Wilson Sonsini was recently among 23 firms nationwide that were honored with National Legal Aid and Defender Association’s (NLADA’s) 2021 Beacon of Justice Award, which recognized pro bono work done to address systemic racial disparities in 2020. The awards were celebrated at NLADA's 2021 Exemplar Award Virtual Gala on June 9, 2021. Click here to view the 2021 Beacon of Justice Awardees digital book, which showcases the work done by each of the winning firms. The firm’s entry includes a video featuring Senior Counsel and Pro Bono Counsel Luke Liss.

Wilson Sonsini has long been engaged in important and large-scale pro bono matters involving racial justice and civil rights since the founding of the firm’s pro bono program by now-retired partner Harry Bremond, one of the first African American attorneys in the California Bay Area. In 2020, the firm further increased these efforts by pledging at least $15 million in increased pro bono services focused on racial justice over three years, and engaging in such matters as the ACLU of Louisiana’s Justice Lab project to combat discriminatory policing, volunteering over 2,000 hours for non-partisan election protection efforts, donating hundreds of thousands of dollars to nonprofits focused on racial justice initiatives, and developing various new pro bono initiatives and partnerships with both clients and nonprofits focused on racial justice and civil rights.

“We are honored and thankful to receive the Beacon of Justice Award from NLADA for our racial justice work,” said Luke. “And I am personally grateful to our firm’s leadership—starting with Doug Clark and Katie Martin—for their tremendous support and culture-setting in making our sustained efforts possible, as well as for the heart and dynamic work of our dedicated attorneys and staff. We look forward to continuing to expand our efforts and creativity in pursuit of justice for those in need.”​

For more information, please see NLADA’s awards page.