The Foundation BRIEF
News from The Florida Bar Foundation and its grantees
• “Pro Bono: Looking Back, Moving Forward,” a comprehensive study on the state of pro bono legal services in Florida, is now available at www.flabarfndn.org.
• The Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center, a Legal Assistance for the Poor grantee of The Florida Bar Foundation, has filed an amicus brief in a U.S. Supreme Court case on behalf of a Baltimore man seeking political asylum, claiming he would face torture and possible death if returned to his native Cameroon. Miami immigration judges deny more political asylum cases than any of the 54 immigration courts in the nation, according to the Palm Beach Post (Dec. 22, 2008).
• Coast to Coast Legal Aid of South Florida, also a grantee of the Foundation, participated in a Jan. 9 information fair outside the Broward County Main Library in recognition of National Human Trafficking Awareness Day. According to the Sun-Sentinel (Jan. 10), Florida is believed to be one of the top three states for human trafficking, which often involves women smuggled into the United States to work in the sex trade.
• With partial funding from The Florida Bar Foundation through its Improvements in the Administration of Justice Grant Program, the Center for the Advancement of Human Rights at Florida State University is working on a strategic plan for Florida to improve coordination of statewide efforts to eliminate trafficking and assist victims.
• Forty students from all 10 Florida law schools and out-of-state law schools such as Emory, Duke, and Vanderbilt will train May 21-22 in Ft. Lauderdale to serve for the following 11 weeks as Legal Services Summer Fellows at 28 Foundation-supported legal aid programs.
