Welcoming New Board Members & Elder Justice Grant

February 2020

In This Edition

Meet our 2020 Board Officers and New Board Members

PLC Receives New Elder Justice Grant from Legal Assistance Enhancement Program

Thank You for Adding Over $1 Million of Legal Services to Orange County

Deb Mallgrave of Greenberg Gross Leads Board with Eight New Members

Deborah Mallgrave of Greenberg Gross LLP (center) begins her term as Public Law Center’s President this year and is joined by fellow officers: Vice President Brian B. Farrell of Banc of California , Secretary/Treasurer Dina M. Randazzo , and Immediate Past President Mark Erickson of Haynes and Boone, LLP . Together, they lead a 41-member Volunteer Board of Directors which welcomed eight new members in January (clockwise from top left):

Tara Cowell is the Founding President of Cowell Law . She has nearly 20 years of combined experience in clinical research and providing in-house and outside legal services with a strong background in healthcare.

Samantha E. Dorey is a Founding Partner of Everett Dorey LLP , where she specializes in complex civil litigation with an emphasis in catastrophic injury, public entity defense, mass tort, asbestos litigation and environmental law.

Mandy H. Kim is a Partner at McDermott Will & Emery . She focuses her practice on intellectual property litigation and has significant experience managing complex litigations across a wide range of technologies.

Jennifer Lee Koh is a Visiting Professor of Law at UCI Law . Her scholarship focuses on the convergence of immigration enforcement and criminal justice systems, legal frameworks governing deportation, and the federal courts’ treatment of immigration claims.

Daniel S. Schneider is a Partner at Newmeyer Dillion , where his practice focuses on construction, insurance coverage, cybersecurity, real estate, and general/commercial litigation.

Sean M. Sherlock is a Partner at Snell & Wilmer , where he represents real estate developers, investors, and lenders in environmental, land use, and real estate litigation matters. Sean was PLC’s 2019 Attorney of the Year.

Tony Wang is a Partner at O’Melveny , where he focuses on corporate and securities law, with an emphasis on private equity, venture capital, merger and acquisition, and Asia-related media and entertainment transactions.

Christina Zabat-Fran is Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for St. John . She leads legal affairs during a crucial era of the multinational brand’s evolution and global expansion.

PLC’s New Elder Abuse Prevention Grant

Public Law Cente r, in partnership with the Council on Aging Southern California ( COASC ) , is one of six organizations nationally (and the only one in California) to receive the first-ever Legal Assistance Enhancement Program (LAEP) funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Community Living (ACL). The three-year grant allows us to expand our services to low-income older adult victims of elder abuse in Orange County.

"We are extremely excited to begin implementation on this new grant alongside our partners at COASC," said PLC Executive Director Ken Babcock , "We also welcome social worker Matilde Navarro to our Elder Law Project , which we began in 2017 with staff attorney Cassandra Martinez (pictured above)."

Since 2017, PLC has assisted 1,680 individuals over the age of 60 and hundreds of victims of elder abuse . Click here to continue article...

Supporters Like You Added Over $1 Million in Life-Changing Legal Services

The PLC team is off to yet another great start in bridging the justice gap in Orange County and ensuring access to justice to some of our most vulnerable neighbors. Our seven legal units plus impact litigation and advocacy work based out of our Santa Ana offices are now supported by 44 full-time staff, including 24 attorneys . If you would like to join the PLC team , please view our two open positions here .

Our seven courthouse and community legal clinics meet our clients where they are throughout the County and provide opportunities for pro bono engagement from lawyers, law students, paralegals and community members alike. If you would like to learn more about volunteering with PLC or access our Case List , please visit www.publiclawcenter.org/volunteer.

All this is made possible by our federal, state, local and foundation grants, special event sponsorships, and individual donors. In fact, our recent Year-End Campaign added over $1 million-worth of life-changing legal aid through the multiplier effect of our pro bono model. The impact on the Orange County community is vast: from the preventative effect of the Elder Abuse Prevention discussed above to the immediate and long-lasting transformation our Domestic Violence Legal Assistance work has on families.

Some of the impact come into full realization years after our legal work ends. For example, a short while back, I was at an event at St. Joseph Hospital and mentioned Public Law Center to one of the hosts. Her face lit up and immediately pointed out a staff member across the room. As it turns out, PLC’s Immigration Law Unit assisted this individual nearly a decade ago and helped put him on the path to be the contributing member of the St. Joseph and Orange County communities he is today .

All of us at PLC are grateful these types of moments are fairly common as we go about our business throughout Orange County. We know donors like you are a big reason why our work has such a profound impact in the communities we live in and love. Thank you!

With Gratitude,

Kenneth W. Babcock ,

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