Trial Lawyers Care®
An initiative to encourage, recognize, and organize trial lawyers who contribute to their communities through volunteer and charitable activities that serve the public good.

How to Help Federal Workers
Public Service Legal Response Center
The Public Service Legal Response Center will unite lawyers who want to assist current or former federal workers through a central hub to connect them with opportunities to help.
Representing Federal Employees Webinar
Access the recording of a webinar hosted by the American Constitution Society and co-sponsored by the AFL-CIO Union Lawyers Alliance on March 5. The 90-minute training is geared to both employment attorneys who are not familiar with representing federal employees, as well as attorneys who don't practice employment law. The webinar will cover the statutory overview, categories of federal employees, case intake, the current litigation, and more. To access the recording as an AAJ member, please click here.
If you have any issues accessing the webinar as an AAJ member, please reach out to the Education Team at education@justice.org.
*Note: You will need to be logged into our On-Demand Platform to view the recording and its landing page.*
Webinar on Employee Rights: March 10
Join the Metropolitan Washington Employment Lawyers’ Association for a complimentary webinar on March 10 from 12:00 – 1:30 PM ET. Co-sponsored by AAJ, NELA, and AFL-CIO Union Lawyers Alliance, the webinar will focus on regulations, appeal rights, and processes for reduction in forces (RIFs). Learn more and register.
Representing Federal Employees Webinar: March 12
Join We the Action for a complimentary webinar on March 12 at 12 PM ET. This 90-minute training offers information to broaden the field of legal counsel available to serve federal workers. Learn more and register.
AAJ Employment Rights Section
AAJ’s Employment Rights Section focuses on all aspects of employment and labor law, including Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, the Fair Labor Standards Act, employment discrimination, and wrongful discharge cases. Learn more and join.
California Wildfires – How to Help
AAJ’s TLC Wish List
Shop our Amazon wish list to send essential supplies to help first responders and displaced residents. Items will be shipped to the Los Angeles location of Arias Sanguinetti (address on wish list page) and lawyers will distribute to fire stations and community emergency facilities.
CAALA and Los Angeles Trial Lawyers’ Charities (LATLC)
Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles (CAALA) and LATLC are working together to provide essential supplies for firefighters and the victims of this tragedy. They have set up a Fire Relief Fund. Visit CAALA’s Fire Resources page, which includes links to provide pro bono support after a disaster and for the Fire Relief Fund.
Subscribe to LATLC’s Fire Newsletter for updates on actions and what is needed, email Executive Director Lissa Zanville.
CAOC Public Interest Fund and United Policyholders
CAOC is partnering with United Policyholders (UP), a non-profit 501(c) (3) organization, so trial lawyers can provide pro bono support and other services to fire survivors. United Policyholders has over three decades of experience providing guidance and advocacy support to wildfire-impacted households beginning with the 1991 Oakland Berkeley Fires and continuing on through every major disaster since.
Financial contributions can be made to CAOC’s (501(c)(3) non-profit Consumer Attorneys Public Interest Foundation. One hundred percent of every dollar given will be used support public interest causes related to the Los Angeles fires. Contribute to the fund today.
The story of the largest, most successful pro bono project in the history of U.S. jurisprudence..
Learn MoreMember Stories
Helping Plaintiffs Raise Medical Funds
AAJ member Jeremy Babener is a tax lawyer for plaintiffs and has created a new path for plaintiffs at risk of losing Medicaid coverage. These plaintiffs are often years from settling their cases but need funds for their uncovered medical expenses. To supplement Medicaid, they turn to online fundraising.
Unfortunately, plaintiffs’ success with online fundraisers like GoFundMe sometimes results in their loss of Medicaid coverage. Jeremy learned of this as Chair of the Legal Committee for the Society of Settlement Planners (SSP).
Fortunately, a solution was created years ago by 501(c)(3) charity Help Hope Live (HHL), which has helped individuals raise medical funds for cancer treatment, transplants, and other significant care, all while retaining their Medicaid benefits. HHL has helped over 20,000 families raise nearly $200 million.
In 2024, Help Hope Live launched the Plaintiff Fund and asked Babener to raise awareness. Clients of the Plaintiff Fund work with HHL staff to set up a fundraising page. HHL holds (and technically owns) the money raised by each client’s page, then uses it to pay the client’s medical bills.
