Pursuing Justice Podcast Episode 40: In the legal space, Pro Bono typically means working for free — volunteering your time and legal skills. What if there’s another way to serve the public good? In this episode, meet Daissy Dominguez and Samoane Williams and learn about the Justice Entrepreneurs Project, which creates law firms designed to meet working families’ legal needs with predictable, transparent fees.
This podcast provides a behind-the-scenes exploration of pro bono and public interest legal work. These heartening stories are told from both clients’ and lawyers’ perspectives to showcase intimate portraits of lawyers helping those with limited access to justice.
Please note: CLE is not offered for listening to this podcast, and the views and opinions expressed within represent those of the speakers and not necessarily those of PLI.
FEATURED IN THIS EPISODE
Daissy Dominguez
In 2010, Ms. Dominguez received her Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts and Science with a major in Political Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In 2013, Ms. Dominguez received her Juris Doctor from the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) School of Law.
Pursuing a legal career dedicated to social justice, Ms. Dominguez founded Justice Connect with a focus on immigration law. Dominguez Legal Justice Center, LLC (DLJC) operates with two principles: Financial accessibility and social justice. Ms. Dominguez founded Justice Connect under the mission to build a socially conscious law practice that provides access to the legal system to low- and moderate-income communities. The firm provides holistic representation by connecting clients with free counseling services and the necessary resources to assist them with the non-legal issues that are affecting their life and families. Furthermore, we provide educational legal workshops to communities to educate immigrants about their legal rights, and collaborate with community organizations and institutions to host staff training and onsite consultations at local centers. Lastly, the firm offers mentorship to students interested in pursuing legal careers, and scholarships to DACA and/or undocumented college students.
Ms. Dominguez has been an adjunct law professor at UIC Law School since 2017. She is a former board member on the Board of Directors for the University of Illinois Latina/Latino Alumni Association, and the Associate Board of Directors for Just The Beginning, HANA Center, and Wiley Resource Center. Ms. Dominguez is the Founder of the John Marshall Law School Academic Enhancement Program, an academic retention program geared towards increasing the academic retention rates of first-year minority law students.
Samoane Williams
Samoane Williams is the Director of the Chicago Bar Foundation’s Justice Entrepreneurs Project (JEP), an incubator empowering lawyers to lead socially conscious law practices and innovative businesses that offer valuable, cost-effective legal services and products to consumers of all incomes. She is the point person and manager for the JEP’s growing network of law firms, and she manages, evaluates, and continuously improves the training curriculum, mentoring program, and knowledge management tools for the JEP, and also plays a lead role in the program’s community education and outreach efforts.
Prior to serving in this role, Samoane practiced in several public interest law positions in Chicago, serving as a staff attorney at Equip for Equality, policy manager for Raise the Floor Alliance, and in several roles with First Defense Legal Aid, where she received one of the CBF’s prestigious Sun-Times Public Interest Fellowships.
Samoane is a 2014 cum laude graduate of the Michigan State University College of Law, and received her B.A. in Sociology and Political Science with honors from the University of Michigan.
A native of Detroit, Samoane is a self-proclaimed foodie and enjoys the arts. She currently lives in Chicago’s Canaryville neighborhood.
