Legal Aid Society Inc.

Allan Fox is a Plainedge resident with two children in Eastplain Elementary School. Allan holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from SUNY at Oswego with a double major in Communications Studies and Music, and has taken graduate level Business, Accounting and Human Resources courses at Adelphi University. Having over 20 years of business experience, Allan is currently the Chief Human Resources Officer for the Legal Aid Society in New York. He has been an invited speaker at seminars sponsored by ADP, The Ayers Group and Chief Learning Officer Magazine, and serves on the Editorial Advisory Board of Workforce Performance Magazine.

On the list ten years ago, Judy Whittaker has worked for Hallmark since 1972. She s in charge of all legal matters of the $4 billion social expressions company, Crown Center Redevelopment Corporation, Hallmark Entertainment (TV movies) and Crown Media (Hallmark Channel in the U.S. and abroad). Whittaker s breadth of involvement has not only grown at the corporate level. She is on the board of two public companies and has been a leader at several not-for-profits including Brown University, Legal Aid Society, De La Salle Education Center, Big Brothers and Sisters, and was a founder of the Central Exchange. She s a passionate advocate of Legal Aid because it saves lives from abuse and poverty. Education for disadvantaged children is another passion. Never conscious of professional aspirations, she says now she just wants to become a scratch golfer, contribute to world peace, and end hunger none of which she can achieve, but she can try. Although she was selected Miss Philadelphia Beach in 1957, her more recent Lifetime Achievement Award from UMKC law school is far more treasured. She believes you should . . . work at what makes you happy because that unleashes your energy to produce, energizing others to multiply the effect.

Dr. Dana Weintraub is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Division of General Pediatrics at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford. Dr.Weintraub received an A.B. in History from Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH and her M.D. from University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester, MA. She completed her Internship, Residency and Chief Residency in Pediatrics at Children's Hospital & Research Center at Oakland. Subsequently, Dr. Weintraub completed a Post-doctoral Fellowship in General Pediatrics at Stanford University. Dr. Weintraub is Project Director of SPORT, a community-based evaluation of after school team sports as a weight control intervention for overweight children in East Palo Alto, CA. Dr.Weintraub is also co-founder and Medical Director of the Peninsula Family Advocacy Program, a collaboration with Legal Aid Society of San Mateo County to bring free legal aid services to families served by LPCH and affiliated clinics and the Ravenswood Family Health Center. She also serves on the Board of Directors for the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Peninsula.

Ms. Ruden is a Staff Attorney with the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland, specializing in domestic violence. She is a statewide lecturer and trainer on Ohio Domestic Violence Law, and a consultant to various legislators, community and professional groups on domestic violence. Ms. Ruden is a member of the Center for the Prevention of Family and Community Violence Advisory Council, the Supreme Court Domestic Violence Forms Task Force, Cuyahoga County VAWA Grant Allocations Committee, Cuyahoga County Domestic Violence Shelter Advisory Board, Cleveland Domestic Violence Coordinating Council, and Cuyahoga Chair of County Team on Domestic Violence. She is a former board member of the Ohio Children's Trust Fund and the Ohio Department of Human Services Domestic Violence Advisory Council. Ms. Ruden received her Bachelor of Science degree from Ohio State University and her Juris Doctor from Cleveland-Marshall College of Law. Ms. Ruden is co-author of Ohio Domestic Violence Law, part of Baldwin Legal Publishing Company's Ohio Handbook Series.

Charles Davis is a founding board member and past president of Jewish Family Service. He has practiced law in Rockland since November 1969, the first year with the Legal Aid Society and after that in private practice. In July 1986, he and his wife Marilyn, also an attorney, formed Davis and Davis. During the past 30 years, Charles Davis, has gained renown as an advocate for those who are unable to advocate for themselves. His focus has been on those with disabilities and he has recently expanded to the elderly. He is certified as an Elder Law Attorney and is a Certified Financial Planner. Mr. Davis co-developed the first NY State conference to address the educational rights of children with handicapping conditions as well as the first countywide conference on the Americans with Disabilities Act. Charles Davis represents numerous non-profit agencies that service the disabled, and he has been at the forefront of the development of community residential services. He says, 'My impetus for coming onto the board of JFS was to make sure that there was a voice for the disabled at JFS; and that JFS became a voice for the Jewish disabled of Rockland County. Of all of the awards and certificates of appreciation I've collected over the years, the one I hold most dear is the naming of the 'Charles G. Davis Community Residence,' a home for the mentally disabled located in New City and operated by Loeb House, Inc.' Mr. Davis has also served as president of Rockland Independent Living Center and Pomona Jewish Center. He is a past chairman of the Rockland County Community Services Board and serves on the Advisory Boards of many local groups.

