Attorney of the Month

October 2020 Volunteer of the Month: Jason Camilo

Volunteer Lawyers for Justice is pleased to recognize Jason Scott Camilo as October’s Volunteer of the Month. Jason is the founder of the Law Offices of Jason Scott Camilo, LLC, a law practice focusing on immigration and nationality law. For Jason, pro bono work is part and parcel of his work as an attorney, simply explaining, “everyone deserves decent legal representation. As an attorney, doing pro bono work is one of the ways we can ‘stand up.’”

April 2020 Volunteer of the Month: Michael Golden

VLJ is pleased to celebrate Michael Golden, Assistant VP and Senior Legal Counsel at AT&T, as the April Volunteer of the Month.

Michael is a long-standing volunteer with VLJ’s Consumer Law Clinic. He was encouraged to participate back in 2013 through AT&T’s pro bono program and has been consistently volunteering ever since. Michael has attended over 60 Consumer Law Clinics over the past seven years.

March 2020 Volunteer of the Month: Mark Heinzelmann

VLJ is pleased to announce Mark Heinzelmann as the March Volunteer of the Month.

Mark started volunteering at VLJ’s Tenancy Clinic soon after starting as an associate in the environmental group at Lowenstein Sandler. Although the clinic is designed to give limited advice to some of Essex County’s most vulnerable tenants, attorneys can choose to stay with a case afterwards. Mark has made that decision on multiple occasions, proving his dedication to legal justice. The results for VLJ clients on cases he’s worked have been overwhelmingly positive.

February 2020 Volunteer of the Month: Wendy Feldman

VLJ is pleased to announce Wendy Feldman, Vice-President, Corporate Counsel at Prudential Insurance Company of America, as February’s Volunteer of the Month.

In the past three years, Wendy has volunteered in many of VLJ’s legal clinics (including expungement, divorce, and bankruptcy), but where she has arguably had the most significant impact is with VLJ’s tenancy clinic.

November 2019 Volunteer of the Month: Karyllan Dodson Mack

This month, VLJ is excited to honor Veterans Legal Program volunteer Karyllan Dodson Mack. Karyllan is Assistant General Counsel in the Environmental Practice Group at BASF Corporation and has volunteered with VLJ since 2016. She began working with VLJ at the Veterans Legal Wellness Clinic, a walk-in program at the East Orange VA Hospital to assess veterans’ pressing legal needs. Karyllan was immediately a standout volunteer and said she was “excited to be a part of a program to help our veterans.”

September 2019 Volunteer of the Month: Michael Poreda

Volunteer Lawyers for Justice is thrilled to honor Michael Poreda as its September Volunteer of the Month. Michael has been volunteering with VLJ’s Children’s Representation Program since June 2018.

Michael recently merged his own practice with the law firm Wronko Loewen Benucci in Somerville. He handles a variety of matters, but focuses on education and employment law.

September 2017 Volunteer of the Month: Richard Dennis

In an area of law dominated by creditors and debt collection agencies with years of experience in court procedures, it’s easy to see how not just clients but even attorneys unfamiliar with the litigation process might lack confidence.  But as Richard Dennis can report, even the most basic advice and assistance can make an enormous difference for low-income debtors who feel confused and powerless. Richard worked for AT&T for 17 years, first handling corporate matters including mergers and acquisitions, and then working in the company’s global operations legal team.  He is also a long-time volunteer at VLJ’s Consumer Law Clinic

August 2017 Volunteer of the Month: Eduardo Santiago-Acevedo

Nearly 40,000 people face eviction each year in Essex County.  The number seems overwhelming, but as Eduardo Santiago-Acevedo explains, even if attorneys can assist only a small percentage of families, “for those individuals, it means everything in the world.”