Public Service and Pro Bono

Public Service and Pro Bono

WilmerHale maintains a steadfast commitment to pro bono representation and public service, and believes in an inherent obligation to ensure equal access to justice for underserved communities around the world.

Our commitment to providing a voice for all is demonstrated through pro bono contributions that range from cases of national importance before the US Supreme Court to litigation on behalf of individuals who lack the means to secure necessities as fundamental as housing, adequate medical care, and protection from abuse and exploitation. Through these efforts, and through community service initiatives that have grown into thriving partnerships, we work to enhance the quality of life for many in our local neighborhoods and around the globe.

We strongly believe that we have a responsibility to help strengthen our communities, and we have a long history of supporting public institutions and charitable organizations in the cities in which we practice. Accordingly, WilmerHale dedicates annual financial support to a number of law and bar-related organizations, and encourages leadership and support on the part of our lawyers through service on boards and committees. In addition, we have various community partnerships in which we make long-term commitments, harnessing the time and talents of both staff and lawyers.

History

A steadfast commitment to pro bono representation has been a hallmark of the firm since the early 20th century, when Partner Reginald Heber Smith—considered the father of legal aid in the United States—authored the seminal book Justice and the Poor and galvanized the organized bar nationally to secure equal justice for those unable to afford counsel. More than seven decades later, in 1992, Partner John Pickering led the effort to establish the Pro Bono Institute’s Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge and ensured that WilmerHale was its charter signatory. Today, as measured by The American Lawyer and other leading publications, WilmerHale’s pro bono program ranks as one of the top in the country.

Our lawyers have been involved in many of the influential legal cases and social developments that have shaped the nation. In 1954, Partner Joseph Welch, assisted by lawyers James St. Clair and Jack Kimball, represented the US Army on a pro bono basis in the nationally televised Army-McCarthy hearings. In 1963, Partner Lloyd Cutler served as a leading force in creating the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, at the behest of President John F. Kennedy.

The firm’s pro bono efforts have also influenced historic developments around the world. Through the Southern Africa Legal Support and Education Project, WilmerHale joined with others to fight apartheid and establish the rule of law in South Africa. Our lawyers also helped write the constitutions of several central European countries after the fall of the Soviet Union.

For more than a decade, our lawyers have provided pro bono legal services to indigent persons through the WilmerHale Legal Services Center of Harvard Law School, a major clinical teaching facility that has assisted more than 20,000 individuals.

