NLADA Messenger
Special Daedalus Publication Focuses on Civil Legal Aid Crisis; Includes Article on Corporate Partnerships by NLADA president & CEO Jo-Ann Wallace 
The Winter 2019 edition of Dædalus , the Journal of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, is a special “Access to Justice” issue dedicated to the national civil legal aid crisis. It features 24 articles from distinguished experts and leaders in the access to justice movement.

The publication offers a multidisciplinary examination of the crisis, from the challenges of providing quality legal assistance to more people, to the social and economic costs of an often unresponsive legal system. Many of the featured articles include discussion of opportunities for improvement offered by new technologies, professional innovations and fresh ways of thinking about the gap between the need and availability of legal services. 

Wallace's article, "Corp orate Support for Legal Services,” discusses the significant and multifaceted role that corporations can play in helping meet the needs of poor and low-income Americans. All of the essays are freely available online at:
Kick-Off 2019 With Your Commitment to Racial Justice, Diversity & Inclusion

NLADA has always recognized the importance of racial justice in its activities and the work of its members. At the heart of our work are our values of diversity, equality, and inclusion – a recognition that the principle of racial equity must be present in the equal justice community’s hiring decisions, in our practice and in our engagement with our communities.
To propel this work forward, at our annual conference, we issued a Racial Justice Action Plan to commit ourselves and our members to:

  • Speak with clarity about poverty and racial equity.
  • Improve our internal governance to reflect the racial equity we seek to secure in our communities.
  • Support a purpose-driven practice that employs strategic advocacy to advance racial justice in our communities.

The action plan sets out concrete steps NLADA and its members can take towards achieving these goals. The plan also encourages our civil legal aid and public defender offices to sign the Fight Against Implicit Bias and Racial Inequality (FAIR) Pledge, developed by NLADA’s Client Policy Group. The FAIR Pledge calls upon every equal justice advocate and organization to confront implicit bias, improve capacity to effectively serve clients and positively advance racial justice. 

At this time, we are asking that all Executive Directors and Chiefs of Civil Legal Aid and Defender Offices sign the pledge on behalf of their organization – and if your program has not yet signed on , please do so today! If you have already signed on, thank you. To sign or learn more about the pledge and our fight for racial justice,  visit our website.
Save the Date for the 2019 Exemplar Awards Dinner
Join NLADA in celebrating Monica Howard Douglas of The Coca-Cola Company and Frank R. Jimenez of Raytheon Company for their extraordinary commitment to pro bono service on June 12 at the InterContinental Washington D.C. – The Wharf
Monica Howard Douglas is general counsel for Coca-Cola North America and passionate about pro bono service. Under her leadership, Coca-Cola’s pro bono activities have grown into a dynamic, year-round program with extensive impact. Read more here . 
Frank R. Jimenez is vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary of the Raytheon Company. In addition to cultivating a strong pro bono culture at Raytheon, Frank also boldly advocates for equal justice. Learn more about Frank here . 
2019 NLADA Lifelong Learning Calendar

Mark your calendars! Here is a list of the learning opportunities we have in store for you this year. Click here for more details.
January
Appellate Defender Training
January 17-20 New Orleans, LA

May
Equal Justice Conference
May 9-11, Louisville, KY

June
NASAMS Conference
June 3-4, Baltimore, MD

Community Oriented Defender Conference
June 5-6, Baltimore, MD

Black Public Defender Association
June 6-7, Baltimore, MD

September
New Defender Leadership Institute
September 5-8, Memphis, TN

American Council of Chief Defenders 
September 9-10, Memphis, TN

November
NLADA 2019 Annual Conference
November 6-9, Detroit, MI
Member Corner

Calling all NLADA Program Members:

Kick off 2019 with a new perk for your colleagues. Sign your entire staff up for member benefits - for free!

Unlock conference discounts, listserv communities, discounts through Mutual of America and Justice Federal Credit Union and much more for attorneys and staff at all of your office locations. Add staff and branch offices to your organization's NLADA Program Membership account or email a staff list t o membership@nlada.org .

Questions about Program Memberships ? Contact membership@nlada.org today!