the thirteenth JuDiciaL circuit 2018 pro Bono service awarD winners
Pro Bono Committee , Thirteenth Judicial Circuit Chair : Hon . Christopher C . Nash – Thirteenth Judicial Circuit
The Eleventh Annual Circuit Pro Bono Services Awards Ceremony was held on April 19 , 2018 . The following were honored for their outstanding contributions of pro bono legal services for the poor : attorneys Debra Smietanski , Jon Gatto , and Tori Simmons ; paralegal Katherine Kobos ; the law firm of Foley & Lardner ; and Stetson University College of Law . Circuit practitioners who donated more than twenty hours of pro bono legal work were also recognized . The award nominations were submitted to the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit Pro Bono Committee , chaired by Judge Christopher C . Nash and vice-chaired by Judge Wesley D . Tibbals . The ceremony was hosted by the Committee , the Bay Area Legal Services ’ Volunteer Lawyers
Program ( BAVLP ), and the Hillsborough County Bar Association ; and was sponsored by the law firms Foley & Lardner , Hill Ward Henderson , Shutts & Bowen , Carlton Fields , and Quarles & Brady .
The Hillsborough County Bar Association ’ s Jimmy Kynes Pro Bono Service Award : Debra Smietanski
Over the course of her 35-year career , Debra Smietanski has made exemplary and extraordinary contributions to pro bono service . Admitted to the Florida Bar in 1983 , Ms . Smietanski serves as Special Counsel with Foley & Lardner LLP , where she is a member of the firm ’ s Estates & Trusts Practice section . Ms . Smietanski is board-certified by The Florida Bar in Wills , Trusts , and Estates and is also a licensed CPA . Her practice focuses primarily on complex estate planning techniques for high net worth individuals .
Ms . Smietanski ’ s pro bono legal work and service to our com - munity exemplify her dedication , profession alism , high level of integrity , and compassion for those less fortunate . Ms . Smietanski has a lengthy history of not only providing pro bono legal services but also promoting and encouraging others to do the same . Ms . Smietanski ’ s most noteworthy pro bono project has been the Wills for Heroes program . Wills for Heroes volunteer attorneys prepare estate planning documents for first responders of modest means who otherwise might not take the time to address their estate planning needs . In 2009 , Ms . Smietanski heard about the Wills for Heroes program from Foley & Lardner ’ s Wisconsin office and became determined to bring the program to the Tampa Bay area . She spent the next two years researching and developing a Tampa program , convincing LexisNexis and others to donate laptops and software , obtaining the approval and sponsorship of the Hillsborough County Bar Association , and recruiting volunteer attorneys . Wills for Heroes was launched in Tampa in October 2011 . As a result , volunteer attorneys have provided hundreds of our community ’ s first responders with free wills , health care advance directives , and durable powers of attorney .
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