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JFS’ Legal Referral Service Celebrates 10 Years Of Stellar Work
T
Mark Jacobs
his fall, Jewish Family Service
(JFS) is marking the 10-year
anniversary of its Legal
Referral Service, its highly success-
ful legal program that provides pro
bono lawyers to JFS clients and
which has now assisted more than
2,000 clients and provided more
than $2 million in pro bono ser-
vices.
“It really has grown into quite an
impressive program and a central
service of this agency,” says JFS
CEO Perry Ohren. “Our volunteer
lawyers are top-notch and the work
they perform for people in our
community, often on an emergency
basis, is truly incredible and heart-
warming.”
The program was created in 2007,
when it became apparent that JFS’
clients were too often in desperate
need for legal services which they
couldn’t afford. Prior to that time,
when a client needed an attorney,
the JFS staff would scramble to ask
friends and family for a pro bono
referral, a haphazard approach that
often left clients unrepresented.
JFS established a program to
target the problem and identified
an initial list of Jewish lawyers who
might be willing to help. The “ask”
to the attorneys was to assist one
client a year, whether it was simply
by speaking to them, writing a let-
ter, filing a motion or something
more extensive. The result was
overwhelming. Hundreds of local
lawyers and law firms raised their
hands, often willing to handle mul-
tiple matters a year. Soon there was
a steady and reliable pool of top-
notch lawyers available to serve the
legal needs of the community.
“If we count all the lawyers and
the many firms that now help us,
then I believe we’ve assembled the
largest Jewish law firm in the entire
state of Michigan. Not bad for 10
years, huh?” Ohren says.
The program regularly assists
clients with domestic relations mat-
ters, bankruptcies, Social Security
disability, the elderly dealing with
sensitive end-of-life issues and
other high-demand legal special-
ties. In some matters, it partners
with other programs sanctioned by
the State Bar of Michigan, including
HAVEN and Lakeshore Legal Aid.
Earlier this year, the Michigan
State Bar named JFS’ Legal Referral
Program as an “Access to Justice”
partner, thereby allowing it to share
in funding through the bar asso-
ciation from donations made by
Michigan lawyers.
Primarily funded through the
generosity of the Jewish Women’s
Foundation, the Legal Referral
Service program regularly assists
female clients, who make up the
majority of its caseload. Often the
cases involve emergency petitions
for personal protection orders or
child support or assisting widows
facing eviction or utility shut-off
notices.
A number of the lawyers often
coordinate with JFS caseworkers to
help elderly clients get their affairs
The JFS Legal Referral Service Team: Mark Jacobs, chair; Mara Moss, co-chair; Mark Picklo,
member; Kelly Goldberg, coordinator; Emily Croitori, supervisor of JFS Volunteer Services; and
Lindsay Leder, director of Special Events and Volunteer Engagement.
in order, particularly when there is
an adult child with a disability who
will need to be cared for after the
loss of a parent.
The outpouring of appreciation
from grateful clients is constant. In
a recent case involving a particu-
larly vicious attack from a husband,
JFS obtained a lawyer who imme-
diately leapt into action, secur-
ing a personal protection order, a
divorce action, and sole possession
of the home for the client and her
children. “Without our attorney,”
the client says, “my children and
I would have had to move out of
state. We are so grateful to JFS and
our wonderful attorney for giving
us our lives back.”
The program has received nation-
al acclaim, and often other Jewish
Family Services around the country
have inquired how they may estab-
lish a program as successful as the
one here.
“But the key to our success is
the dedication and generosity of
our volunteer lawyers,” Ohren says.
“They really go the extra mile and
allow JFS to help fulfill our mission
of strengthening lives through com-
passionate service.” •
Mark Jacobs is director of JFS Legal Referral
Service. Attorneys interested in volunteering
to participate in the Legal Referral Service
program are encouraged to contact either
Kelly Goldberg or Emily Croitori at JFS at
(248) 592-1907.
guest column
continued from page 5
riencing abuse. To that end, our clergy
must be trained in how to recognize the
signs of abuse as well as how to respond.
JCADA has supported clergy trainings
for the Michigan Board of Rabbis and the
Va’ad, and will continue to do so until
we have eradicated domestic violence
altogether.
For a long time, modern society has
been silent on the theme of violence in
families — with the idea that if we don’t
talk about it, it doesn’t exist. Of course,
avoidance isn’t the answer. What we
have learned, however, is that by talking
about the reality of domestic violence
in our community, we can then begin
8
October 19 • 2017
jn
to combat it one family at a time. With
awareness campaigns, like the purple
ribbon campaign and others, with educa-
tion campaigns, and ever since our com-
munity rabbis have begun talking about
domestic violence from the pulpit, dis-
cussing it in Torah study classes, in con-
versations in the sukkah, at the festival/
holiday table, etc., more and more people
are becoming comfortable sharing their
stories and working to end this violence.
Abuse in Jewish families presents
itself exactly the same as it does in non-
Jewish families with different forms of
abuse: physical, verbal, mental, finan-
cial. Ultimately, it is about one partner
exerting control (and taking away
control) from the other. A uniquely
Jewish form of abuse comes in the form
of withholding a get (a Jewish divorce)
from a woman after receiving a civil
divorce. This maintains a man’s control
over his former wife and prohibits her
from remarrying and moving on with
her life. Please understand that this
does exist and it is very real.
If you are concerned about a family
member or friend, recommend that
they speak with someone they trust;
this could be their doctor, counselor
or rabbi. A trained rabbi will create a
safe space for a confidential conversa-
tion and make referrals for support.
Please also know that suggesting that
the couple “just work it out” isn’t always
the best advice, for it can actually exac-
erbate the violence. And just because a
person recognizes that he/she is in an
abusive relationship, it doesn’t mean
they are ready to leave. As friends, fam-
ily and clergy, our role is to be available
for friendship and support when they
are ready. •
Helen Katz is a JCADA member and on the JFS
Board of Directors Executive Committee.
Rabbi Marla Hornsten is a JCADA mmber and co-
chair for the Clergy Task Force to End Domestic
Violence for Jewish Women International.