Ian Gershengorn of Jenner & Block.

Describe your firm's philosophy on pro bono service. 

Pro bono is a core value of our firm, and has been for many decades. Our commitment to serve our communities is all the more important to us in these challenging times. On matters large and small, we provide critical legal services to those most in need, giving an important voice to those without access to justice. We partner with many clients who share our values towards community and public service.

What are the two biggest cases your firm worked on in 2019? Tell us more about those cases and how you reached the outcome.  

Led by Ian Heath Gershengorn, Jenner & Block helped ensure that tens of thousands of Medicaid recipients in Kentucky and Arkansas wouldn't lose health insurance as a result of new restrictions on eligibility and coverage, including work requirements and lock-outs. We won in district court in March 2019. In February 2020, the [U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia] unanimously affirmed, holding that the federal government failed to justify allowing those states to impose a work requirement as a condition of eligibility for Medicaid benefits.

We also protected the rights of two civilian lawyers who withdrew from representing an alleged terrorist at [Guantanamo Bay Detention Camp] after they discovered governmental intrusions into protected attorney-client communications. The lawyers, threatened with contempt and arrest for attempting to resign from the case on ethical grounds, were fully vindicated in an April 2019 D.C. Circuit decision, in which all the orders and rulings entered by the now-retired military judge and the Court of Military Commission Review were vacated.

What was the most satisfying aspect of that work? 

It is extremely rewarding to use our skills to help change the lives of individuals whose voices are not always heard. The Medicaid victory, in particular, is one in which tens of thousands of Americans can now continue to have access to health coverage and health care. The decision made clear that the administration cannot simply ignore the devastating real-world consequences of its policies.

What other pro bono matters is the firm working on?

We continue our core pro bono work in such matters as criminal, LGBTQ and civil rights. Through our partnerships with existing and new clients, we have multiplied our efforts in times of crisis. Our lawyers have been working with the City Bar Justice Center's Legal Hotline to prepare training materials for its COVID-19 Legal Hotline Expansion that will connect low-income or unemployed individuals with critical legal assistance. Recognizing the sacrifices of health care workers, we partner with the Chicago Bar Association in its Wills for Healthcare Heroes Program, offering pro bono virtual estate planning services to first-responders and health care workers.

Why does pro bono work matter to you as a lawyer?

Pro bono is at the very core of the firm. Representing those without the resources to protect themselves reminds us that the work we do can make all the difference in the world. Our clients may change over the years but the ability to empower them is always extremely gratifying.

Responses submitted by Andrew Vail, Christian Tuddenham, Todd Toral, Michael Ross and Matt Price, pro bono committee co-chairs at Jenner & Block.