Lawlapalooza sets the stage for students’ public service fellowships

The 10th Lawlapalooza concluded Oct. 16 with a record amount of donations being raised to benefit Brandeis School of Law's Judge Ellen B. Ewing Fund.

The event, held at SkyBar at Saints for the first time in its history, generated a full house and more than $7,000 from ticket sales, band fees, sponsors, tips and t-shirts. This amount should provide enough funding for at least two summer fellows at Legal Aid during the summer of 2016.

This year’s theme was “Let Love Rule,” and each of the bands were tasked with playing at least one song with the word “love” in the title.

To recap, here are the band winners:

  • Winner: The Dissenterists
  • 1st Runner Up: The Nearest Hippies
  • 2nd Runner Up: The Grateful Decedents

Lawlapalooza helps benefit the Ellen B. Ewing Fund, providing funding for summer fellowships that allow students to work at the Legal Aid Society of Louisville.

Thanks to our namesake, Supreme Court Justice Louis D. Brandeis, public service is in our school’s DNA. Justice Brandeis believed that law schools should cultivate an appreciation of service as a professional obligation. Accordingly, Brandeis School of Law was one of the first five law schools in the country to create a mandatory public service program.

Many of these public service efforts are supported by the Judge Ellen B. Ewing Fund, established in 2005 with gifts from the Louisville Bar Association and the Women Lawyers Association of Jefferson County. Lawlapalooza has helped benefit the Foundation since 2005. With money raised from this one-night-only event last year, the Law School was able to provide three $3,000 fellowships. Our most recent Ellen Ewing Fellows, Dallas Selvy, Courtney Groszhans and Daniel Boling, were able to gain real-world experiences through their time with Legal Aid Society.

Selvy, for example, worked with the Legal Aid Society’s Family Law Unit.

“I gained experience writing numerous legal documents, including motions, agreed orders, settlement agreements, affidavits, and other documents. Writing these documents was a valuable learning experience because it went beyond legal research and writing and allowed me to gain real-world legal experience,” she said. “The legal experience I gained was invaluable but I also truly enjoyed learning the stories of our clients. Many of the clients served by Legal Aid have stories and lives that can inspire and offer perspective for life. All of our clients seeking a divorce had been victims of domestic violence.  Many of the clients showed incredible strength and determination in overcoming their situations, including violence.  It was a privilege to learn from our clients and their experiences.”

Groszhans spent her summer with Legal Aid, working in the Rural Unit. She describes on case in particular that she “will not soon forget,” involving a young woman with two small children seeking help on an eviction case. Her landlord claimed she was late on rent, but Legal Aid found she was paying rent within the grace period allotted to residents. The landlord refused to accompany the grace period because the tenant didn’t have enough money for the late fee.

“The landlord even refused to accept the late fee and the amount of the rent in the settlement discussions before the eviction hearing,” Groszhans said. After extensive research, we found the federal regulation that stipulated that subsidized housing could only charge certain amounts in late fees — an amount the landlord practically doubled in our case.  We also learned that the landlord also shortened the time frame for when they could charge for a late fee, also in violation of federal law.”

Due to the overcharging and the shortening of the time frame, the landlord owed the young woman over $300.

“I learned the power that comes with being an attorney and the ability as attorneys we have to change people’s lives for the better. I saw during my summer that a lot of times clients not only rely on their attorneys for legal support but also for emotional support, as they are going through one of the most difficult situations in their lives,” Groszhans said.

Boling worked with the Legal Aid Society’s Housing Unit, attending court nearly every day, conducting research, writing legal documents, representing clients in two administrative hearings, and interviewing clients regularly.

“These interviews were an eye opening experience for me because I saw how deplorable some of the living situations were within the city," he said. "I gained valuable insight regarding the challenges that the poor face on a daily basis, including unacceptable living conditions and the struggle to find basic necessities. I also learned how valuable legal representative is to those people because without Legal Aid’s help they would not have known their rights and would have ended up foreclosed upon or evicted.”

These once-in-a-lifetime professional experiences are made possible through the Ellen Ewing Fund and its major fundraising event, Lawlapalooza.

“Last year, thanks to the generous support of sponsors and funds we raised from the event, we were able to pay the salaries for three law students who otherwise would have had to volunteer without an income over the summer.  The students did incredible work at Legal Aid,” said Laurel Hajek, assistant dean for Professional Development and the Samuel L. Greenbaum Public Service Program Director. “Lawlapalooza makes a difference, not only for the clients of Legal Aid, but for the law students who have the opportunity to serve and learn.”