Our Blog

June 2, 2014

Nine New JEP Participants Begin, Bringing Program to Full Capacity

The Justice Entrepreneurs Project (JEP) recently started its third class of participants, bringing the program to capacity with a total of 29 participating lawyers. Chosen through a competitive selection process and hailing from seven different law schools, the new participants are: Anthony Abou Ezzi, Mark Almanza, Rachel Boehm, Cindy Campbell, Sivonnia Debarros, Stacey Dembo, Esther Lee, Paul Lytle and James Plucinsky.

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May 30, 2014

Volunteers Take a Turn as Judge

Four CBF Young Professionals Board and CBA Young Lawyers Section members recently served as judges at the 12th Annual Mikva Challenge Action Civics Fair, which took place at the Chicago Cultural Center on May 28. The Action Civics Fair is a culminating celebration of the civic activism projects that Mikva youth throughout Chicago have been working on all year.

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May 28, 2014

Spring into Summer with the CBF Young Professionals Board & CBA Young Lawyers Section

On June 12, help us kick off the summer and celebrate a great cause with drinks, food and mingling at Tradition, from 5:30 to 8:30. $35 dollar advance tickets include appetizers and three drink tickets. Learn more or buy tickets.

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May 27, 2014

Legal Aid Attorneys Receive Free Top-Notch Deposition Training

On May 14, forty-three legal aid attorneys had the opportunity to participate in a two-day deposition training sponsored by Kirkland & Ellis LLP through the CBF Legal Aid Academy. Kirkland attorneys and staff customized the program for legal aid, building on their very successful KITA (Kirkland Institute for Trial Advocacy) program, which utilizes hands-on learning with immediate feedback, lectures and demonstrations.

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May 27, 2014

Meet Faith Pincus, Founder & CEO of Pincus Professional Education

Once we leave law school, it doesn’t take long for most attorneys to realize just how much we don’t know. And, for most of us, that feeling never really goes away because, no matter how long you’ve worked as an attorney there is still a lot you don’t know.

Faith Pincus, founder and CEO of Pincus Professional Education, has made it her job to help all attorneys, including those working at legal service programs, learn essential practical skills. She built her brainchild, Pincus Professional Education, into a leading CLE company that provides high quality legal education including skills and strategy training for attorneys at all levels.

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May 25, 2014

The Power of Partnerships

CBF Report February/March 2014

The CBF Legal Aid Academy: Bringing Top-Notch Training to Legal Aid Advocates

Over the past five years, hundreds of attorneys have received high-quality training and professional development opportunities through the CBF Legal Aid Academy. The Academy brings together our legal community to ensure that legal aid attorneys have access to the opportunities that allow them to sharpen their skills and continually improve as attorneys, managers and advocates. Through the generous contributions of attorneys, law firms, CLE providers and others, the Academy provides these opportunities without sapping the already stretched budgets of legal aid organizations.

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May 19, 2014

Inaugural Passport to Chicago Pleases Palates & Guests

More than 150 guests filled their plates Friday, May 16th in support of the CBF at the first annual Passport to Chicago at Kendall College. This inaugural event, co-chaired by Nancy Roberts Linder of Linder Legal Staffing and Bill Fitz Fitzgerald of Werner Printing, allowed guests to take a palate-pleasing tour of Chicago, through neighborhood-inspired dishes presented by members of the Kendall College Competition Club.

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April 14, 2014

Jeanne Doran, Chair of the CBF Partner Leadership Circle, Receives Prestigious Award

Jeanne Doran is a dedicated CBF volunteer, chair of the CBF Partner Leadership Circle, an outstanding Client Manager at LexisNexis, and an all-around great person. That’s why it was so wonderful to see her recently recognized with the Shelly R. Miller Memorial Award for Outstanding Customer Focus and Personal Commitment, an award given annually at the LexisNexis National Meeting attended by 1,200 sales representatives.

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April 11, 2014

CBF Works to Sway Hearts and Minds in Washington

Earlier this week, attorneys and staff members representing the CBA and CBF, the Illinois State Bar Association, and the American Bar Association traveled to Washington D.C. to participate in ABA Day, the ABA’s annual advocacy event in Washington. Each year, Congress considers legislation that impacts access to justice, the justice system and the legal profession.

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March 17, 2014

The 2014 Investing in Justice Campaign

CBF Report February/March 2014

Justice People Deserve, Not Just What They Can Afford

The 8th annual CBF Investing in Justice Campaign kicks off this month, and once again thousands of individual attorneys and legal professionals from throughout the legal community are coming together around our common cause as a profession: taking a lead role to ensure that everyone has access to justice, not just people who can afford to pay for necessary legal help. Over the past seven years, the Campaign has grown from the ambitious vision of a few dedicated individuals to a broad-based effort that has now raised a total of more than $8.5 million for the cause. Last year, more than 4,000 individuals at 137 participating firms, companies and organizations (including the CBA) made it possible for tens of thousands of people to obtain vital legal assistance that is often critical to their safety and independence. While we should take pride in the Campaign’s past success, the need in our community is still great, and we have proven that through the Campaign we can make a big impact in meeting this need.

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