Young Lawyers Division 2000-2001
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 1999
Domestic Violence Projects Will Be Highlighted at the Fall AOP!
By Lori Davis
Who could forget Farrah Fawcett's poignant portrayal of a wife violently abused by her husband in The Burning Bed or the severely bruised face of Nicole Brown Simpson flashed a thousand times on our televisions? While these examples are high profile, domestic violence is prevalent in American society and is an unfortunate reality for far too many families.
To assist the survivors of domestic violence and their families, state and local bar associations have initiated a variety of domestic violence projects. These projects are designed to inform and provide support to domestic violence survivors as they try to rebuild their lives. From October 21-23, 1999, the ABA YLD Fall Affiliate Outreach Project (AOP) Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, will highlight six successful projects addressing domestic violence. Since this article will only provide an overview of these worthwhile projects, I encourage readers to mark their calendars and plan to attend the Fall AOP for suggestions of how to incorporate domestic violence projects in their communities.
The Fall AOP Conference will focus upon five projects specifically related to domestic violence issues and developed by young lawyers' sections of bar associations throughout the United States. Each of the following programs would be wonderful projects for other bar associations to reproduce for the benefit of other communities.
As demonstrated by these outstanding projects, many young lawyers throughout our country are doing their part to lessen the devastation associated with domestic violence in their communities. Let's salute all of these young lawyers by attending the Fall AOP and by duplicating some of their projects in our communities.
- The Oklahoma Bar Association has developed a program to better inform survivors of domestic violence of how to assert their legal rights.
- San Antonio's young lawyers' project involves the collection of toiletries to distribute to battered women residing in shelters.
- Nevada's young lawyers have initiated an innovative project to inform children affected by family violence of the many crisis services available.
- The Chicago Bar Young Lawyers Section has instituted an Assistance Desk at a suburban courthouse available for persons seeking legal representation for protective orders.
- Virginia's YLD members provide pro bono lawyers for domestic violence survivors seeking civil protective orders.
Lori Davis is an assistant editor of The Affiliate and is an administrative law judge/hearing officer with the Kentucky Cabinet for Health Services in Frankfort, Kentucky.
