Stephen Portell, an associate at Quarles &

Brady Streich Lang, LLP, has been selected

as the Outstanding Pro Bono Attorney of the

Month for March.   Steve was chosen to

receive this honor by the Volunteer Lawyers

Program (VLP).  The Pro Bono Awards are

announced monthly and highlight an attorney

who has made an extraordinary contribution

toward making legal services available to

persons who otherwise could not afford them.

 

Steve has been a member of the VLP since 2001.  In that time he has had an

enormous impact on clients; providing assistance with debt collection, mental

health and trust matters. 

 

Recently, Steve assisted a VLP client with a debt collection matter.  The

clients had put up their home as collateral to help a friend.  At the time of their

initial contact with the VLP, the clients were in jeopardy of losing their home. 

Steve defended the pre-lawsuit threat to foreclose on the clients’ home and

through extensive correspondence and research caused the clients’ opponent

to back down and withdraw their claim.  Steve dedicated more than forty hours

to the case and achieved a very successful result for the clients.         

 

“I started volunteering for organizations like SALA and VLP when I was still in

law school in Detroit, Michigan,” wrote Steve.  “When I moved to Tucson in

1996, one of the first law-related publications I received was the Writ.  I

remember seeing VLP and Southern Arizona Legal Aid featured prominently

in an article.   I was impressed with the work VLP and SALA were doing.  It

wasn’t long before I found myself working for lawyers like Steve Sherick and

Pat Broom who valued pro bono service and encouraged me to get involved. 

The pro bono work I have done for VLP is, by far, the most satisfying work I

have done.”