When Legal Aid of Western Ohio (LAWO) Executive Director Kevin Mulder leaves his office for the last time in early December, he’ll conclude more than three decades of service at legal aid, including 24 years as LAWO’s leader. Having guided LAWO through recessions, administrative changes, and a pandemic, he’s earned a well-deserved break.

“I love the job, and I love the people I work with,” he said. “The mission is needed, now more than ever. And the services benefit thousands of people every year. I’ll miss all of it, but I’m looking forward to opportunities in retirement, including hobbies, travel, and more time with family.”

Mulder leaves LAWO having built at the nonprofit the same attributes that attracted him to LAWO’s partner organization, Advocates for Basic Legal Equality (ABLE), back in the early 90s, when he first interviewed with legal aid after starting his career in New York at a public defender’s office. He liked that ABLE represented individual clients and engaged in systemic advocacy, a rarity at the time. He appreciated the professionalism extended to staff, and most importantly, to clients.

“They treated their clients as the clients for a private law firm would be treated, including a professional-looking office space,” he said.

The location didn’t hurt either. While Toledo isn’t quite the same as his native Michigan or New York, where he spent much of his early career, he appreciated that the city offered a lower cost of living, access to cultural events, and a supportive living environment.

After accepting the offer from ABLE, Mulder spent several years there before a variety of changes in the legal services landscape led to the creation of a new legal aid organization, LAWO. In 2001, he was tapped to lead LAWO, where he guided the integration of services in northwest Ohio and expanded LAWO’s operations to include offices in Dayton, Lima, and Springfield.

But, he says, his greatest success has been supporting his team.

“The strength of our program is our management team and our staff, our employees, our attorneys, and our paralegals and support staff,” he said. “They’re creative, dedicated, and professional. My role really was to support them, find funding for them, and provide all that goes into having an effective legal services law firm.”

During challenging times, Mulder recommitted to what matters most: serving low-income Ohioans.

“Recognizing the importance of our services to our client communities helped me and helps all our employees get through the tough times and focus on helping our clients build a better future for themselves, their families, and their communities,” he said. “I’ve been very fortunate. I’ve been able to contribute to ensuring that justice is a reality in our society.”

The Ohio Access to Justice Foundation is the largest funder of civil legal services in Ohio. A gift to the Foundation supports Ohio’s legal aids.