the Alameda County Law Library. BALI is not a law firm. It is a community of solo attorneys dedicated to providing affordable legal services and promoting social justice.

BALI provides a two-year program to help attorneys accelerate the launch of solo practices serving low-and middle-income clients in a wide spectrum of practice areas. Local communities benefit from increased access to affordable legal assistance. Attorneys benefit from a shared community and office space, free resources, mentoring and training in emerging best practices and technology.

Wealth disparity in the United States has created a socioeconomic climate whereby fewer and fewer people can afford full-priced legal services. The United States is currently ranked lowest among industrialized nations on the World Justice Project Civil Justice Index for access to civil justice—behind such countries as Estonia, Iran, Ghana, and Nigeria.

In response to the increased need for affordable legal services for lower-to-middle income people not qualifying for legal aid, ACBA/VLSC CEO Tiela Chalmers conceived of the BALI program to help address this growing justice gap by training and supporting attorneys in developing “modest means” practices. Modest means is defined as between 125% and 400% of the federal poverty level – an annual gross income of $14,713 to $47,080 for an individual or $30,313 to $97,000 annually for a family of four.

BALI attorneys are able to create modest means practices in part by de-bundling legal services and charging flat, reduced fees or charging reduced hourly or contingency fees for more complex matters to make legal services affordable for a broader range of clients, while also being economically sustainable for solo practice lawyers.

What are some of the goals of BALI?

BALI stands out nationally among incubator or apprenticeship programs for its collaborative partners’ resolve to strenuously vet applicants for their demonstrated commitment to social justice and a long-term commitment to establishing modest means practices. BALI is training people who are becoming modest means practitioners by design, not default. The goal is to build an ever-increasing number of sustainable modest means practices in our community.

A commitment to social justice infuses every aspect of the two-year program design, including the requirement that BALI attorneys commit 20 hours a week to performing pro bono legal services for indigent people during the first 6 months of the program, and 20 hours a week thereafter to modest means work.

Continued p. 7...

BAY AREA LEGAL INCUBATOR (BALI)

May 17th BALI Hub Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

Page 6

The Guardians of Justice are firms, individuals and businesses who pledge exceptional annual financial support to VLSC. Their commitment ensures the long-term viability and success of VLSC’s mission and programs. On November 19, 2015, VLSC friends and staff gathered at Rosenblum Cellars in Oakland to celebrate the generosity of thirteen firms and one individual donor who made contributions at the Guardian of Justice level in 2015.

Guests at the reception enjoyed fine wine and cheese, and most importantly great company, as they celebrated VLSC’s loyal contributors. VLSC CEO Tiela Chalmers spoke about the power of pro bono work, and the profound effect that financial contributions to civil legal aid programs can have on the lives of people in our community.

Thank you to all the Guardians of Justice for helping to bridge the justice gap in Alameda County!

2015 GUARDIANS OF JUSTICE DONOR EVENT

David McClain, Judge Victoria Kolakowski, and Judge Elan Lambert

John Melis, Sarah Auten, and Edward Kerley

Judge Kimberly Colwell, Judge Tara Desautels, and Judge Steven Brick

Jonathan Wong, Charles Bendes, and Michael Loeb

John Cove and Judge Steven Brick

Eric Handler and Michael StewartCarolyn Henel, Margaret Roisman, and Michael Loeb

Steve Kazan and David McClain

Sally Elkington, Richard Roisman, and Agnieszka Adams

Page 7

launched in January, one BALI attorney took on an eviction defense case of a disabled and homebound veteran who had no counsel and was able to represent the client in court that same day. Two BALI attorneys have already become active VLSC volunteers, and since January, BALI attorneys have completed over 3,100 hours of pro bono legal services, assisting dozens of people living within the modest means threshold.

VLSC is excited to have launched a program already evidencing an impact on equal access to justice in the Bay Area.

2016 Guardians of Justice

Individual Guardians of Justice

Justice James Lambden, Cheryl Poncini, Neil Rubenstein

Who are the BALI attorneys and what are some of the things they have been doing?

BALI attorneys reflect the diversity of the Bay Area communities they seek to partner with to make positive change. Demographically, 70% of BALI attorneys are people of color; 30% are immigrants; 40% are first generation US citizens; over 70% are bi or tri lingual; 61% are female; over 50% identify as LGBTQI; 25% identify as living with a disability.

Already BALI attorneys are making a difference. Literally the first day BALI

BALI CONTINUED...

BALI attorneys at the ACBA’s Spring Open House in April

PROMOTING EXCELLENCE—SEEKING JUSTICE

Page 8

Alameda County Bar Association1000 Broadway, Suite 480

Oakland, CA 94607

Tel: (510) 302-2222Fax: (510) 452-2224

We’re on the web!www.acbanet.org

VLSC publishes this newsletter twice a year to share the latest VLSC news with our donors, volunteers, and friends.

VLSC Staff

Tiela Chalmers,CEO

Christina Wiellette, VLSC Manager

Daniela Meza,VLSC Clinics Coordinator

Katrielle Veslenio, Events and Development Coordinator

Cynthia Chandler,BALI Mentoring Attorney

For more information about volunteer opportunities, please contact Daniela Meza at daniela@acbanet.org or (510) 302-2219.

For more information on ways to support VLSC, please contact Katrielle Veslenio at: katrielle@acbanet.org or (510) 302-2209.

Designate your Cy Pres to VLSC!

If you are involved in class action matters, please consider including VLSC in your settlement or judgment. We are happy to talk with you about crafting an appropriate designation, and to help negotiate this issue with opposing counsel and the judge.

Questions?Please contact VLSC Manager Christina Wiellette with any questions at (510) 302- 2216 or christina@acbanet.org.

This 2 hour CLE training will provide an overview of the Domestic Violence Prevention Act and prepare volunteers to assist low income people seeking restraining orders at VLSC clinics.

Volunteer Commitment:Those who take the FREE training make a commitment to volunteer at the DV Clinic in Fremont at least six times in the next year.

Speakers :Stephanie Penrod, Staff Attorney with the Family Violence Law Center

Blanca Rodriguez, Management Analyst at Alameda County Superior Court’s Self-Help Center

Materials: To keep this training free, materials will be emailed to participants prior to the training. Hard copies will be available for an additional fee at the training.

To Register: Send the registration form to Christina Wiellette, at christina@acbanet.org.

Date and Time: Wednesday, June 15, 2016 from 5:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.Location: ACBA, 1000 Broadway, Suite 480, OaklandMCLE: 2 hours general MCLE creditCost: $0, with volunteer commitmentFood: Pizza will be provided

Domestic Violence Restraining Order Clinic Training

VLSC and the Family Violence Law Center