November 19th is around the corner.
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Join us on Tuesday, December 6 for a national day of giving.
Your donation is tax-deductible.
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Levitt & Quinn is a recipient of the GuideStar Gold rating for our commitment to transparency
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Our Founders
Ziva Sirkis Naumann
Ethel Levitt (1911-1995)
Grace Quinn (1915-2006)
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A Message from the Executive Director
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A U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs study from 2014 highlights that veterans can address at least half of their top ten unmet needs with the right legal help. But accessing that help can often be difficult, especially for those who struggle against significant barriers like homelessness. Although Levitt & Quinn has been working with Vet clients for several years now, we are not standing still. We are excited to share the new endeavors we've undertaken to remove barriers for our client veterans, and we hope that you will support these efforts.
We have been hard at work expanding meaningful access to our services in other ways. The common linkage throughout has been our partnerships with other community-based organizations who serve similar populations. These strategic alliances allow us to maximize our skills and expertise, giving our clients a more robust menu of services in the places where they work and live.
Lastly, our loyal supporters as well as some new friends helped to make our 35th Annual Stand for Justice Gala a great success. Our September 17 event at the Skirball Center was our best attended and highest grossing annual gala in our history, thanks in part to our spectacular honorees Judge Mark Juhas and Mark Minyard. We've posted some new Gala photos our Facebook page (don't forget to
Like us!). While you are there, you can support our cause by sharing this year's moving Stand for Justice video with your friends.
Your
support changes lives.
Sincerely,
Ana M. Storey, Executive Director
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| Levitt & Quinn Expands Services for Veterans |
| Partnering for a Greater Impact |
For nearly a decade, Levitt & Quinn's Veterans Project has provided legal services to at-risk veterans, helping them resolve their family law issues and facilitating their efforts to become self-supporting and financially, as well as emotionally, secure. In October of 2013, an Equal Justice Works Veterans Legal Corps Fellow joined Levitt & Quinn as the only Fellow in the country then working exclusively to resolve the family law issues of our nation's veterans. Committed to continued support for this under-served population, Levitt & Quinn recently began to look for new ways to address the critical needs of veterans struggling with unresolved family law issues in Los Angeles County.
Mindful of our own limited resources, we recognized that working with our community partners would be critical. Here is what we achieved:
1)
Veterans' Videoconference Project
- Combining the experience of our veteran's attorney with our existing relationship with New Directions for Veterans, we creatively use technology to reach veterans with family law needs. Each month, videoconference intake remotely connects a veteran on the New Directions for Veterans campus in West LA to our veterans attorney in Echo Park. Our attorney remotely conducts intake, makes an assessment, and provides counsel and advice for the veterans at pre-scheduled times. Clients who would benefit from more extensive services are eligible to set an appointment with us. This innovative service approach is flexible, efficient, and client-centered. It gives these veterans access to the family law help they need without requiring them to travel extensively while making smart use of Levitt & Quinn's resources.
2)
Recognizing that many veterans often lack complete copies of their court files, and that finding the right paperwork can be daunting, Levitt & Quinn added a volunteer component to the Videoconference Project. Our trained volunteer goes to the courthouse with the veterans to help them retrieve copies of all documents necessary for Levitt & Quinn to provide competent advice and counsel. This one-of-a-kind volunteer program reinforces the veterans' efforts towards self-sufficiency; it helps us to get the information we need to competently help veterans remove legal barriers; and it allows us to further engage mission-aligned community members to support veterans while maximizing our program resources. Stacy McDaniel, a passionate Levitt & Quinn supporter, pioneered this volunteer component of the program. From day one she reported that the first veteran she helped told her that he "would have been completely lost without the help, and probably would have given up early in the process."
3) Levitt & Quinn has been an active participant in the Bob Hope Patriotic Hall collaborative with partners like the Los Angeles County Bar Association's Veterans Legal Service Project. Beginning this November, we will expand our Patriotic Hall partnership with LACBA by collaborating on a new legal clinic for veterans. A member of LACBA's Family Law Executive Committee will give participants a general family law overview, and Levitt & Quinn will provide free one-on-one consultations for veterans who need to speak with a lawyer about unresolved family law issues.
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When Robert first arrived at Levitt & Quinn Family Law Center in spring of 2014, he was distraught over not having seen his two-year old son Damion in over eight months. At that time, Damion's mother was ignoring all of his efforts to make contact, and Robert was unsure if he would ever see his son again. Robert felt lost and alone in a seemingly endless loop of confusing court procedures, packets of paperwork and hearings. Levitt & Quinn helped Robert to navigate the legal labyrinth that he faced, and succeeded in arranging visits with Damion that year. Throughout 2015 and 2016, Robert came back to Levitt & Quinn multiple times, fiercely determined to expand his role in his son's life. By drafting the necessary paperwork and standing with him in court multiple times, Levitt & Quinn supported Robert's endeavor to grow his relationship with his young son. Through a combination of his perseverance and the professional support of the Levitt & Quinn legal team, Robert now has court orders in place that give Damion equal time with both his parents.
This success story happened because of the critical legal support that Robert received from the family law professionals at Levitt & Quinn. For many fathers like Robert, who lives on $1,200 a month, this access to justice is not possible.
Nearly 80% of all family law cases in Los Angeles County have at least one party without a lawyer. Those without counsel struggle to understand what is expected of them, and are often unprepared or unable to give the court the critical information it needs to make decisions in a child's best interest
. Without support, the Roberts of our community continue to slip through the wide cracks in our justice system, and our children suffer.
Read more client stories
here.
*Not client's real name.
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Unite For Families clinic launched in South Los Angeles
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This October, Levitt & Quinn proudly partnered with
Jenesse Center, Inc.
at Jenesse's South LA location to hold the first ever "Unite for Families" clinic as part of our joint Family Law Legal Project.
Levitt & Quinn attorneys, Jenesse staff, and volunteers (including law students from Loyola, Southwestern, and USC) engaged one-on-one with participants to educate families about their rights and responsibilities, as well as to identify the steps necessary to move their family law cases forward. These clinics will provide free private consultations on a quarterly basis--the next clinic is scheduled for February 28, 2017.
Family law cases are some of the most difficult for low-income families to resolve, leaving families struggling with issues that can affect their emotional, physical and financial well-being for years. Via this collaboration, both Levitt & Quinn and Jenesse Center strive to provide justice to low-income families in South Los Angeles and beyond. Both organizations were founded in 1981 by women who saw a community need and volunteered to create new nonprofit organizations to address those needs.
Karen Earl
, Jenesse CEO said, "Unite For Families represents a lifeline in a community that is often forgotten and overlooked, but in most need of assistance. The fact that we are doing Unite For Families with Levitt & Quinn is extra special."
Details about "Unite for Families" are available
here.
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| Ready to handle the electronic evidence issues that will come up in your cases? |
| November 19th is just around the corner - register today for ESI 2.0! |
"Managing Electronically Stored
Information
and
E-Discovery
in Family Law"
When
:
Saturday, November 19
Where
:
Pepperdine University
School of Law
What
: 6 hours of CLE for just $
285
MCLE presented by Levitt & Quinn and ACFLS
Grab your cellphone and laptop and head to Malibu to spend Saturday, November 19th with Craig Ball, Tom O'Connor, local judicial officers, and family law professionals. This full-day family law MCLE offers the
first ever hands-on practical approach to ESI education. Learn what lies beneath the surface of your CPU as you delve into the ESI in cellphones, tablets, and laptops under the guidance of nationally recognized computer forensic experts and educators.
Earn general, CFLS, and ethics MCLE credits and enjoy an In-N-Out burger with an ocean view!
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