Christina C. Thompson has been with the Legal Aid Society since 2002 and is a Paralegal in the Family Law Unit. She attended Queens College and received a Business Certificate from American Business and Fashion Institute in Charlotte, North Carolina. She is currently pursuing an Associates Degree in Paralegal studies at Forsyth Technical Community College. She is also in the process of becoming a licensed Notary Public. Prior to joining Legal Aid, Ms. Thompson worked for Wachovia Bank as a CDA Specialist.

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Erika L. Reynolds is former Assistant Director of Multicultural Affairs at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Paralegal/Interpreter at Legal Aid of North Carolina, and Immigrant Outreach Coordinator at Legal Aid Society. Ms. Reynolds now serves as Executive Director of the Hispanic League. Throughout her career, Ms. Reynolds has built networks between and worked with immigrant communities, specifically the Hispanic/Latino community to assist them in having equal access to services, educating them about their civil rights and responsibilities, and helping them to realize their potential and utilize their collective voice. Ms. Reynolds has several years of non-profit experience and looks forward to serving the Hispanic/Latino community with the Hispanic League. While working towards her Bachelor of Arts degrees in Psychology and Spanish from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Ms. Reynolds was an active member of the Native American Student Association where she proudly shared her heritage and cultural values with others. Ms. Reynolds remains an active member in her community and enjoys working with people to understand cultural diversity and enhance appreciation of culture, languages, and cross-cultural understanding.

Jean L. Witherspoon has been with the Legal Aid Society since 2000 and is the organization's Office and Finance Manager. She received an Associate Degree in Accounting from Blanton Business College in Asheville, North Carolina and graduated from the University of Maryland at Baltimore School of Business with a degree in Business Management. Prior to joining Legal Aid, Ms. Witherspoon worked at a several large law firms in Maryland. She was a Human Resource Director and Office Administrator for 10 years for a law firm in Columbia, Maryland. Prior to that, she worked as Finance and Office Manager for a law firm in Washington, DC.

Judy lives in Albany County and is currently the Children's Law Project Attorney at the Legal Aid Society of Northeastern, NY, Inc. As a staff attorney she assists low-income disabled children on a variety of issues including special education law. While attending SUNY Albany and concurrently working as a Teacher's Assistant in a special education classroom, Judy decided to attend Albany Law School to become an advocate for children. That remains her personal and professional goal.

Kirsten is a leader in her community. Currently a Commissioner on the Menlo Park Planning Commission, she is the Chair for 2007. She also served on the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) for San Mateo County, and for two years held the position of President. Past local involvement included appointment as a Menlo Park Housing Commissioner, as well as, acting President of the National Women's Political Caucus for San Mateo. Passionately involved in government interests, Kirsten is the representative to the local Democratic Central Committee for California Senator, Joseph Simitian. She has also moderated forums with the League of Women Voters and served on the League-a-Thon Committee. An attorney in San Mateo County for over ten years, Kirsten is a member of the Private Defender Program and the San Mateo County Bar Association. Kirsten is a long-time volunteer at the Legal Aid Society of San Mateo. Born in San Jose, she received a B.A. from the University of California, Santa Barbara and a J.D. from Golden Gate University School of the Law. On a personal note, Kirsten is mother to a daughter and son and wife to husband, John. She loves to run, hike, go out for a girls' night, and looks dashing in a feather boa.

Leigh joined Deily, Mooney & Glastetter in 1999. Prior to joining the firm, she worked in a smaller firm representing consumer and commercial debtors in bankruptcy. Her practice now focuses on creditor representation. Leigh represents national lenders in matters involving consumer and commercial bankruptcies. She has also represented unsecured creditors' committees. Leigh plays an active role in updating the firm's case management system as it relates to consumer bankruptcy practice. Leigh works closely with the Legal Aid Society and is the firm's coordinator of pro bono services. She participates in the Capital Region's Credit Abuse Resistance Education program, which helps educate high school and college students about the use of credit. She is also an active member of the Capital Region Bankruptcy Bar Association and a frequent lecturer on consumer bankruptcy-related topics.

