Elected and Appointed

Lamb McErlane partner James Sargent was appointed a member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association civility in the profession committee.

This appointment is effective immediately and will run until May 2021.

The co-chairs of the committee are Paul C. Troy and Thomas G. Wilkinson Jr.

The vice chair is Judge William C. Mackrides of the Delaware County Court of Common Pleas.

The committee's activities are intended to include planning and presenting continuing legal education and other programs and initiatives to promote courtesy and respect for other participants in the judicial system and commitment to the PBA Working Rules of Professionalism and the Pennsylvania Code of Civility.

Sargent is also a member and past chairman of the PBA amicus curiae brief committee and member and past co-chair of the PBA appellate advocacy committee.

Honored

The Pennsylvania Bar Foundation selected Philadelphia lawyers Stephen P. Chawaga, executive director of Episcopal Legal Aid, and Wesley R. Payne IV, a partner at White and Williams, for 2020 Louis J. Goffman Awards.

The Goffman Award is named for a late Pennsylvania Bar Association president and recognizes individuals and organizations committed to outstanding pro bono service.

Chawaga founded Episcopal Legal Aid in November 2019 to promote access to justice by bringing pro bono civil legal services to low-income residents of Philadelphia and surrounding counties.

The organization joins individuals in need of services at meals and other church-sponsored gatherings to break down access barriers and promote an atmosphere of comfort and security where clients can articulate their concerns.

In its first four months of service, Episcopal Legal Aid held 24 clinics and served 102 clients.

In addition, Chawaga drafted the complaint in the Baby Neal v. Casey case brought by the American Civil Liberties Union against Philadelphia's Department of Human Services to correct fatal deficiencies in the department's oversight and administrative practices.

He also has a service record at the Support Center for Child Advocates as a volunteer attorney representing child victims of neglect, a member of its board of directors and chair of its volunteer committee.

Chawaga also handled prisoners' rights cases as part of a program administered by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and has volunteered with Philadelphia VIP.

Chawaga is a member of the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and American bar associations.

He worked on several projects with the Temple-LEAP Program at the Philadelphia Bar Association and served in several positions in the PBA Statewide High School Mock Trial Competition.

Payne serves as chair White and Williams' diversity committee, co-chair of the pro bono committee and chair of the Homeless Advocacy Practice Group.

In 2019, Payne devoted over 400 hours toward pro bono work. At the firm, he identifies opportunities, trains/mentors and oversees pro bono activities of more than 200 attorneys.

For the HAP program, Payne administers bimonthly legal clinics at Our Brothers Place for the firm and handles Social Security disability insurance, identification and other types of cases.

He was a past president and board member of the Bethesda Project, an organization serving the homeless in Philadelphia, and is a board member of the Homeless Advocacy Project, both of which assist high concentrations of veterans.

Payne is also a member of the military and veteran's affairs committees of the PBA and Philadelphia Bar Association.

Payne holds several leadership positions in state and local legal organizations, including a member of the PBA board of governors and House of Delegates, vice chancellor of the

Philadelphia Bar Association and president of the PBA Conference of County Bar Leaders.

Payne also served on the board of the Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network for several years.

As president of the Philadelphia Association of Defense Counsel, Payne implemented a community service program that is involved in several community service projects per year.

He also serves on several pro bono and civic boards and as a judge pro tem for the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas.