Some of the most dramatic changes in Texans' lives have come as a result of lawyers deciding to sue the state in federal court. Prisons, public schools and housing are all better for those attorneys' efforts.

Houston lawyer Paul Yetter and his law firm Yetter Coleman could think of no better cause than protecting 12,000 of the most endangered children in Texas' foster care system. So he pursued a pro bono project on their behalf that did just that.

“The stories were just horrible. These are children all across the state that have been in foster care for more than a year,” Yetter said. “Many of them spend the rest of their childhood in foster care, age out of the system, end up on the streets and have a terrible outcome.”