Pro Bono
Our lawyers have assumed leadership roles in local public education, both by serving on local charter school boards and by representing the interests of public school children in litigation. Partner Jim Swanson is the former chair of the Choice Foundation, the operator of three open-enrollment public schools in New Orleans, including the largest elementary school in the city. Choice Foundation was a lead plaintiff in Navis Hill v. Bobby Jindal, the lawsuit that stopped Governor Bobby Jindal from terminating the State of Louisiana’s Common Core testing contract.
Our lawyers regularly lend their expertise in First Amendment law to causes that further the public interest. Partner Lori Mince is a frequent lecturer on First Amendment rights of speech and access. She frequently partners with the ACLU in cases that implicate First Amendment rights, including Ciccarone v. City of New Orleans, 2:13-cv-00133 (E.D. La.) (city ordinance banned all signage not sanctioned by the NFL during 2013 Super Bowl); Gros v. City of New Orleans, 2:12-cv-02322 (E.D. La.) (city ordinance banned street preachers from Bourbon Street); Sturgis v. Copiah Co. Sch. Dist., 3:10-cv-455 (S.D. Miss) (school cut lesbian student’s senior portrait from yearbook); and McMillen v. Itawamba Co. Sch. Dist., 1:10-cv-61 (N.D. Miss.) (school prohibited lesbian student from attending prom with same-sex date). Lori has also taught a course on First Amendment and media law at Tulane University.
Our lawyers regularly lend their resources to criminal justice causes. Jim Swanson served on the board of the Innocence Project New Orleans and has co-counseled with the organization in successful petitions to free the wrongfully accused.
In addition to giving their time, pro bono, to a variety of deserving matters, our attorneys also serve on the boards of several local nonprofits. Our lawyers serve or have recently served on the boards of the Bureau of Governmental Research, of which partner Scott Willis is past-chair; the Baton Rouge Area Chamber; the Louisiana Art and Science Museum; the New Orleans Opera Association; WRBH-Reading Radio for the Blind; St. George’s Episcopal School; Isidore Newman School; the Dunham School of Baton Rouge; the Boys and Girls Club of Baton Rouge, of which partner Louis Quinn, Jr. is past-chair; the Fore!Kids Foundation; and the American Red Cross for Southeast Louisiana, among many others.