Monroe County Bar Association recognized nationally for co-location

Daily Record (Rochester, NY), Aug 21, 2008

The Monroe County Bar Association has received the American Bar Association's annual Harrison Tweed Award for its work on the Partnership for Equal Justice co-location project and fundraising campaign for the Telesca Center for Justice, the organization announced.

MCBA President T. Andrew Brown and chairman of the Partnership for Equal Justice Campaign, Justin L. Vigdor, received the award at the American Bar Association's (ABA) annual meeting in New York City earlier this month.

According to the ABA, the award is given for achievement in preserving and increasing access to legal services for the poor.

"The co-location project and the Partnership for Equal Justice Campaign now serves as a national model for community organizing, raising more than $1.7 million towards its $2 million goal," Brown said.

The creation of the Telesca Center for Justice brought four legal service providers to a single location along with the MCBA: The Empire Justice Center, the Legal Aid Society of Rochester, the Monroe County Legal Assistance Center and Volunteer Legal Service Project.

All of the partners in the Telesca Center for Justice share services and staff for the benefit of the clients they serve. The Telesca Center for Justice was named in honor of U.S. District Court Judge Michael A. Telesca.

Information on the Partnership for Equal Justice Campaign is available online, www.mcba.org/PartnershipCampaign/PCJHome page.asp.