News Tag: Anderson Fellowship

July 23, 2019

2019 Pro Bono & Public Service Award RecipientsHonoring Careers of Dedication and Service

Seven attorneys recognized for outstanding work at the CBA and CBF Pro Bono and Public Service Awards Luncheon

Seven unsung heroes in the legal profession were recognized and celebrated for their extraordinary service to our community at The Chicago Bar Association and The Chicago Bar Foundation’s 21st Annual Pro Bono and Public Service Awards Luncheon on July 23, 2019.

Tags: | | | | read more ...
July 10, 2018

CBF Anderson Fellows Changing Chicago for the Better

As the CBF celebrates our 70th Anniversary, we look back to the beginning of the CBF Anderson Fellowship and the tremendous impact this program has made on the 15 Fellows honored to date and the thousands of Chicagoans who benefitted from the high quality legal help these dedicated lawyers have provided.

In 2003, then CBF President Kimball Anderson and his wife Karen set an extraordinary precedent for others in the legal community by creating the CBF Anderson Fellowship. The Fellowship provides significant loan repayment assistance to outstanding recent law school graduates and helps make it possible for them to pursue and remain in legal aid careers despite often overwhelming financial challenges. Since their original gift, the Andersons have continually renewed their support for this groundbreaking fellowship, which has inspired similar programs. Each year, the CBF awards one $50,000 fellowship (payable over 5 years) to help a newer lawyer repay their student loans, which can exceed their mortgage or rent payments.

Tags: | | | read more ...
July 18, 2017

CBF awards highlight pro bono attorneys

Chicago Daily Law Bulletin
By David Thomas  |  Law Bulletin staff writer

Not all attorneys can dedicate themselves to pro bono or public-interest work, but every attorney regardless of his or her practice can show up.

You can show up at legal clinics. We can show up at our legal clinics and our firms, said Gary K. Wachtel, a senior director at Discover Financial Services. We just have to continue to show up, giving our time, expertise and resources, and give profound help to those in need.

Wachtel’s comments came after he was announced as the recipient of the Outstanding Corporate Counsel Award at The Chicago Bar Association and Chicago Bar Foundation’s annual pro bono and public service luncheon. Read the article…

Tags: | | | | | read more ...
July 18, 2017

Honoring Careers of Dedication and Service

Eight attorneys recognized for outstanding work at the CBA and CBF Pro Bono and Public Service Awards Luncheon

Eight unsung heroes in the legal profession were recognized and celebrated for their extraordinary service to the community at the CBA and CBF’s 19th Annual Pro Bono and Public Service Awards Luncheon on July 17, 2017.

About 700 people attended this year’s event held at the Fairmont Hotel Chicago, co-chaired by David Bamlango, a partner at DLA Piper LLP (US), and Susan L. Lees, Executive Vice President and General Counsel for Allstate Insurance Company.

This year’s award recipients were recognized for their unflagging commitment to advancing access to justice and inspiring others to do likewise.

Tags: | | | read more ...
July 19, 2016

Unsung Pro Bono and Public Service Heroes Honored

Nearly 700 people attended this year’s event held at the Fairmont Hotel Chicago, co-chaired by Kelly McNamara Corley, Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary at Discover Financial Services, and Rebecca S. Eisner, Partner-in-Charge of Mayer Brown LLP’s Chicago office.

The award recipients represent a broad cross-section of Chicago’s legal community and share an unfaltering commitment to advancing access to justice and inspiring those around them to join the cause. This year’s recipients have fought to alleviate suffering for individuals with mental illness, young people involved in juvenile justice matters, underprivileged senior citizens, families impacted by childhood cancer, victims of consumer fraud, families facing wrongful evictions, and many other people in need in our community.

Tags: | | | | | read more ...
August 20, 2015

The Globe Trotting Flag

The CBF flag sees yet another mountaintop! Past CBF board president Kimball Anderson and Karen Anderson (of the Anderson Fellowship) brought the CBF flag along on their adventures trekking the Peruvian Andes. Above they’re pictured with the flag high above Machu Picchu, and the photo at bottom right was snapped at 15,000 feet. This […]

Tags: | | read more ...
October 14, 2014

Andersons Continue to Lead by Example with $250,000 Gift to Renew Fellowship

A report on the financial challenges facing public interest lawyers caught the attention of Kimball Anderson while he was the leadership track on the CBF Board 12 years ago. The report revealed that these lawyers were not only underpaid, but many carried exorbitant school debt, causing them to leave the sector after a year or two.

At the time, however, a law school debt of $60,000 was considered to be high; today, it is not unusual for a recent grad to be saddled with a six-figure burden. In response to skyrocketing student debt, Kimball and his wife Karen Gatsis Anderson, notable philanthropists and Chicago attorneys, funded a groundbreaking public interest fellowship through the CBF in 2002 to help dedicated lawyers pursue these important careers. This year, the Andersons decided to renew their eponymous fellowship with the CBF for another five years, which will award five outstanding new legal aid lawyers $50,000 each to help with repayment of their law school debt. It is the couple’s second renewal since the fellowship was first awarded in 2003.

Tags: | | | read more ...