Experience

  • With the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts, successfully convinced the US government to release a non-citizen who had been detained by Immigration and Custom Enforcement for more than three months, separating her from her US citizen husband and 10-year-old son. This client is among many others represented by WilmerHale who are challenging the US government's efforts to separate families pursuing lawful immigration status, including a proposed class action specifically challenging the separation of married couples.
  • Obtained approval from the US military on behalf of a 90-year-old client to have her 1955 discharge from the Air Force upgraded to “honorable” after finding that her separation from the service was more than likely due solely to her being a lesbian. She had been expelled from the Air Force with an “undesirable” discharge.
  • Argued to the US Supreme Court that the Veterans Benefits, Heath Care, and Information Technology Act of 2006 requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to restrict competition for certain contracts to veteran-owned small businesses. On behalf of a veteran-owned business in Maryland, argued that the contracting preference was mandatory, while the United States argued that the contracting preference was discretionary. The court ruled on behalf of our client, meaning veteran-owned small businesses will receive priority to compete for billions of dollars in contracts each year before the VA can turn to other suppliers.
  • Acting as pro bono co-counsel with the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office on behalf of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, achieved a major victory when the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit unanimously held the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) unconstitutional. That decision marked the first ruling striking down DOMA by a federal appeals court, and was affirmed by the US Supreme Court’s historic decision in United States v. Windsor, which ensured the legality of same-sex marriage.
  • Obtained a verdict on behalf of a death row inmate in a US Supreme Court case in which the Court declared unconstitutional Florida’s use of a clinically arbitrary IQ test score cutoff to determine whether an individual has an intellectual disability and is thus ineligible for the death penalty—without regard for the measurement error inherent in IQ testing.
  • Represented the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission (AIRC) in a key election law case before the US Supreme Court that upheld the constitutionality of the AIRC, created by the People of Arizona using their initiative power under the Arizona Constitution to eliminate gerrymandering by elected officials. The decision affirmed the constitutionality of similar commissions created in California and other states, and acknowledged that the People of the States may reform the political process through direct popular lawmaking.
  • Represented six Bosnian-Algerians who had been detained at Guantanamo Bay for seven years in the historic Boumediene v. Bush decision, in which the US Supreme Court ruled that detainees held in Guantanamo Bay have a constitutional right to challenge their detention in US civilian courts. Subsequently, a federal court upheld the claim that the US government had no lawful basis for imprisoning five of the six Bosnian-Algerian men at Guantanamo Bay.
  • Successfully contended that the Eighth Amendment forbids the death penalty for persons under the age of 18 in Simmons v. Roper, one of the most significant death-penalty decisions in recent history.
  • On behalf of the creator of Pepe the Frog, enforced intellectual property rights to shut down distribution of a controversial children’s book that featured a character named Pepe the Frog; espoused racist, Islamophobic and hate-filled themes; included allusions to the alt-right movement; and was deliberately targeted at children. Under threat of litigation, the defendant admitted infringement and agreed to stop distribution of the book in all forms.
  • Prosecuted a civil human trafficking complaint on behalf of a young woman from Cambodia alleging that the defendants in the case participated in a scheme to traffic, exploit and abuse her in violation of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, California and Federal labor laws, tort law, and RICO. The team successfully defended a motion to dismiss and secured a favorable holding from the chief judge of the Central District of California. Trial is set for early 2019.
  • For several years, along with the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, represented a single plaintiff challenging Texas’ unduly restrictive and racially discriminatory voter identification requirements. The Fifth Circuit ultimately held that Texas’s voter ID law had a discriminatory effect on minority voters. In April 2017, on remand from the Fifth Circuit, the district court held that the voter ID law was also passed with a discriminatory intent.
  • In August 2017, filed suit on behalf of five Jane Doe plaintiffs seeking to declare that the US president’s directive to categorically exclude transgender people from military service is unconstitutional and to enjoin its enforcement. Following on several federal court rulings that blocked the president’s directive, the Department of Justice withdrew its initial appeals, paving the way for transgender people to enlist in the military beginning on January 1 of the year.

Pro Bono Contacts

Public Service

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Community Partnerships

CHOICES has served Southwest Ohio for 36 years, beginning with foster care and growing to include transitional age services and home-based children’s mental health.

Discovering Justice: The James D. St. Clair Court Education Project is a nonprofit organization in Boston dedicated to providing civic education and teaching children and adults about the role of the justice system in American democracy.

Hyde Square Task Force serves 1,000 youth ages 6 to 21 from across Boston through leadership development, college preparation, arts and cultural enrichment, youth-led community organizing, and positive community-building events.

Miriam’s Kitchen is a critical player in the fight to end chronic and veteran homelessness in Washington DC.

Sanctuary for Families provides 10,000 domestic violence victims, sex trafficking victims and their children with a range of comprehensive services in New York City annually.

See Forever Foundation/Maya Angelou Schools creates learning environments in lower-income Washington DC communities where teens who have not succeeded in traditional schools can reach their full potential.

CHOICES

Discovering Justice

Hyde Square Task Force

Miriam’s Kitchen

Sanctuary for Families

See Forever Foundation/Maya Angelou Schools

Recent Public Service and Pro Bono News

Preet Bharara Honored with Volunteer Lawyers for Justice’s Champion of Justice Award

November 5, 2024
Recognition

WilmerHale, Lawyers Named to Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court 2023 Pro Bono Honor Roll

November 5, 2024
Recognition

Law360 Pulse Ranks WilmerHale Second in Pro Bono Ranking

October 21, 2024
Recognition
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Recognition

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WilmerHale Named to The National Corporate Mentoring Honor Roll

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WilmerHale Recognized by The National Immigration Project

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The National Mentoring Partnership has named WilmerHale to its 2022 National Corporate Mentoring Honor Roll in recognition of the firm’s continued commitment to mentoring today’s youth.
WilmerHale is one of six firms to be recognized for its contribution to the organization’s mission of protecting and expanding immigration rights in the US.
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