Hunton & Williams LLP

Transcription

1 951 E Byrd Street Richmond, Virginia Phone: (804) locations Atlanta, GA Austin, TX Charlotte, NC Dallas, TX Houston, TX Los Angeles, CA McLean, VA Miami, FL New York, NY Norfolk, VA Raleigh, NC Richmond, VA San Francisco, CA Washington, DC Bangkok Beijing Brussels London Tokyo MAJOR DEPARTMENTS & PRACTICES Bankruptcy and Creditors Rights Commercial Litigation Corporate Transactions Energy Financial Services Intellectual Property International and Government Regulations Life Sciences Privacy and Cybersecurity Products Liability Real Estate Regulatory Law Securities Law THE STATS No. of Attorneys: 726 No. of Offices: 19 Managing Partner: Walfrido J. Martinez Chairman: F. William Brownell Hiring Partner(s): Thomas Y. Hiner Kimberly C. MacLeod EMPLOYMENT CONTACT Judith H. Itkin Director of Lawyer Recruiting and Development Phone: jitkin@hunton.com Careers website: 279

2 Who s Who Does the firm have one or more pro bono coordinators and/or partners? If so, how many? 3 Please provide a general description of how much of their time each of your pro bono coordinators and/or partners spends on pro bono work and/or administering the firm s pro bono program (e.g., less than half of their time, more than half of their time, all of their time). Hunton & Williams employs a full-time pro bono partner, a full-time pro bono associate in our Charlottesville, Virginia neighborhood pro bono office and two full-time pro bono fellows; one in Atlanta, Georgia and one in Richmond, Virginia. The firm also employs a full-time pro bono administrator and three full-time pro bono coordinators who work in the firm s three neighborhood pro bono offices Richmond, Virginia, Atlanta, Georgia and Charlottesville, Virginia. Please provide the primary pro bono contact(s) s information below. George H. Hettrick Pro Bono Partner Phone: (804) ghettrick@hunton.com Scottie Brown Pro Bono Administrator Phone: (804) sbrown@hunton.com Does the firm have a pro bono committee? How often does the committee meet? Monthly Please describe the composition of the committee. Each Hunton & Williams office has a pro bono committee lead by a partner. The office committees meet monthly and a member of the Pro Bono Leadership Committee will attend the office committee meetings by video-conference or in person. The pro bono committee chairs from each office (all firm partners) report to the Pro Bono Leadership Committee during firmwide partner meetings. The committee regularly interacts through conference calls and s. THE SCOOP Does your firm have a pro bono policy? Can associates bring pro bono matters of interest to the firm? 280 How does the firm decide whether to take on a pro bono matter? We support our attorneys in pursuing new pro bono matters that interest them, pending a conflicts check. Hunton & Williams conflicts clearing procedures apply in the same fashion for all potential pro bono clients as they do for billable clients. In those few situations where accepting a particular case might be viewed by some lawyers in the firm as offensive or hostile to their religious or personal beliefs, the matter may be referred to the firm s screening committee for decision. Has the firm signed on to the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge? What are some of the areas of law in which your firm has performed pro bono legal work since 2012? Asylum, Civil rights, Community economic development, Disability benefits, Domestic violence, Education, Elder law, Employment, Environment, Fair housing/tenants rights, Family law, First Amendment and constitutional issues, HIV/ AIDS advocacy, Homeless advocacy, Immigration, Indigent criminal defense, International human rights, Juvenile justice reform/children s rights, Nonprofit corporate law, Nonprofit incorporation/tax exemptions, Nonprofit intellectual property, Police misconduct, Prisoners rights, Probate law, Public benefits, Real estate transactions, Social Security law, The arts and historic preservation, Veterans benefits/appeals, Voting rights Are there areas of law in which, as a matter of policy or practice, your firm does not perform pro bono work? Bankruptcy List up to 10 of your firm s pro bono clients or partners since 2012, including legal service providers or clearinghouses. Legal Aid Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project Catholic Charities Tahirih Justice Center City Bar Justice Center Human Rights Initiative of North Texas Pro Bono Partnership of Atlanta Council for Children s Rights Lawyers for Children of America National Veterans Legal Services Program List up to three representative examples of your firm s pro bono matters since Please limit your answer to a short paragraph per matter. Local legal needs: With increased funding cuts to legal aid nationwide, low-income individuals have struggled to find legal counsel more than ever. Hunton & Williams dedicates 2014 Vault.com Inc.

