Pro Bono Service Awards for 2010

Presented February 18, 2011 by

The Honorable Kerry I. Evander

Fifth District Court of Appeal

Outstanding Pro Bono Service Awards for the Year 2010 Over 50 Hours of Pro Bono Service

Robert McClain / 350 hours / 1 case closed / 1 case pending

Lori Bittner / 151 hours / 1 case closed

Leslie Castaldi / 129 hours / 2 cases closed

James Torres / 117 hours / 10 advice clinics/ 21 cases closed / 34 cases pending

Steve Allender / 71 hours / 38 advice clinics / 3 cases closed / 2 cases pending

Deborah Smith / 68.37 hours / 63 pro se clinics / 2 cases closed / 1 case pending

James Dressler / 61 hours / 6 cases closed /1 case pending

Brigitta Hawkins / 60.75 hours / 29 advice clinics /3 cases closed

Eric Wicks / 51.5 hours / 70 advice clinics / 3 cases pending

Mikele Carter / 50.5 hours / 56 advice clinics

John Daly / 50.5 hours / 23 pro se clinics

Timothy Houck / 50 hours / 2 cases closed / 2 cases pending

Distinguished Pro Bono Service Awards for the Year 2010 Over 25 Hours of Pro Bono Service

Vencil Moore / 44.8 hours / 4 cases closed

Jeffrey Thompson / 42 hours / 2 cases closed

Robert Westman / 40.5 hours / 47 advice clinics

Tino Gonzalez / 38.2 hours/ 3 cases closed /1 case pending

Fernando Palacios / 38 hours / 18 advice clinics

Charles Nash / 36 hours / 2 cases closed /2 cases pending

Shirley Ovletrea / 32.5 hours / 34 advice clinics/ 3 cases closed

Christopher Coleman / 30 hours / 1 case closed

Tracy Griffin / 30 hours / 1 case closed

Paul Giordano / 28.5 hours / 3 cases closed

Donato Rinaldi / 28.5 hours / 24 advice clinics /1 case pending

Thomas Yardley / 26.4 hours / 3 cases closed /2 cases pending

Keith Kromash / 26.3 hours / 2 cases closed

Julie Pierce / 25.8 hours / 1 case closed /2 cases pending

Julie Cloney / 25 hours / 1 case closed

William Johnson / 25 hours / 5 cases closed

Special Awards

Children's Advocacy Award	One Promise Award	Special Service Award
David Lococo	Raymond E. Cornelius	Kenneth Goldfarb

CHILDREN'S ADVOCACY AWARD -
David Lococo

David Lococo is a semi-retired attorney who approached BCLA two years ago to offer his services on a pro bono basis. When Mr. Lococo discovered that BCLA had a program helping kids who were aging out of foster care he was anxious to get involved. Within a week he had taken on a challenging case which involved a strong-willed 17-year-old who desperately needed help.

Soon after taking the case, Mr. Lococo volunteered to cover hearings if the children's program staff attorney was unavailable. Additionally, he accepted a second case.

In late 2010, realizing one of his clients would soon be aging out of the system, BCLA asked Mr. Lococo if he would consider taking another case, this time twin teenaged boys. Again he accepted. In the two years Mr. Lococo has been assisting BCLA's children's program, he has been of enormous help, covering many hearings while the staff attorney attended classes or took personal leave. BCLA, and especially our children's program, have been fortunate indeed that Mr. Lococo came along when he did. He has truly been an exceptional friend and valuable resource for our program, our staff and the children he represents.

ONE PROMISE AWARD - Raymond E. Cornelius

After starting his career in private practice in Rochester, New York, Raymond Cornelius was appointed Assistant District Attorney for the Monroe County District Attorney's Office, where he served for twelve years.

In 1977, Mr. Cornelius became a Family Court Judge in New York and served in that capacity between 1978 and 1985.

In 1985, he was elected to the Supreme Court for the Seventh Judicial District of New York and in 1999 was re-elected. As a Supreme Court Justice, he presided over all types of civil and criminal cases and was frequently assigned to preside over trials in New York City.

Following retirement in 2007, Mr. Cornelius became associated, as counsel, with the law firm of McConville, Considine, Cooman & Morin, P.C., in Rochester, New York where he assists the litigation department.

Upon relocating to Florida, Mr. Cornelius became involved with Brevard County Legal Aid by conducting advice clinics. His patience and compassion is appreciated by grateful clients and Legal Aid staff always looks forward to his visits, which usually occur on a monthly basis. Almost immediately, he was interested in becoming more involved, and with the advent of Florida's "ONE" pro bono campaign, Mr. Cornelius took advantage of several new volunteer opportunities. He embraced the campaign's slogan of "One Client - One Attorney - One Promise" and even went a few steps further. After participating in training sessions, he accepted cases in the areas of foreclosure, children's law and family law.

Ray is an avid baseball fan and, when he is not busy with his Legal Aid cases, he enjoys catching a spring training game or rooting for his beloved Yankees. An ardent advocate, his selfless commitment to the concept of equal justice makes Raymond Cornelius a deserving recipient of Brevard's "One Promise" Award.

SPECIAL SERVICE AWARD - Kenneth Goldfarb

It is our pleasure to recognize Ken Goldfarb's extraordinary efforts in providing pro bono assistance to Legal Aid and our clients. Ken has established a reputation in Brevard and Seminole counties for providing extremely responsive and reliable service. While Legal Aid generally calls upon the Sheriff's office for service of process, over the past year we have called upon Ken in numerous emergency situations when immediate action is necessary or when service has been effectively evaded. In instances when several attempts have been unsuccessful, Ken has stepped in to save the day.

In one recent case, Legal Aid desperately needed documents from a party in order to assist in obtaining citizenship status for a young client. Our client's estranged father was evading service of a contempt motion for failing to provide the necessary information. Thanks to Ken's efforts, we were able to track down the father and obtain the necessary documentation in time to provide the assistance needed. This is just one example of Ken's commitment to providing assistance to the poor and disadvantaged in Brevard County. For his outstanding efforts, we proudly present Kenneth Goldfarb with the Special Service Award.