Legal Services Corporation Honors Ohio Attorneys for Pro Bono Service

CLEVELAND – The Legal Services Corporation (LSC) Board of Directors will present Pro Bono Service Awards on Thursday, July 20, to two Ohio attorneys, a corporate legal department, and a law firm in recognition of their extraordinary commitment to equal justice.

The LSC Pro Bono Service Award Reception will take place at 5:30 p.m. at the Squire Patton Boggs office at 4900 Key Tower, 127 Public Square. The awards ceremony will be held in conjunction with the LSC Board of Directors’ third quarterly meeting of the year.

Speakers at the event include the Ohio State Bar Association’s Immediate Past President Ronald S. Kopp and President-Elect Robin Weaver. They will be joined by Squire Patton Boggs’ Managing Partner Michele L. Connell, Ohio Legal Assistance Foundation President David A. Kutik, and LSC Board Chair John G. Levi.

Recipients of LSC’s Pro Bono Service Awards were nominated by four of LSC’s grantees: Community Legal Aid Services, Legal Aid of Western Ohio, Legal Aid Society of Cleveland, and Ohio State Legal Services. The recipients are:

  • Ann S. Bergen, an attorney based in Willoughby who has volunteered her legal skills and expertise with the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland for 25 years, including serving on the organization’s board. 
  • David E. Butz, an attorney with the Canton law firm of Krugliak, Wilkins, Griffiths, & Dougherty Co., L.P.A who has taken on more than 100 pro bono cases with Community Legal Aid Services in Akron.
  • Marathon Petroleum Corporation’s in-house attorneys who have handled numerous pro bono cases during their 10-year partnership with Legal Aid of Western Ohio.
  • Porter Wright Morris & Arthur LLP, a Columbus-based law firm that has worked with Ohio State Legal Services for more than a decade, taking on numerous consumer debt and eviction cases. 

Legal Services Corporation (LSC) is an independent nonprofit established by Congress in 1974. For 50 years, LSC has provided financial support for civil legal aid to low-income Americans. The Corporation currently provides funding to 131 independent nonprofit legal aid programs in every state, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories.