© 2014 The Texas Lawbook.
By Brooks Igo
Staff Writer for The Texas Lawbook
(June 4) – The National Legal Aid & Defender Association (NLADA) selected Locke Lord as the recipient of its 2014 Beacon of Justice Award in recognition of the firm’s efforts that led to the passage of the Michael Morton Act in Texas, the firm announced recently. The Dallas-based firm will be formally presented the award at the NLADA Exemplar Award Dinner on June 26 in Washington, D.C.
The Beacon of Justice Award recognizes law firms that have devoted significant time and resources to creating innovative strategies to improve outcomes for low income individuals. In 2012, nearly 40 Locke Lord lawyers worked with the nonprofits Texas Appleseed and the Texas Defender Service to interview prosecutors across Texas and examine their criminal discovery practices.
The research – which uncovered systemic inconsistencies from county to county regarding what information was provided to defendants during discovery – aided the passage of the Michael Morton Act, a state law signed by Texas Gov. Rick Perry in May 2013 requiring prosecutors to turn over all evidence to defense attorneys in criminal cases.
As a follow up, a team of Locke Lord lawyers are currently engaged in researching the implementation of the Act to ensure that it is being fairly applied to defendants across all jurisdictions in the state.
“This is a great honor to be recognized for the significant work that led to the Michael Morton Act,” Dallas environmental partner Elizabeth Mack, who has served on the board of Texas Appleseed since 2007, said in a statement. “The Firm has dedicated hundreds of pro bono hours to research in this project and for that to result in a real, substantive change to the criminal justice system in the state is incredibly satisfying.”
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