3 the largest portion of its pro bono practice to serve the basic legal needs of low-income individuals in each office location. The firm began operating neighborhood offices 25 years ago and now has three such offices in impoverished communities solely dedicated to pro bono work in Richmond (Church Hill) and Charlottesville, VA, and downtown Atlanta. Hunton lawyers provide family and housing law, guardianships, domestic violence, and immigration legal services. Unique to Hunton, the neighborhood offices allow firm lawyers to meet the legal needs of low-income persons in a very personal manner. In 2013, 100% percent of the firm s full-time U.S. lawyers provided pro bono legal services for the fifth year in a row because of innovative projects like the firm s neighborhood offices. Hunton & Williams maintains two, two-year pro bono fellowship positions one in Richmond and one in Atlanta for lawyers whose workloads consist entirely of pro bono matters. The program, created in 1996, is run and funded by the firm. An opportunity for young lawyers pursuing a career in public service, each fellowship offers $10,000 per year for law school debt. The Richmond Fellowship was created to assist staff attorneys with heavy caseloads at Central Virginia Legal Aid. The fellow also takes referrals from LAJC and other local legal aid organizations. The Atlanta Pro Bono Fellow assists Atlanta Legal Aid Society clients and is referred cases by other legal service organizations including the Pro Bono Partnership and the AVLF. Hunton sponsors a fellow through the North Carolina Legal Assistance Foundation. The fellow receives $2,500 each year to help repay law school debt. The firm also supports a fellowship at the Univ. of Miami School of Law s Center for Ethics & Public Service. Since 2008, Hunton & Williams has provided pro bono legal assistance to veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars seeking disability benefits through a partnership with the National Veterans Legal Services Program (NVLSP). With staggering unemployment, enormous healthcare costs, and the highest rate of PTSD among service members, Iraq and Afghanistan-era veterans and their families are in great need of disability, discharge, and veteran benefits. More than 100 Hunton lawyers have represented more than 90 veterans on multiple, multi-year claims to date. The firm extended the veterans program in 2013 to undertake a new pro bono partnership with the U.S. Coast Guard. Hunton lawyers are assisting USCG members with (but not limited to) real estate, consumer, family, estate planning, USERRA, and immigration matters in New England, Florida, and Virginia. The firm s managing partner Wally Martinez, who is a USCG auxiliarist and a military notary, started the innovative partnership. List up to three pro bono matters that are highlights (e.g., a Supreme Court case). Please limit your answer to a short paragraph per matter. Supreme Court pro bono: It s rare for a Hague Convention child abduction case to go all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court but a team of Hunton & Williams lawyers argued one there this past fall. Lozano v. Alvarez, is an international child abduction case the firm is handling pro bono and has Visit for company rankings, ratings and reviews to learn what it s really like to work in an industry or company and how to position yourself to land that job. dedicated thousands of hours to in recent years. Over the past decade, the firm has developed significant expertise handling cases under the Convention, a treaty designed to help return children wrongfully abducted (usually by one parent) across international borders. In Lozano, the Court considered the question of equitable tolling when the abducting parent conceals the location of the child from the other parent. The case was particularly difficult, especially given that the federal Circuit Courts of Appeal split on the issue and the State Department recently changed its views of the treaty. Successful habeas petition case: After spending more than 12 years in prison for a crime he didn t commit, Michael W. Hash walks free again thanks to the determination and more than 3,500 pro bono hours of Hunton lawyers. Hash was convicted of capital murder of Thelma Scroggins in Culpeper County, VA in 2001 and sentenced to life in prison without the chance of parole at the age of 19. Convinced he was innocent and that his trial was unfair, the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project asked the firm to take on Hash s federal habeas petition. After much legal and forensic work by the Hunton team, more than 10 years after the murder, a federal judge in Roanoke granted full habeas corpus relief for Hash based on