Corporate Counsel® National Edition

The Metropolitan Corporate Counsel® National Edition www.metrocorpcounsel.com

Volume 22, No. 7 © 2014 The Metropolitan Corporate Counsel, Inc. July/August 2014 Making A Difference: Pro Bono At Jones Day The Editor interviews Laura Tuell Parcher, different and interest- “social enterprise” area. Please explain Partner-In-Charge Of Pro Bono at Jones ing ways, and a great the nature of this work. Day. way for us to come together as a team in Parcher: The primary leader in this effort Editor: We have had the good fortune each of these offices. is Todd Johnson in our Silicon Valley to interview you for our pro bono pages office. He is widely recognized as one of since you became Jones Day’s firm-wide Editor: One of the the most significant leaders in the field of Partner-in-Charge of Pro Bono in 2008. awards of the many social entrepreneurship in the U.S. Social What experience over this five-year you have received enterprises are often for-profit companies period stands out as the one that has for your efforts was Laura Tuell that seek to address a social need, often brought you the greatest gratification? the recognition you Parcher in the developing world. While they may received in being make a modest profit, their primary goal Parcher: There are two areas that have named DC Bar Pro Bono Lawyer of is to make the world a better place. For been the most gratifying for me in terms of the Year. Which of your activities in DC example, we worked with a company called seeing growth. First is an increase in global brought you this acclaim? Embrace, which had developed a very participation in pro bono. The international low cost pouch that functions as an infant offices have exhibited tremendous interest Parcher: Early in my time of becoming incubator. Very few countries or organiza- in growing their pro bono programs and partner, I received recognition for the com- tions in the developing world can afford the they are very excited about the various mitment I had made over the course of my cheapest incubators and many don’t have a opportunities both locally and internation- career to build pro bono activities in DC. consistent energy source to operate incuba- ally. Second is our Day of Service, which As a first year lawyer in 1996, I had helped tors. Often, incubators can be found only started in Washington, DC about eight years establish the DC Bar’s Free Legal Advice in city hospitals, even though 80 percent of ago. Since then the concept has spread and Referral Clinic, where anyone regard- the population lives in rural areas. Embrace across the firm to over 20 offices includ- less of income can come if he or she has developed a $200 incubator in an effort to ing numerous international offices such a DC non-criminal legal problem for legal save the lives of the two million infants that as Hong Kong, Shanghai, Dubai, Madrid, advice. Clients can meet with a lawyer for die every year in the world due to hypo- Milan, Mexico City and London. All of the whatever amount of time it takes to discuss thermia. Embrace began as a nonprofit, offices participating in the Day of Service a problem. The idea is to give them advice but needed significant additional funds to have found the experience to be a rewarding on the spot. If they actually need a lawyer to manufacture and distribute their incuba- opportunity to make a difference in the com- represent them, we refer them to a pro bono tors. Our Jones Day team led the effort for munities in which we practice. For example, lawyer. We discovered that a significant financing of a new social enterprise to scale Beijing took needy children to an aquarium, portion of the unmet legal need was satis- the manufacture and distribution of this Dubai took children with disabilities to a fied by just talking to a lawyer. We give product and save the lives of thousands of farm where they could play with horses and people some tools that they can actually babies in the developing world. Todd has visit a petting zoo, Hong Kong undertook a use on their own without having to engage been at the forefront of our firm’s repre- project to assist adults with mental disabili- a lawyer. sentation of many of these organizations ties, Boston and Chicago helped fix up local Thereafter, I continued to engage in vari- that are creating technology, products and schools, Brussels worked with a shelter for ous pro bono activities including asylum services that significantly improve the lives asylum seekers, Cleveland, Columbus and cases, death penalty appeals and litigation of hundreds of thousands of people across Dallas worked to assist local nonprofits in regarding civil rights. The award was recog- the globe, including Grameen, Ashoka, the area to improve their facilities with new nition for my work on a particular housing RoadTrip Nation and Nuru International. paint, play areas, flowers, recreation facili- discrimination matter but was also a recog- We are very proud to support organizations ties and more, Houston and DC jumped nition of many years of dedication to pro such as these. into activities in local parks. These are just bono legal services. a few examples of public service projects, Editor: Also, please describe the pro not direct legal services. They are a way for Editor: I understand that you and one bono case that you and your Colum- our offices to give back in the communi- of Jones Day’s West Coast partners have bus colleagues just recently won in the ties in which we live and practice in really been doing groundbreaking work in the Supreme Court. Please email the interviewee at [email protected] with questions about this interview. July/August 2014 The Metropolitan Corporate Counsel Volume 22 No. 7

