Should businesses get free legal help? When put like that, your gut reaction might be “No.”

But the sudden changes caused by COVID-19 have shone a light on how important small businesses are. In fact, 89% of U.S. businesses have fewer than twenty employees. The impact of small businesses on our lives is not small at all. COVID-19 might have caused many of us to see small business in a different way, but there are lawyers who have been noticing and recognizing small businesses’ value to the community for a long time. These lawyers have worked for decades to strengthen neighborhoods by building partnerships with community leaders and local entrepreneurs.

In this episode, Pursuing Justice talks with transactional lawyers in Detroit about how they provide pro bono legal help to the small businesses in their community, and how these lawyers have pivoted to meet the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.

FEATURED IN THIS EPISODE

Shamyle Maya Dobbs

Shamyle Maya Dobbs, CEO of Michigan Community Resources, brings with her a deep institutional understanding of organizational governance and has an unparalleled passion for the good work done by community organizations.

A native New Yorker and graduate of New York University, Shamyle moved to Michigan in 2001 to complete her Masters of Social Work at the University of Michigan School of Social Work, and went on to receive a Juris Doctorate from Wayne State University Law School. Mrs. Dobbs has over twenty years of experience in nonprofit management and cross-sector relationship building, and extensive experience in human-centered design, program development, evaluation, leadership development, organizational capacity building, business planning, and community or¬ganizing and engagement.

With her core philosophy being that of servant leadership, she believes that leadership is title-less, and embodies practices that enrich the lives of individuals, build stronger organizations, enhance communities, and ultimately create a more just and caring world.

Maureen Krasner

Maureen Krasner, JD is Senior Program Manager at Michigan Community Resources, overseeing all aspects of the Legal Pro Bono programs. Maureen works with individuals and community groups in underserved communities throughout Michigan, providing access to high quality legal resources and trusted guidance to help build strong communities.

Prior to joining MCR in April 2018, Maureen practiced corporate litigation with Detroit-based offices of national law firms and worked as in-house counsel at an automotive company. Maureen has a Juris Doctor from the Michigan State School of Law (f/k/a Detroit College of Law) and a Bachelor of Arts in Humanities from Michigan State University.

Albert Pak

Albert Pak serves as a Program Manager, Attorney & Skadden Fellow at Michigan Community Resources. He is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where he was a Toll Public Interest Scholar, and holds an MPA from Princeton University.

Previously, Albert worked as a management consultant for Oliver Wyman, where he specialized in the financial services industry. He then went on to help launch 12+, an education nonprofit dedicated to creating college-going cultures in Philadelphia high schools, where he served as COO. During his career, Albert has also worked for Able Lending, Covington & Burling LLP, and the Community Investments Team at Rock Ventures.

Wendy Richards

Wendy Richards, a principal in Miller Canfield’s Litigation and Dispute Resolution Group, serves as the firm’s pro bono counsel. Wendy has assisted in and led teams involving high-impact immigration litigation matters, civil rights class actions, community development projects, entrepreneurship opportunities for persons living in disadvantaged communities, as well as several other access-to-justice projects.

Most notably, Wendy is cooperating counsel with the ACLU on the widely publicized case Hamama v. Adducci, representing a nationwide class of Iraqi immigrants who had faced immediate deportation despite possible torture or death. She is also past co-chair of the Association of Pro Bono Counsel’s Voting Rights Task Force, coordinating with firms across the nation to support voting rights groups in their efforts to improve systems related to the democratic process.

Wendy is co-creator of the Small Business Legal Academy Detroit, which provided free legal education or direct assistance to hundreds of small businesses and entrepreneurs in the Detroit area. She was also a lead consultant on the establishment of the New Economy Initiative’s Neighborhood Business Initiative, focusing on building and sustaining an infrastructure to support businesses in underserved communities. Under Wendy’s leadership, in October 2017 the firm was awarded the prestigious Detroit Community Development Distinguished Pro Bono Service Provider Award.

Steve Roach

Steve Roach is a trial lawyer with more than thirty years of experience in restructuring lending relationships and enforcing loan transactions. He applies this experience to provide a unique perspective as both a trial and transactional lawyer when representing and counselling the firm's financial institution clients.