|
|
July 13, 2001/Tamuz 22, 5761, Vol. 53, No.40
Lawyers pursue justice to repair world
VICKI CABOT
Contributing Editor
Valley residents David Engelman and David Rosenbaum have been recognized as among the Top 50 Pro Bono Attorneys in the state by the Arizona Bar Foundation.
Awards were presented June 14 at a luncheon at the Phoenician. Pro bono lawyers provide low-income Arizona residents with free legal services.
Lawyers recognized donate time and expertise through one of four statewide organizations: the Volunteer Lawyers Programs of Community Legal Services, Southern Arizona Legal Aid, DNA - People's Legal Services, and the Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project.
Honorees were chosen by professional staff of the sponsoring organizations for their exceptional contributions, according to Kelly Carmody, bar foundation legal services director.
Also at the annual event, Phoenix attorney Larry Hammond received the Walter E. Craig Distinguished Service Award and Tucson attorney Luis Ochoa was given the William E. Morris Pro Bono Service Award.
Rosenbaum, a partner in the firm of Osborn Maledon, has made pro bono work an ongoing commitment "from day one" of his 17 years in the practice. The Philadelphia native earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Pennsylvania and a law degree from Georgetown University.
One reason he chose Osborn Maledon, he says, is because of a shared commitment to public service. In a profession in which time is money, supportive partners are essential.
"Like any firm, (at Osborn Maledon) there are lawyers who spend their time (doing volunteer work) and lawyers who help fund it," Rosenbaum says.
He has done both. He has taken time from his busy commercial litigation practice to assert the rights of children not living with parents or legal guardians, who formerly could be denied admission to public schools. He has promoted legislation that provides funds for filing fees for divorced decrees for indigent parties. And he successfully challenged the policies of a national day-care provider that denied diabetic children admission because of the need of administering daily finger-prick tests to measure blood glucose levels.
Rosenbaum says advocating such issues is immensely satisfying.
He also represents individual clients and is a leader in statewide professional organizations. He is completing a term as president of the Federal Bar Association and is a past chairman of Community Legal Services, an organization that provides free legal aid to the indigent population. He is a founding member and current vice president of the Arizona Justice Institute, which brings impact legislation and legislative advocacy on behalf of the indigent population. He served for four years on the advisory panel of the Volunteer Lawyers Program and has been a member of the Arizona Civil Liberties Union legal panel since 1988.
"We review matters and recommend cases to the board," he explains of his ACLU involvement.
Rosenbaum serves on the board of directors of Beth El Congregation, where he and his wife, Michelle, and their two children are active members.
Why the attraction to public service? "It's the right thing to do," he says, explaining why he donates 100-200 hours a year for pro bono causes.
He says it goes back to his high school days at the Germantown Jewish Center and his involvement in its youth group programs. "You have to give something back to the community."
Tikkun olam, repairing the world, is the simple answer David Engelman gives to the same question. Engelman, in private practice in the Valley for 25 years, specializes in bankruptcy with his firm Engelman Berger PC. He heads the Volunteer Lawyers' Association's bankruptcy clinic, spending several hours each month interviewing those considering filing for bankruptcy and another several hours fielding questions.
"I evaluate whether or not somebody should file," he explains. Once the decision to file is made, paperwork can be prepared by paralegals.
Engelman grew up in Columbus, Ohio, graduated from Antioch College and received his juris doctorate degree from John Marshall College of Law in Chicago.
He says he has "always done pro bono work" a throwback to his years of community service through B'nai B'rith Youth Organization. "I was raised with the concept of tikkun olam," he says.
Engelman says working with those in need is not only fulfilling, but also humbling. He acknowledges he works hard and makes a comfortable living for himself, wife Gina, and his four children. Yet he has learned that adversity can lurk just around the corner. "It doesn't take much (for an individual to experience dire financial straits resulting from) a medical catastrophe, a job loss."
Engelman serves on the steering committee of American Jewish Committee's interfaith coalition group and has been involved with the Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center.
His pro bono activities are a "good vehicle for helping me to repair the world. It's something that everybody should do," he says.
|
