By Margaret Maroney I have Fidel Castro to thank for my encore career. His decision in 1980 to allow thousands of Cubans to board boats departing the Port of Mariel for Florida gave me the chance to sample immigration law. At the time, I was an Assistant State Public Defender in the Appellate Division. The U.S. government was eager to return to Cuba those Marielitos who were convicted of a crime
By Barbara Graham Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee created its Legal Services for Immigrants (LSI) program to provide legal services and outreach for the marginalized and vulnerable undocumented immigrants who live within the Archdiocese. Three staff attorneys and two paralegals maintain a caseload of 2,000-3,000 clients. Our staff are bilingual in Spanish and English. LSI provides representation before the Board of Immigration Appeals, the Executive Office for Immigration Review in
We are pleased to announce that Governor Scott Walker has appointed Robyn Thibado to the Wisconsin Access to Justice Commission. Robyn is the Associate Director for West Central Wisconsin Community Action Agency, Inc. serving Barron, Chippewa, Dunn, Pepin, Pierce, Polk and St. Croix counties. In addition to the challenges that she sees firsthand every day, Robyn also heard testimony from community members, judges and lawyers as part of a regional access to justice hearing panel that the Commission convened
Please join us in welcoming David Harth, the Commission’s newest member. David is a partner in the Madison office of Perkins Coie. He was appointed to the Commission by the State Bar of Wisconsin. David has spent his career handling high-stakes civil litigation, often involving complex scientific and technical issues. He has more than 30 years of experience trying all types of cases, including patent, trademark and copyright infringement, product liability,
Wisconsin veterans and their families who are at risk for homelessness now have a new legal resource thanks to a VA Supportive Services for Veteran Families Program (SSVF) grant that funds a collaboration between Legal Action of Wisconsin (LAW) and the Center for Veterans Issues (CVI). The goal of the partnership is to provide free legal services through LAW to low-income veterans and their families who are homeless or who
On April 4, the Wisconsin Supreme Court voted unanimously to adopt a series of changes proposed in Petition 13-10 to expand support for limited scope representation arrangements between lawyers and clients. The changes, which take effect in January 2015, have broad support in the access to justice community and have been a key priority for the Commission. Among other changes, the new rules will provide a process for entering and
For years, Judy Woller slept facing the bedroom door, listening for the click of a gun being cocked. Woller’s husband objected to her spending time with other people and became upset when she wouldn’t quit her job or stop going to church. Over time, his anger escalated and he threatened to kill her and their children while they slept. “When I left my husband in 1978, I did not know
Five years ago, Attorney Terry Young became involved with Legal Action of Wisconsin’s Volunteer Lawyers Project (VLP), working on the Tenants’ Rights Project. Young, who works as Assistant General Counsel & Assistant Secretary for The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, said he was drawn to pro bono work by a deeply rooted core value of helping others, a value he observed in his parents, and by his faith, which teaches
On February 24 the Wisconsin Supreme Court held a public hearing on Petition 13-14, which requests amendments in the Wisconsin Code of Judicial Conduct to provide better guidance to judges in addressing the challenges raised by the growing number of self-represented litigants. The petition, filed by the Access to Justice Commission last September, proposes modifying Supreme Court Rule 60.04 to make it clear that “reasonable efforts to facilitate the ability
By Bobby Peterson, Executive Director, ABC for Health, Inc. Since our founding in 1994, ABC for Health, Inc. has displayed a passion for quality legal services related to access to health care and coverage issues. We focus on linking children and families, particularly those with special health care needs, to healthcare benefits and services. ABC is a statewide public interest law firm that engages in direct legal representation, impact litigation
Access to justice requires a steady commitment of time, money, and effort. Members of the commission are all volunteers and donate a considerable amount of their time every month. Everything else we do to support and expand access for Wisconsin residents has some cost. We need your support in the manner that best fits your resources, your time, and your experience.
We are a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) Wisconsin corporation governed by an 18 member board. Board members are appointed by our stakeholders: the Wisconsin Supreme Court, the Governor, the State Bar of Wisconsin, the Wisconsin Legislature, Marquette University Law School, the University of Wisconsin Law School, the Wisconsin Tribal Judges Association, and the Wisconsin Trust Account Foundation.
The Commission was created by an order of the Wisconsin Supreme Court in response to a petition filed by the State Bar of Wisconsin. We are a proud member of the Civil Legal Aid Alliance of Wisconsin (CLAAW).
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