the outrageous misconduct of Culpeper law enforcement officials and released on bail in early In August of 2012, the prosecutor assigned to the case declined to retry him and now the Hunton team has filed a civil suit on behalf of Michael Hash and his family. Hunton & Williams Dallas lawyers secured asylum for an Eritrean woman and a member of her family after she was accused by the Eritrean government of assisting inhabitants escape the country by providing them with travel documents. The woman was employed by a company that printed and packed travel documents. She was later accused of helping her husband flee the country as well but he vanished while in National Service. She has not seen nor heard from her husband since his disappearance. She was arrested twice in Eritrea and beaten and tortured during both detentions. She was detained upon entry into the U.S. and paroled in the public interest. Hunton lawyers and staff spent over 650 pro bono hours on the case to secure asylum for their client. Asylum was granted in December of BY THE NUMBERS What is the total number of hours that lawyers at your U.S. office(s) spent performing pro bono legal services, as defined by the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge, in 2012 and 2013? Do not include summer associate or non-lawyer pro bono hours in your answers. Total number of pro bono hours in 2012: 45,743 Total number of pro bono hours in 2013: 44,908 What was the attorney headcount in your firm s U.S. offices? Number of attorneys as of December 31, 2012: 683 Number of attorneys as of December 31, 2013:

4 Using the number of attorneys listed above, what is the average number of pro bono hours per attorney in your firm s U.S. office(s) during the following years? Average number of hours per attorney in 2012: 67 Average number of hours per attorney in 2013: 67 What percentage of attorneys employed during 2012 and 2013 in your firm s U.S. office(s) did at least 20 hours of pro bono during that calendar year? Percentage of attorneys who did pro bono work in 2012: 71 80% Percentage of attorneys who did pro bono work in 2013: 71 80% SUPERVISION AND EVALUATIONS Is there partner supervision on all pro bono matters? Do partner supervisors or, if applicable, senior associates provide written evaluations of associates work on pro bono matters? Are those evaluations taken into account in determining salary or bonuses?, they are taken into account when determining salary., they are taken into account when determining bonuses. Are those evaluations taken into account in determining advancement within the firm? Is there a pro bono requirement at your firm? No Does the firm give billable hour credit for pro bono work? Does the firm have a maximum number of pro bono hours that can be applied toward the billable hour target? What is the maximum number of pro bono hours that can be applied toward the billable hour target? 1 50 Does the firm consider pro bono hours when determining bonuses? PRO BONO POINTS What training opportunities are open to associates working on pro bono matters? Almost every pro bono opportunity that involves a new area of practice has training available. Does the firm offer the use of support staff in handling pro bono matters? Please indicate how many total hours and average hours per person your summer associates spent performing pro bono in 2012 and Total hours summer associates spent on pro bono work 2012: : 1120 Average hours per summer associate spent on pro bono work 2012: : 40 Percentage of summer associates in your firm s U.S. office(s) engaged in pro bono work 2012: 100% 2013: 100% Please provide any additional information about pro bono opportunities available to summer associates. Summer associates are encouraged to participate in pro bono working during their tenure at the firm. A sampling of pro bono work performed by summer associates in 2013 includes assisting lawyers with the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project screening committee, preparing and assisting in client preparation for an asylum case, assisting with pro bono litigation of disputes in family court, participating in the Virginia Hispanic Clinic Chamber of Commerce Legal Clinic and assisting lawyers with 50 state survey for the Humane Society of the United States. Does the firm have established programs, such as externships, that enable its associates to work in a public interest setting? Please describe the established program(s) and their duration, if applicable. Hunton & Williams established an innovative program to increase access to counsel by founding the Hunton & Williams Pro Bono Fellowship. Since 1996, Hunton & Williams has employed and maintained two full-time pro bono fellowship Vault.com Inc.

