April 8, ACLU Foundation Law Luncheon Honoring Pro Bono Attorneys
Tuesday, March 30, 1999
On Thursday, April 8, at 11:30 a.m., the ACLU Foundation of Southern California holds its Fifth Annual Law Luncheon at the Regal Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles.
The ACLU Foundation Law Luncheon honors the skill, commitment and courage of attorneys who defend the civil liberties and civil rights embodied in the constitution and its Bill of Rights. This year, the ACLU honors these deserving attorneys:
Jo Kaplan, Referee of the Los Angeles County Superior Juvenile Court, will receive the ACLU Children's Advocate Award for her courageous commitment to fighting for fundamental rights and an equitable justice system for children
Bradley Phillips and Jeffrey Bleich, of Munger, Tolles & Olson, will receive the ACLU Pro Bono Civil Rights Award for their work in narrowing the scope of Proposition 209, thus helping women and minorities overcome barriers to equal opportunity.
Jeffrey Gordon and Jeffrey Rutherford, both of Kaye, Scholer, Fierman, Hays & Handler, will receive the ACLU Pro Bono Advocacy Award in recognition of their significant efforts to assure equality for girls in using public sports facilities.
Deborah Nolan, Debra Fischer and Abigail Page, of McCutchen, Doyle, Brown & Enersen, will receive the ACLU Disability Rights Award for their assistance in fighting for the rights of disabled and elderly bus riders who need mechanical assistance.
Gregory Long, of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton, will receive the ACLU Pro Bono Civil Liberties Award for his dedicated work on the death penalty case of Thomas Thompson.
Professor Joel Handler, of UCLA School of Law, will receive the ACLU Distinguished Professors Award for his pioneering work on law and poverty, exemplified by his valuable assistance in our landmark welfare residency case.
With a docket of over 100 active cases, the ACLU Foundation of Southern California is one of the busiest public interest law firms in the nation.
In the last few months alone we argued before the U.S. Supreme Court against a state regulation that would have reduced welfare benefits for mothers and children when they moved to California, often fleeing domestic abuse. We also challenged, before the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, systemic violation of the Miranda decision by Los Angeles and Santa Monica police departments. After 27 years we succeeded in freeing Geronimo Pratt, who was unjustly convicted when the prosecution withheld vital evidence at trial likely to have led to his acquittal. Most recently, we defended the First Amendment right of a Vietnamese-American to fly the flag of the Republic of Vietnam at his store.
On issues as disparate as the separation of church and state, reproductive rights, lesbian and gay rights, and free speech, the ACLU is always on the front line of the battles to defend civil rights and civil liberties for all.
