Home Committees Harris County Bench Bar Pro Bono Awards

 

Harris County Bench Bar Pro Bono Awards

This committee reviews entries and selects the winners of the annual Harris County Bench Bar Pro Bono Awards. The awards recognize outstanding pro bono work performed during 2019 through any recognized legal services provider or through direct legal representation on behalf of any non-profit that serves the community. A committee of HBA members and members of the Harris County judiciary reviews nominations and selects the recipients in several categories.

As the legal community focuses on issues related to COVID-19, the Houston Bar Association and the Harris County judiciary have decided to cancel the 2020 Harris County Bench Bar Pro Bono Awards in respect of the time and safety concerns of attorneys and the community. The awards will resume next year. Law offices and individuals will be allowed to include pro bono work performed during the last two years in 2021 nominations, rather than only work performed during the previous year. Any current nomination forms will be saved, and nominees will have the opportunity to update the form before next year’s nomination deadline.

The Harris County Bench Bar Pro Bono Awards recognize outstanding pro bono work performed through any recognized local legal service providers and help to increase awareness of the critical need for legal services for low-income Houstonians. Recipients are chosen by a committee of both attorneys and members of the judiciary, and recognized at a ceremony at the Harris County courthouse.

Please watch for information on the 2021 Harris County Bench Bar Pro Bono Awards.

 

A row of guests and honorees at the Bench Bar Pro Bono Awards Ceremony
Congratulations to the 2019 Harris County Bench Bar Pro Bono Awards recipients: Exxon Mobil Corporation, Vinson & Elkins LLP; Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld LLP, Powers Law Group, Jordan Turk of Koons Fuller, Ryan Van Steenis of Ajamie LLP; and the Hon. Jane Bland, who received the President’s Pro Bono Award. Keynote speaker was U.S. District Judge Keith P. Ellison, and awards were presented by HBA President Warren Harris and District Court Administrative Judge Robert Schaffer.

 

Click here for eligibility requirements.

For more information, contact Tara Shockley at taras@hba.org or (713) 759-1133.

 

 

 

 

2019-2020 Co-Chairs:

Benny Agosto, Jr., Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Sorrels, Agosto & Aziz
The Hon. Robert K. Schaffer, 152nd District Court

2020-2021 Co-Chairs:

Bill Kroger, Baker Botts L.L.P.
The Hon. Robert K. Schaffer, 152nd District Court

For more information on this committee, contact Tara Shockley at taras@hba.org or (713) 759-1133.

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