Liza Q. Wirtz is a law clerk in the Harrisonburg office. She is a fourth-generation lawyer and a 2006 graduate of the Vanderbilt Law School, where she served on the boards of various organizations, including the editorial board of the Vanderbilt Law Review, Moot Court, the Legal Aid Society, the Phi Delta Phi legal service fraternity, and OUTLaw. Upon graduating, she received the Damali A. Booker Award for legal activism from her fellow students and the Bennett Douglas Bell Memorial Prize from the law school faculty. Her note, "The Ethical Bar and the LSC: Wrestling with Restrictions on Federally Funded Legal Aid," was published in the April 2006 issue of the Vanderbilt Law Review. She is licensed to practice law in Tennessee. She has a B.A. from Kenyon College and an M.A. from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Prior to law school, she spent nearly twenty years as a professional musician, copyeditor, secretary, and book retailer. She joined BRLS in November 2006.

Marcheta Gillam joined the NCHH Board in March 2006. She is a housing attorney with the Legal Aid Society of Cincinnati. Her primary responsibilities include all aspects of legal advocacy on behalf of low-income families living in substandard housing. Gillam's advocacy for tenants over the past 16 years has made her a strong advocate for lead poisoning prevention and healthy homes. Gillam served on the 2000 Legislative Working Group for Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention in Ohio and on the 1995 Ohio Governor's Committee on Environmental Lead Abatement.

Margaret O. Moll has been with the Legal Aid Society since 2001 and is a receptionist/intake screener for the organization. She is a 1972 graduate of McDowell County Vocational Technical School in West Virginia where she studied business education. Prior to joining Legal Aid, she worked for Tutwiler, Crocket and Lacaria, and has 12 years of experience as a legal secretary. Ms. Moll is a licensed Notary Public.

Maurice is NELP's Public Policy Director. Maurice's areas of specialization are government systems of support, including the unemployment compensation system, workforce development programs, and the welfare system. emsellem@nelp.org emsellem@nelp.org , (510) 663-5700

Mike joined Charity Navigator in 2005 and now oversees all day-to-day operations of the organization, as well as the management of our team of analysts. Mike is the former founding executive director of The For All Kids Foundation in Ramsey, New Jersey and a nationally-recognized figure in the grant-making arena. At The For All Kids Foundation, Mike directed all organizational activities and oversaw the distribution of $22 million in grants to over 1,250 non-profit organizations, focusing efforts on awarding funding to charities providing childcare, early childhood education and after-school programming to low-income and at-risk children. A lawyer by training, Mike is a former staff attorney for the Legal Aid Society of Suffolk County, a nonprofit legal services provider located in Long Island, New York. He earned his bachelor's degree in Political Science from Colgate University and his law degree from the University of Bridgeport School of Law. He is a member of the bar in New York and Connecticut.

Nancy Rosenbloom, Secretary Nancy joined TFC in 2001 as a board member and has served as secretary for several years. She has been an attorney with The Legal Aid Society in NYC since 1988, now serving as Director of the Juvenile Rights Practice s Special Litigation Unit. She is on the boards of the Hetrick-Martin Institute and the Northern New Jersey Maternal-Child Health Consortium.

Oda Friedheim has been a Staff Attorney at the Queens Neighborhood Office of the Legal Aid Society since 1996. At Legal Aid her work includes defending tenants in eviction and ejectment actions in civil and supreme courts, enforcing housing codes through litigation work on behalf of tenant associations and representing low-income homeowners in state and federal courts. She was formerly a founding director of the Lower East Side Local Enforcement Unit of the MFY Legal Services, served on the New York City Rent Guideline Board under Mayor Dinkins; and served as the Director of Housing Development at the Ecumenical Community Development Organization. She currently serves as an advisor to Resident Landlord-Tenant Law In New York and is on the board of the City-Wide Task Force on Housing Court. Mr. Freidheim was awarded the New York IOLA Legal Services Fellowship in 1998, the Arthur Kinoy Fellowship at Rutgers University in 1996, and the Revson Fellows on the Future of the City of New York in 1993.

Rebecca provides research and drafting support to the firm?s attorneys in corporate matters, healthcare law, business transactions, and general practice. Rebecca has been clerking with Roth Bierman LLP since May of 2008. Prior to joining the firm Rebecca clerked for a large law firm in Cleveland and interned at a non-profit law firm in New Orleans. She also served as a Justice System Advocate for the Domestic Violence Center of Cleveland. Rebecca is currently attending the Case Western Reserve University School of Law. She volunteers regularly at the Legal Aid Society?s Brief Advice Clinics. Upon graduation, Rebecca plans on practicing in general corporate and transactional matters.

