Pro Bono Report (Fall 2011)

Married Woman Granted Rare Protective Order
When is it difficult for a woman to obtain a protective order? When she is married to her abuser. A DWT attorney was presented with the challenge of meeting the woman seeking the protective order, gathering evidence, and presenting the case to the judge—all in less than one week. Together, attorney and client persevered and won.

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Building New Lives for Immigrant Crime Victims
Two young sisters, children of illegal immigrants, endured years of physical and verbal abuse from their father and stepmother before a concerned teacher stepped in. With nowhere to turn, they relied on compassionate friends and pro bono attorneys for creating a path to a secure future.

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Ensuring Access to Justice: Mark Hutcheson
Since the 1980s, labor and employment attorney Mark Hutcheson has championed Washington state’s nationally recognized civil legal-aid network, which works to ensure that justice remains a basic civil right and not an entitlement for the privileged few. His efforts have helped secure nearly $20 million for civil legal aid for those with nowhere to turn.

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A Small Measure of Justice
Natives of the former Czechoslovakia, our client and her family were put in concentration camps during World War II. Our client and her two sisters survived, but other family members did not. It is our honor and privilege to work with this family in achieving some small measure of compensation and justice for them through Germany’s “ghetto pension” program.

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Soccer Pro Gets a New Shot in the U.S.
Arrested six times in five years and frequently abused for the crime of being gay, a Cameroonian man sought haven in the U.S.  Gaston Dissake suffered so extensively in his native country that the Department of Justice attorney assigned to his case did not contest his request for asylum.

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Follow-Up: Ricardo Receives Asylum
We are happy to report the positive outcome of an immigration case we reported on in our Spring 2011 issue. Our client Ricardo F., a gay man who left his native Chile after years of persecution and abuse, was finally granted asylum after 13 years and two previous denials.

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DWT Hosts Pro Bono Fair
Connecting private attorneys with organizations that offer pro bono opportunities is the goal of this annual fair in Seattle, and DWT played host.

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Previous Editions

Spring 2011 
Winter 2010 
Midyear 2010 
Spring 2010 
December 2009 
Midyear 2009
First Quarter 2009