Nov. 9, 2013

SF public defender honored for improving access to justice

At the 66th annual Supreme Court luncheon on Oct. 29, hosted by the Lawyers Club of San Francisco, San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi was honored with the Access to Justice Award. Charles S. Birenbaum, Northern California chair for Greenberg Traurig LLP and past president of the Lawyers Club of San Francisco, nominated Adachi for the award for his rehabilitative programs and work safeguarding residents’ constitutional rights. The event, held at the Fairmont Hotel, was attended by California Supreme Court Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye and fellow Justices Joyce L. Kennard, Marvin R. Baxter and Ming W. Chin. The dean of Georgetown University Law Center, William M. Treanor, gave the keynote address. He rebuffed criticism that law school should be reduced from three years to two, but he also said law schools need to alter their curricula to meet the needs of new lawyers. He endorsed the idea of licensing nonlawyers to counsel litigants who can’t afford attorneys. Cantil-Sakauye has expressed skepticism about the idea. — Emily Green