Shannon Hurley has been with the Legal Aid Society since 2004 and is the coordinator of the Child Advocacy Project. She has an undergraduate degree in Social Work from Appalachian State University (1995). She graduated from North Carolina Central School of Law in 2004 magna cum laude. While a student at North Carolina Central she was a Senior Editor of the North Carolina Central Law Journal, and published a case note in 2003 (26 N.C. Cent. L.J. 47). She was also a Senior Board Member of the Moot Court Board. She was the recipient of the H.M. Michaux Award for Public Service, the North Carolina State Bar Award for Public Service, and the Alumni Association Scholarship. Ms. Hurley is licensed to practice in North Carolina and has been admitted to practice before United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina. She practices in the area of family law.

Stephanie M. Goldsborough has been with the Legal Aid Society since 2003, and is a staff attorney in the Family Law Unit. She graduated from Salem College in 1999 cum laude, and is a 2002 graduate of Campbell University School of Law. She is licensed to practice in North Carolina and has been admitted to practice before the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina. She practices in the area of family law.

Steve has been a defense lawyer for a long time. He is currently a Supervisor for The Legal Aid Society in Queens. He has been teaching a wonderful introduction to the Criminal Justice System at NYU for the last 10 years. I know because I have taken his class and loved every minute of it. The attached pages are mostly taken from his class notes.

Judge Gorman has been a General Division Judge since 1987. She was Administrative Judge from 1998-2000. Judge Gorman is Chair of the Judicial Personnel Committee and serves on the Judicial Budget, Civil Practice and Executives Committees. Judge Gorman received an Honors B.A. from Marquette University in 1970, M.A. from the University of Dayton in 1974 and J.D., Summa Cum Laude, from the University of Dayton School of Law in 1977. Prior to judicial service, Judge Gorman was a teacher in the Dayton School system from1971-1973. She was a Montgomery County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney from 1977-1987. Since 1987, Judge Gorman has served as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Dayton School of Law. Judge Gorman is a member of the Ohio and Dayton Bar Associations; American Bar Association; Dayton Women's Bar Associations; National Association of Women Judges; Ohio Common Pleas Judges Association; and the Carl D. Kessler Inns of Court. Judge Gorman is on the Advisory Board of the University of Dayton School of Law; Chaminade-Julienne High School Board of Trustees; Christ Child Society of Dayton; and the Legal Aid Society of Dayton Board of Trustees. She is past President of the Ohio Common Pleas Judges Association; Carl D. Kessler Inn of Courts; and Catholic Social Services of Miami Valley. She is past Chair of Sienna Springs Board of Trustees and Chaminade-Julienne High School Board of Trustees.

Lenard G. Weiss is a Shareholder in the Litigation Group and one of the founding members of Steefel, Levitt & Weiss. He has served as the firm's Managing Partner and Chair of the Litigation Group. Mr. Weiss currently serves on the firm's Board of Directors. Mr. Weiss is a litigator with over 37 years' experience in complex business and commercial litigation. He has actively represented securities houses and money center banks in major litigation, including a defense verdict in a lender liability case several years ago that the National Law Journal labeled one of the "top 10" civil defense verdicts of the year. In 1995, Mr. Weiss argued and won a case before the United States Supreme Court, Behrens v. Pelletier, 116 S.Ct. 834, which involved the qualified immunity of a FHLBB supervisor. He is also an expert in California utility regulatory matters and California water law. He has represented major water companies and a number of smaller water, telephone and transportation utilities before the California Public Utilities Commission and in the courts. In recent years, he has been actively engaged by his utility clients in the accelerating number of mergers and acquisitions taking place in the utility industry in California. Mr. Weiss received his B.A. from the University of Colorado 1959 and his LL.B. from the University of California, Boalt Hall School of Law in 1962. He also served as a law clerk to Associate Justice Raymond E. Peters of the California Supreme Court. Mr. Weiss is a long-time board member and a recent past President of the Legal Aid Society of San Francisco. He has held numerous positions with the American, California and San Francisco Bar Associations and is a member of the Association of Business Trial Lawyers. He actively serves as a mediator for the San Francisco Superior Court Early Settlement Program and as a Judge Pro Tem and an arbitrator/referee for the San Francisco Superior Court. He has served as a faculty member on trial practice programs and panels for the Rutter Group, the California Continuing Education of the Bar, the National Institute of Trial Advocacy, and the Hastings Trial Practice Clinic. Mr. Weiss is a past President and Trustee of the Edward J. McFetridge American Inns of Court and co-chaired the Annual Meeting of the American Inns of Court held in San Francisco in 1995. Mr. Weiss served as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the College Preparatory School in Oakland from 1982-1986.

