Ballard Spahr offices in Washington, D.C. March 24, 2015. Photo by Diego M. Radzinschi/ALMTo Fill Pro Bono Role, Ballard Spahr Turns to Nonprofit Lawyer
Lisa Swaminathan, a former litigation associate, is returning to the firm after two years at the Juvenile Law Center.
November 12, 2018 at 04:02 PM
3 minute read
To replace a pro bono leader who is joining the U.S. House of Representatives, Ballard Spahr turned to an alumna with an up-close knowledge of the nonprofit legal community.
Lisa Swaminathan will be the firm's new pro bono counsel, starting next month. She joins on the heels of Mary Gay Scanlon's win in the 5th District of Pennsylvania. Scanlon took part in a special election to serve the rest of former Rep. Patrick Meehan's term, so she is set to be sworn in Tuesday.
Swaminathan spent the last two years at Juvenile Law Center, based in Philadelphia. Before that, she worked as a litigation associate at Philadelphia-based Ballard Spahr for five years.
But her history with the firm goes back further than that. After participating in the summer associate program there, her job offer was deferred after she graduated from law school in 2009 because of the down economy. So she joined the national nonprofit Community Legal Services as a staff attorney, where she worked directly with families in child welfare cases. It was intended to be a one-year position, she said, but she chose to stay for a second year.
Swaminathan said she enjoyed her time as an associate at Ballard Spahr as well, and found ample opportunities for pro bono work. But she couldn't say no to the opportunity to work as a youth advocate full time.
“It was a population I always wanted to serve. Being able to do pro bono work or working for a nonprofit was a primary factor for me in deciding to go to law school,” Swaminathan said.
During her time at Juvenile Law Center, Ballard Spahr worked with the organization on cases arising out of the Clemency Project, and resentencing cases for juveniles who were sentenced to life without parole. Swaminathan said she would like for the firm's pro bono program to continue its work in those areas.
“I want to continue Mary Gay's legacy of building a strong program over the past 15 years,” she said. “I would like to see the firm stay engaged in the high-impact work as well as the cases that make a big difference to the individuals.”
On The American Lawyer's 2018 Pro Bono Score Card, Ballard Spahr ranked 37th among Am Law 200 firms. The average lawyer worked 71.8 pro bono hours, and 63.1 percent of the firm's population worked more than 20 pro bono hours.
The firm does not mandate pro bono work, Swaminathan said, but has a participation rate of 90 percent. Having a lawyer role dedicated to organizing the firm's pro bono efforts shows the firm's commitment, she said, and helps lawyers within the firm get connected with the type of pro bono they want to do.
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