5 positions, one in Richmond, Virginia and one in Atlanta, Georgia, for lawyers whose time is entirely committed to pro bono work. The Fellowship is a two-year position and is a valuable opportunity for young lawyers pursuing a career in public service. The Atlanta fellow represents indigent clients in conjunction with the Atlanta Legal Aid Society and Atlanta Volunteers Lawyer Foundation. The Fellow also serves as a business intake lawyer at the Atlanta neighborhood pro bono office, the Southside Legal Center. The Richmond fellow dedicates a large percentage of their time to Church Hill neighborhood office clients. The other portion of their time is dedicated to matters handled through Central Virginia Legal Aid Society and the Legal Aid Justice Center. Casework for both Fellows includes divorces, custody and guardian cases, serving as Guardian ad Litem, child and spousal support appeals, adoptions, housing cases, and immigration and asylum cases. While the substantial portion of legal work is performed for Legal Aid organizations, the Fellows are fully integrated into Hunton & Williams with all of the normal opportunities available for legal training, associate development, and social participation. As a member of the litigation team, the Fellow spends a great amount of time in the courtroom and serves as a useful resource for other Hunton lawyers seeking assistance on pro bono matters. The Fellowships were enhanced in 2004 to provide $10,000 each year for law school debt repayment. Hunton & Williams also sponsors a fellow through the North Carolina Legal Assistance Foundation (NC LEAF) an initiative that pairs private law firms with practicing public attorneys in North Carolina. During the three-year fellowship, the fellow receives $2,500 each year from Hunton & Williams to help repay her law school loan debt. The firm s Miami office supports a fellowship at the University of Miami School of Law s Center for Ethics & Public Service. The center provides educational programs and legal representation in the areas of children s rights, public health entitlements and nonprofit economic development, among other activities. What other law-related public interest and community service programs (that are not pro bono as defined by the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge) do you offer and manage? For example, list any law school collaborations and public interest scholarships, auctions at law schools, monetary support, or fellowships. Hunton & Williams lawyers in the Richmond and New York offices participate in Street Law, a program designed by nonprofits NALP and Street Law, Inc. to promote diversity in the legal profession. The firm partners with Street Law and NALP to host practical, participatory education about law, democracy, and human rights in a conference and classroom setting. What non-law related volunteer opportunities does your firm offer? For example, list any work with high school students and non-legal volunteerism for organizations like Habitat for Humanity. Many of our domestic offices offer both attorneys and staff the chance to participate in volunteer activities in their communities. Here s a sampling: Creating care packages for homeless women Raising money and awareness for local arts organizations Adopting needy families in our office locales during the holidays Creating care packages for troops stationed around the world Raising awareness and money for victims of domestic violence Raising money and donating canned goods to local homeless shelters and food banks Please add any additional information about your firm s pro bono program. The first two sentences of the Hunton & Williams partnership agreement state: The practice of the law is a service to society. While an aid to business, it is concerned also with the public welfare. At Hunton & Williams, we engage in pro bono work because we believe in supporting the communities where we live and make our living. The firm expects all of its U.S. lawyers to perform substantial pro bono legal services each year, and associates and partners alike are encouraged to bring pro bono opportunities to the firm for consideration. In addition, each lawyer s pro bono efforts are considered during the firm s annual review to determine compensation and advancement. Hunton & Williams believes that the development and maintenance of a successful pro bono practice requires a strong commitment by the firm s leadership and institutional support at all management levels. Members of Hunton & Williams senior management represent pro bono clients on a regular basis. Each of the firm s offices has its own Pro Bono Committee, chaired by a partner, who deals directly with the attorneys in the identification of pro bono opportunities and the encouragement of pro bono work. Hunton & Williams is especially proud of the fact that so many of its lawyers take their pro bono responsibilities seriously. Each year, partners and associates at the firm devote significant numbers of pro bono hours to represent those who cannot afford legal service. For the last five consecutive years, 100% of U.S. lawyers participated in pro bono legal representation. Thurston R. Moore, Chairman Emeritus of the firm s Executive Committee, clearly captures the firm s commitment: Democracy and a free society depend on fair and open access to the legal system for all citizens. Only lawyers have the franchise of the license to perform that service. Therefore, they must. Visit for company rankings, ratings and reviews to learn what it s really like to work in an industry or company and how to position yourself to land that job. 283