Marda Walters Sydnor grew up in Jacksonville, Alabama. She graduated from Auburn University in 1975 and from Cumberland School of Law of Samford University in 1980. While in law school, Ms. Sydnor was Articles Editor of The American Journal of Trial Advocacy and was an Associate Justice of the Moot Court Board. She was the winner of the Gordon T. Saad Moot Court Competition her junior year of law school. She was an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Alabama from 1980 to 1983. Admitted to the Alabama Bar in 1980 and the Virginia Bar in 1981, Ms. Sydnor is a member of the American Bar Association, the Alabama State Bar, the Birmingham Bar Association, the Alabama Defense Lawyers Association, the Virginia Bar Association, Defense Research Institute, and the National Association of Women Lawyers. She is admitted to practice in the United States District Courts for the Northern, Middle, and Southern Districts of Alabama as well as the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. She served as President of the Birmingham Bar Association in 2005-2006. Other leadership positions with the Birmingham Bar Association include: President-Elect 2004-2005; Secretary-Treasurer 2003-2004; Executive Committee 1999-2002; Grievance Committee Chairman; Membership Committee Chairman; and Executive Committee of the Young Lawyers Section. Additionally, she serves on the Board of Trustees of The Legal Aid Society as well as the Birmingham Bar Foundation Trust, the charitable arm of the Birmingham Bar Association. She is a former regional vice president of the Alabama Defense Lawyers Association. Ms. Sydnor has tried over 100 jury trials in state and federal courts, and specializes in the defense of premises liability cases. She has been awarded an AV peer review rating by Martindale-Hubbell. Ms. Sydnor is married to a trial attorney, Allen Sydnor, but she and her husband agree that the best debaters in their household are their two sons. Living in a family of men, all of whom are active in Boy Scouts, she is happy to serve on the board of the Girl Scouts of America - Cahaba Council.

Margaret Wrenn Hickey, a shareholder in the law firm of Becker & Hickey, S.C., practices in the areas of divorce, family law, and elder law including trusts for the disabled, title 19, and guardianship. She received her B.A. from Marquette University and her J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School. Margaret lectures frequently at local, state, and national bar meetings on elder law and family law topics. She is a past Chair of the State Bar of Wisconsin's Elder Law Section and the Family Law Section and currently serves on the State Bar of Wisconsin Board of Governors. She is named in the Best Lawyers in America and is a fellow in the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers and President Elect for the Wisconsin Chapter.

Noah J. Hanft is General Counsel and Chief Franchise Officer for MasterCard Worldwide. In this capacity, he is responsible for overseeing legal affairs and public policy as well as Payment Systems Integrity and Franchise Development. Mr. Hanft serves as a member of the company's Executive Committee. Since first joining MasterCard in 1984, Mr. Hanft has held positions of increasing responsibility within the Law Department, including that of Senior Vice President, U.S. Counsel and Assistant General Counsel. He briefly left MasterCard from 1990 to 1993 to become Senior Vice President and Assistant General Counsel of AT&T Universal Card Services, where he successfully defended numerous legal and regulatory challenges initiated against AT&T's start-up credit card operation. Mr. Hanft was previously associated with the intellectual property law firm of Ladas & Parry in New York. He began his career as a trial attorney in the criminal defense division of the Legal Aid Society. Mr. Hanft has a master of laws degree from New York University School of Law in trade regulations, a doctor of jurisprudence degree from Brooklyn Law School, and a bachelor's degree from American University, School of Government and Public Administration. Mr. Hanft serves on the Board of Directors of the Legal Aid Society.

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Mr. Magill received an undergraduate degree "with distinction" from Indiana University at Bloomington and completed law studies at Hastings College of Law in his hometown of San Francisco. He re-located to Orlando, Florida in 1976 where he accepted a position as a Senior Staff Attorney with the Legal Aid Society of Orange County, Florida. He went into practice as a sole practitioner in 1978 specializing in Commericial and Real Estate Litigation, Estate Planning and Probate and Family Law. He has served as a Trustee of the Legal Aid Society since 1991 and was its President from 1994 to 1995. His Bar activities have included Chairmanship of the Law Week Committee and membership of the Professionalism Committee of which he is now Chair. Additional activities included serving as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Central Florida teaching Wills and Estates, Ethics, Business Organizations and other pre-law courses.