Public Interest Law Center Explained

Type:	Nonpartisan
Purpose:	Public interest litigation
Key People:	Jennifer R. Clarke, Executive Director
Public Interest Law Center
Founded Date:	1969
Location:	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Area Served:	United States
Num Employees:	12 (2016)
Homepage:	http://www.pilcop.org/

The Public Interest Law Center, founded in 1969, is a nonprofit law firm based in Philadelphia. The Public Interest Law Center works primarily in the greater Philadelphia region occasionally taking on issues on a national scale.

The Public Interest Law Center's project areas include Education, Voting, Employment, Environmental justice, Healthcare, Housing and Community Services and Voting.

History

Founded by Edwin D. (Ned) Wolf, The Public Interest Law Center's history dates back to 1969,^[1] rooted in the Philadelphia chapter that was one of seven local affiliates of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.^[2] In its early years, the Public Interest Law Center's initial mission was to dismantle specific aspects of institutional racism by targeting discriminatory policies and practices.^[3]

Project Areas

The Public Interest Law Centers aims to use high-impact legal strategies to both promote and protect the marginalized through project areas including Education, Voting, Employment, Environmental Justice, Healthcare, Housing and Community Services and voting.

A full list of The Public Interest Law Center's litigation can be found on the organization's website. http://www.pilcop.org/

Notable former associates

Gilbert F. Casellas, former board member — Chairman of OMNITRU
Thomas Gilhool, former staff attorney — Former Pennsylvania Secretary of Education
Jordan Konell, former intern — 2015 Rhodes Scholar^[4]

Thaddeus Stevens Awardees

The Public Interest Law Center annually presents the Thaddeus Stevens Award to either individuals or organizations whose actions best correspond with its social mission.

2000: William T. Coleman, Jr^[5]
2010: Governor Ed Rendell; Hon. Doris Smith-Ribner; Sec. Donna Cooper
2011: Jerome Balter
2012: Dechert LLP
2013: DLA Piper LLP; Thomas B. Schmidt III
2014: Pennsylvania State Conference of NAACP Branches; William H. Ewing; Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP
2015: School Funding Lawsuit Clients; H. Laddie Montague, Jr.

Awards

1978: The Delaware Valley Council on Services for the Handicapped's Annual Award for Outstanding Service to the Handicapped Community
1997: Citizen's Committee on Public Education in Philadelphia's John N. Patterson Award for Excellence in Education
1997: The Barristers' Association of Philadelphia's Cecil B. Moore Community Service Award
1999: National Down Syndrome Congress' Education Award
1999: The Michigan Academy of Pediatrics' Special Recognition Award
2009: Inglis Award for Continuing Excellence
2006: Society for Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics' Special Recognition Award
2012: Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center's Be The Change Award for Extraordinary Work Protecting Pennsylvanians' Right to Vote^[6]
2015: The Barristers' Association of Philadelphia's Martin Luther King, Jr. Award for Outstanding Service to the Community^[7]
2015: NAACP's Juanita Jackson Mitchell Award^[8]

External links

Notes and References

Web site: History & Mission Public Interest Law Center. www.pilcop.org. 2016-10-04.
Web site: Part of a Network. Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights . 8 December 2014.
Web site: History & Mission. Public Interest Law Center . 8 December 2014.
News: City man is Rhodes Scholar. 24 November 2014. The Philadelphia Inquirer . 11 December 2014.
Web site: May Law Center Update. May 1, 2000.
Web site: PBPC Celebrates 5th Anniversary The Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center. pennbpc.org. 2016-07-27.
Web site: Martin Luther King Breakfast with the Barristers' Association. Temple University Beasley School of Law . Epps. Joanne A.. 10 February 2015.
Web site: Law Center Honored to Receive NAACP Award Public Interest Law Center. www.pilcop.org. 2016-07-27.