A program that provided free legal assistance to Holocaust survivors seeking reparations from the German government, and which Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll, LLP spearheaded in the Delaware Valley region, is being honored today with the 2009 American Bar Association Pro Bono Publico Award, the profession's highest recognition for pro bono work.
The Holocaust Survivors Justice Network (HSJN) is being recognized today during the ABA's annual meeting in Chicago. Ballard Spahr became a coordinating member of the HSJN when it expanded to Philadelphia in 2008. Lawyers at the firm organized activities and clinics for Holocaust survivors in Philadelphia and New Jersey.
"The HSJN provides an incredible opportunity to help elderly Holocaust survivors, many of whom live on fixed incomes," said Mary Gay Scanlon, Executive Director of Ballard Spahr's Pro Bono Program. "We were honored to assist the survivors of this dark chapter in 20th century world history. And we were humbled by their gratitude."
HSJN was established in 2007 after the German government created a program to compensate survivors who performed "voluntary" labor in Nazi-controlled ghettos during World War II. Under the German Ghetto Work Payment Program, survivors are eligible to file claims for a one-time payment of 2,000 euros (about $2,800).
Worldwide, 100 law firms assisted more than 5,000 survivors and filed claims worth approximately $8 million. The program was created by Bet Tzedek, a public interest law firm whose name means "equal justice for all" in Hebrew. The Ballard Spahr attorneys who took part are Joel B. Korin, Arash Micaily, Dionne T. Savage, Amy M. Trojecki, Rosemary Bates Walsh, and Ms. Scanlon.