When the Ohio Access to Justice Foundation tabulated the results of the annual 2022 Pro Bono Survey, in partnership with the Supreme Court of Ohio, two Cincinnati attorneys stood out. Thomas Cuni, of counsel at Thomas Downing Law Firm and a volunteer with ProKids, and Gerry Greene, a volunteer with the Legal Aid Society of [...]
In 2019, team members at the Ohio Access to Justice Foundation were brainstorming how to help legal aid immigration advocates who were struggling with stress and burnout. As the largest funder of civil legal services in Ohio, the Foundation recognized an opportunity to support grantees during a tremendously stressful time; the question was, how to [...]
When the Ohio Access to Justice Foundation surveyed law students of color, legal aid attorneys, and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) leaders at bar associations and law schools about what makes a successful summer clerkship program, the consensus was clear: a supportive working environment is crucial to a program’s success. But what does a supportive [...]
Since the inaugural meeting of the Ohio Access to Justice Foundation’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee one year ago, the group has been hard at work leveraging resources and convening stakeholders to identify opportunities to improve DEI in Ohio’s civil justice system. With the help of Equius Group, a Cleveland-based consulting firm, and data [...]
A year into the Foundation’s grant program that provides funding for the immigration legal needs of Afghan evacuees across the state, Ohio nonprofits have exceeded expectations. The Foundation’s grantees have helped over 2,300 Afghans seeking safety and stability, a higher number than initially anticipated. In partnership with the Ohio State Bar Association, the Foundation recently [...]
When Susan Choe was the director of the Student Housing Legal Clinic at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law, she would send her law students down to observe the eviction docket in Franklin County. For students just starting their legal careers, the visit provided an eye-opening look at the housing challenges experienced by [...]
When the Ohio Justice Bus sought volunteer lawyers to help staff legal clinics in Hamilton County, the Black Lawyers Association of Cincinnati (BLAC) was at the top of the list. BLAC, an affinity bar association that works to ensure all lawyers and law students have equal opportunity to share in the benefits of the legal [...]
Tenille Kaus is only four months into her new role at The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland, where she leads diversity, equity, inclusion (DEI), and advancement for the nonprofit, but already she has a full plate. Charged with implementing legal aid’s DEI plan and designing strategies to ensure that the nonprofit considers DEI principles across [...]
Since its launch in the fall of 2019, the Ohio Justice Bus has been on the road, delivering justice to Ohio’s most vulnerable communities. To help manage the Bus’s busy clinic schedule and to expand its reach, the Bus is pleased to welcome two new full-time staff members. “We’ve been growing rapidly, working with new [...]
Scott Kovach is the new staff attorney for the Ohio Justice Bus. Kovach is a Capital University Law School graduate and holds a master’s degree in legal studies from Washington University in St. Louis. Kovach is a staff sergeant in the U.S. Army and has served since 2009. Kovach joins the Bus in his first [...]
