Stacey Slater, President and Founder of Pro Bono Strategies, Joins Volunteer Lawyers for Justice’s Board of Trustees

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 3, 2024

CONTACT
Eric W. Hughes
Bershad Director of Communications
Volunteer Lawyers for Justice
(973) 233-5724
ehughes@vljnj.org

Newark, NJ — Volunteer Lawyers for Justice (VLJ) announces that Stacey Slater joined its Board of Trustees in March. Stacey, President and Founder of Pro Bono Strategies, is an award-winning leader with over 20 years of experience using the power of pro bono to close the access to justice gap. Stacey’s leadership and experience helping to develop law firm pro bono programs will greatly benefit VLJ as the organization looks to innovatively ensure access to justice for people experiencing poverty.

Stacey earned a Bachelor of Science from Cornell University and her Juris Doctor from Fordham University School of Law. Stacey’s appointment to the board is not her introduction to VLJ, but rather, a recognition of dedicated volunteerism and an elevation of someone who knows pro bono at VLJ firsthand. Stacey began volunteering with VLJ in 2021 and since then, has generously donated 97 hours of her time and talent, valued at $43,650, supporting VLJ’s New Jersey Human Trafficking Survivors Legal Assistance Program and Tenancy Program. Despite coming to VLJ during the unprecedented and uncertain times of COVID, Stacey has helped survivors of human trafficking vacate and expunge their criminal records along with representing tenants facing eviction.

As the first pro bono partner at Nixon Peabody LLP managing its pro bono program across 13 offices, Stacey has unique insight into not only building pro bono programs from scratch, she also knows what it takes to keep the spirit of pro bono alive. This experience and insight go hand-in-hand with using volunteers and corporate supporters to further VLJ’s mission of ensuring access to justice for people experiencing poverty. As Stacey puts it, “There are so many people experiencing poverty who are dealing with a wide variety of legal issues but cannot afford to hire competent legal counsel. Without pro bono counsel, their chance of success is greatly diminished. That’s why our help is so critical. I’m proud of VLJ’s work matching people experiencing poverty with pro bono counsel, thereby helping to ensure access to justice. I look forward to furthering VLJ’s mission, both by continuing to help VLJ clients, and now as a board member as well.”

Appreciating the powerful experience Stacey brings to the board, Cathy Keenan, VLJ’s Executive Director, remarked, “It is not everyday a new trustee joins VLJ’s board who has decades of experience in the nuts and bolts of pro bono, from representing community members with unmet civil legal needs, building effective and efficient pro bono programs, to leading culture shifts centering pro bono as a powerful vehicle for change. Stacey’s experience and passion are warmly received, and as VLJ progresses in its second decade, I look forward to learning from and leading with Stacey and the other incredible board trustees.”

Connect with Stacey on LinkedIn

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About Volunteer Lawyers for Justice (VLJ)

VLJ is an award-winning, comprehensive nonprofit legal services program based in Newark, NJ, with a statewide reach. VLJ's mission is to ensure access to justice for people experiencing poverty. The Newark-based organization ensures fair access to the legal system through partnerships with corporations and hundreds of volunteer attorneys. In 2023, VLJ’s work impacted over 4,200 people—including 1,644 children—and its volunteer attorneys donated over $2 million in free legal services.