In addition, Babener and others on the Plaintiff Fund Committee have raised over $70,000 to fund each client with a starter amount of $1,000. Says Babener, “That first $1,000 is critical to address immediate medical expenses and to demonstrate credibility to potential donors in the client’s community.”
Significant contributions have been made by the Society of Settlement Planners and leadership of the American Association of Settlement Consultants and the National Structured Settlements Trade Association.
Please reach out to the Plaintiff Fund to volunteer, raise awareness, or contribute!
2024 Trial Lawyers Care Award Winner
Howard Talenfeld is a leading children’s rights attorney, personal injury trial lawyer, and child disability attorney.
Howard was a founding Board President of the non-profit Florida’s Children First, which has become Florida’s most prominent advocacy organization for at-risk children in the state. FCF has recruited and trained thousands of lawyers, guardians, and other child welfare stakeholders regarding Florida’s dependency proceedings.
FCF seeks full representation of youth in their dependency proceedings and meaningful improvement in Florida’s child-serving systems using a range of strategies, including the passage of critical legislation, public policy development, ongoing training and technical assistance, and strategic litigation.
Howard and the FCF team have been responsible for significant legislation positively impacting tens of thousands of children in state custody, including Florida’s statute providing for attorneys to represent the most vulnerable children in foster care; Florida’s interagency education bill for foster children; Florida’s Bill of Goals for Foster Children; and the law creating Florida’s Children’s Cabinet.
A Duty to Help
GDH Law is now in its second year of supporting the efforts of the Maryland Association for Justice (MAJ) to serve the local community. The focus of that support is on Progress Place, which offers temporary and transitional housing for the unhoused. Additionally, Progress Place works with MAJ to provide clothing and resume writing services for residents.
“Helping those in urgent need is at the core of this work. At GDH Law, we feel a duty to provide support to those who find themselves in difficult and often devastating situations,” said Gwen-Marie Davis Hicks, Managing Attorney at GDH Law.
An added benefit of working with the MAJ is the opportunity to work with members of MAJ’s Minority Caucus and the Diversity and Inclusion Committee to support their work with other local specialty bar associations.
These associations include the Alliance of Black Women Attorneys, the Asian Pacific American Bar Association, the Haitian American Lawyers Association, the Hispanic Bar Association and the South Asian Bar Association. MAJ and these groups conduct a quarterly legal clinic at Progress Place.
“As well as providing this critical community service, we developed strong relationships with these specialty bars, which has led to increased recruitment of diverse members of AAJ and MAJ,” said Gwen-Marie.
Gwen-Marie has been instrumental in reviving the Minority Caucus of MAJ, along with Petra Aaron, a Senior Attorney at GDH LAW, who was a co-chair of the Minority Caucus, and caucus co-chair Renee Boston. Ms. Aaron is now a co-chair of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee of MAJ alongside co-chair Divya Potdar. Together, these women have prioritized promoting diversity amongst the membership of MAJ and serving the community.
Focused on Distraction
In 2009, Casey Feldman was tragically killed by a distracted driver at the age of 21. After her funeral, many young women said to Casey’s parents, “That was my best friend.” Casey’s father, Joel Feldman, is a trial lawyer and AAJ member. When Casey died, Joel reduced his workload and started an amazing organization to End Distracted Driving (EndDD).
“EndDD has worked with trial lawyers to give presentations at school assemblies on distracted driving. I immediately fell in love with the organization because I knew it would work. Young people today, while indeed the most affected group by distracted driving, are also the most empathetic generation of young people our society has ever seen,” said trial lawyer, Travis Patterson.
Since joining forces with EndDD, Travis has received amazing feedback – after seeing the presentation, 92% of participants said they were less likely to drive distracted and more likely to speak up when others drive distracted.
When asked why, a resounding majority reported that they are mostly concerned with the effect their distracted driving could have on others (i.e. “I don’t want my mom to go through losing me” or “I don’t want to hurt someone”). Their empathy provides a chance to save lives.
“Mr. Feldman and his team did a remarkable job creating these presentations, which are undoubtedly saving lives across the country. I am blessed to be able to work with high school students in Texas and help curb this epidemic of distracted driving,” said Travis.
To learn more about Travis’ firm’s efforts in Texas or request a presentation, visit this webpage.
Let us know what you and/or your firm are doing to help the community.
Let Us KnowEach summer AAJ recognizes a member with an exemplary community service project. If you know of a individual who has gone above and beyond, nominate them today.
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