Philadelphia Litigation Attorney Samantha Southall Quoted on Firm's Pro Bono Efforts; Buchanan Ranks in The Am Law Pro Bono 100

Samantha L. Southall of the Litigation Section of Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney's Philadelphia office — was quoted in The Am Law Pro Bono 100 report, which ranked Buchanan among the top 100 law firms in the nation for its 2008 pro bono efforts.

As noted in the article, "For Buchanan Ingersoll, it's all about thinking locally. Last year the firm's Philadelphia office took on 15-16 cases through the Philadelphia VIP program, which matches local pro bono counsel to a wide variety of civil cases and efforts on behalf of low-income residents. The 2008 VIP cases included custody battles, consumer finance disputes, and personal injury claims. It's not just litigators who get involved; a transactional lawyer helped a day care obtain licenses and a zoning variance."

Southall, who coordinates the firm's involvement in the program and was appointed to VIP's board of directors last year, was quoted saying, "Nearly one in five of the firm's Philadelphia lawyers worked on a VIP case … total hours logged topped 500. This past January, in recognition of that high participation rate, the group awarded the firm [along with two other firms] its top pro bono honors."

Southall went on to say that "Buchanan's Pittsburgh office has a similar relationship with the local county court's protection from abuse program. Last year the firm's lawyers took on more than two dozen protection orders on behalf of victims of abuse."

"People here try to focus on the community they're in," Southall said. "It's about giving back to the community."

Results of the Am Law Pro Bono 100 report were also noted in a July 29, 2009, article published by The Legal Intelligencer. In the article, titled "Recession Doesn't Halt Law Firms' Pro Bono Efforts," Buchanan was noted as one of the firm's that "made the biggest jumps up the chart" for 2008. "Buchanan Ingersoll increased the percentage of attorneys handling more than 20 hours," stated the article.