Parcher: Again, I can’t take any credit. Editor: There is a misconception that Editor: Do you normally encourage pro My partner Chad Readler in our Columbus most pro bono work revolves around bono work more among your junior law- office, who is also the partner-in-charge litigation. Please describe some of the pro yers who would then have a more senior of pro bono for that office, and a team of bono activities undertaken by attorneys lawyer as a mentor? lawyers from a couple of different offices from other practice areas in the firm. worked on a case entitled McQuiggin v. Per- Parcher: Every pro bono case will have a kins. The Supreme Court recently issued its Parcher: Projects, such as those involv- partner supervisor. Depending on the size decision holding that actual innocence, if ing social purpose corporations, are very and requirements of the case, the partner proved, serves as a gateway through which complicated, intense corporate transactional might be joined by a junior or a mid-level a petitioner can pass whether the impedi- illustrations of setting up corporate struc- ment is a procedural bar or the expiration tures and negotiating between multiple person. For example, a typical immigra- of the statute of limitations. If there are sophisticated parties. That type of pro bono tion case before an immigration judge procedural bars to reopening a case, but if work is increasingly available. We also have might have a fairly junior lawyer doing the a petitioner has a creditable claim of actual always undertaken a great deal of work for leg work, a mid-level lawyer organizing innocence, he or she is actually entitled to nonprofit organizations in terms of help- and orchestrating the case, and a partner pursue the case. It was a very important ing with their 501(c)3 incorporation. We supervising the associates as the case pro- case for incarcerated individuals who have recently assisted Make-A-Wish foundation gresses. claims of actual innocence. with an employment dispute. They were so thrilled with our work that they actually Editor: How does pro bono work expand Editor: Please discuss the areas of pro granted a wish in our honor, a rare accolade the professional experiences and devel- bono on which the organizations the firm in the history of that organization. We also opment of individual attorneys within supports are currently focused. Are there do IP work around the world with a group the firm? any entirely new areas in the last twelve called Room to Read, an international non- months? Where do you see the need profit that builds schools and libraries and Parcher: Large law firms are experienc- expanding in the nonprofit community? gives girls scholarships in Asia and Africa. Increasingly, as nonprofit organizations ing the phenomenon of seeing our junior Parcher: We have been doing work on become more sophisticated and more inter- lawyers having fewer opportunities to an ongoing basis with Lawyers Without national, there are many opportunities to do stand up in court. Cases are not going to Borders for several years. This year we corporate counseling very similar to what trial as frequently, since other options for expanded our work to a project in Liberia we do for our paying clients. settlement are occurring. So it is impor- providing trial training to lawyers on the tant for our younger lawyers to appear topic of human trafficking. We were very Editor: What is Jones Day’s pro bono in court, take depositions as well as take proud to send two of our partners, Alison infrastructure? Does each of your offices ownership of cases. Pro bono cases create Marshall in our DC office and Lee Ann have a pro bono committee or partner? a great opportunity for our young lawyers. Russo in our Chicago office, to join LWOB How is this participation encouraged? There were several mid-level and junior to help make that effort successful. How are their activities linked to your lawyers who helped draft the brief and Another exciting project, which has office? attended the argument in the McQuiggin the blessing of Vice President Joe Biden, case mentioned earlier. Another example involves an association of pro bono counsel Parcher: I am the full-time partner-in- of a pro bono case was Aycock vs. Texas called APBCO (Association of Pro Bono charge of pro bono for the entire firm. Every Counsel) with whom we are working to office has a partner-in-charge of pro bono in the Northern District of Texas, a case address ways to improve access to justice for that office who maintains a regular bill- tried by three of our junior lawyers in Dal- and bridge the gap for those who do not able practice but takes on the administrative las. It was a 1983 case involving excessive have access to legal representation. Cities responsibility of running the pro bono pro- force by police officers against a prisoner. across the country are doing very exciting gram within each office. Many of the offices While we lost this case, which the court initiatives in areas of immigration, reinte- have very active pro bono committees that had asked the firm to take, the judge com- gration of people who have been convicted assist the partner in facilitating and grow- mended our lawyers for their outstanding of crimes, victims of domestic violence, ing pro bono. There are a variety of ways work. They ran the case with a lot of sup- and access to Social Security, and SSDI. we encourage pro bono within the firm. We port from very senior partners in the firm Jones Day is very excited to be a leader in have an intranet where we announce pro who helped them plan their strategy and the Washington Office, and we’ll also be bono opportunities. We publish a quarterly did prep sessions with them. We also do participating in offices across the country. newsletter called the Pro Bono Press, which civil protective order pro bono cases that I expect in the next few months that there is available on our website, listing all kinds usually result in a couple of hours of trial will be more to talk about this initiative. of awards for successes and also highlight- with witnesses. We also do a fair number ing offices and individual lawyers regarding of custody cases requiring our lawyers to Editor: Please keep our readers informed a significant accomplishment in that office. about the progress of this project. We make opportunities available to lawyers appear in court. There are many opportuni- within the firm, support them once they ties for young lawyers to take a leadership Parcher: We will probably have something undertake the project, and see that a partner role where they both counsel the client and to report in a few months. It is an exciting in every office mentors junior lawyers. We run a litigation matter. Those experiences initiative with a lot of energy and enthusi- make sure that the cases are moving along are invaluable to junior attorneys as they asm across the country focused on address- in a way that all the lawyers feel supported transfer that experience to their paying cli- ing different needs. and guided appropriately. ent cases.