On June 17, 2022, the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) issued a Notice of Proposed Rule for a new rule that would deny Medicaid coverage for all medically necessary gender-affirming care for both youth and adults. Southern Legal Counsel, Florida Health Justice Project, Lambda Legal, and National Health Law Program are engaging in and carefully monitoring the rule-making process, and you can read their statements and obtain more information at ProtectFLtranshealth.org.

Public Justice, a national nonprofit legal advocacy organization that takes on systemic threats to justice, has selected a team of Southern Legal Counsel and ACLU of Florida lawyers, together with pro bono attorney Andy Pozzuto, as finalists for the 2022 Trial Lawyer of the Year Award for their work on McArdle v. Ocala.

Director of SLC’s Transgender Rights Initiative, Simone Chriss, was recently selected by the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association as one of the “40 Best LGBTQ+ Lawyers Under 40” award recipients for 2022. Awardees will be recognized during the 2022 Lavender Law® Conference in Los Angeles, California.

The Supreme Court’s highest recognition of a private lawyer for pro bono service, the award was presented by Chief Justice Charles T. Canady.

Brady has been a pro bono volunteer with Three Rivers Legal Services since the early 1990s and has always been a strong advocate for the poor, in particular people without housing.

SLC Pro Bono Director Samantha Howell was chosen by the Florida Pro Bono Coordinators Association (FPBCA) to receive the 2022 Kay Meyers Pro Bono Coordinator Award. Florida Chief Justice Charles Canady announced the award Jan. 20 at the annual Pro Bono Service Awards at the Florida Supreme Court.

Abigail Adkins, an Equal Justice Works Fellow sponsored by McDermott Will & Emery and Darden Restaurants Inc., will complete her two-year fellowship at Southern Legal Counsel at the end of August 2021 and join the SLC staff as an attorney focused on education issues.

SLC attorney Simone Chriss was honored with Equality Florida’s 2021 Voice for Equality Award, which is “bestowed annually upon a person who, with courage, passion and unwavering commitment, moves Florida’s LGBTQ community closer to full equality.” Equality Florida (EQFL) is a civil rights organization dedicated to securing full equality for Florida's LGBTQ community through lobbying, grassroots organizing, and coalition building.

With a Pro Bono Transformation grant from The Florida Bar Foundation, Southern Legal Counsel established a formal pro bono program in 2019, hiring attorney Samantha Howell as its first pro bono director.

During the first two years of the pro bono program, SLC worked with more than 300 pro bono volunteers, including lawyers, law students, grad students, and undergraduate students. Collectively, this group provided about 9,000 hours of service. Our vision is to continue to increase the number of volunteers and the scope of their work to integrate pro bono across all areas of legal advocacy.

It is with great sadness that we mourn the passing of former SLC Litigation Director Neil Chonin this past April. Neil joined SLC in spring of 2006 and retired from SLC in 2016. He was a board certified civil trial advocate, having been a trial lawyer spanning a legal career of more than 50 years. Neil was also a prominent, board-certified labor and employment lawyer. He obtained his law and undergraduate degrees from the University of Florida. Neil enjoyed his return to Gainesville to cap off an illustrious legal career with a decade of service to SLC. He was often seen attending UF sporting events and wearing orange and blue to show his school spirit.

Southern Legal Counsel (SLC) seeks an attorney for a newly established position of Pro Bono Director at SLC. The Pro Bono Director will work closely with SLC’s Executive Director, Litigation Director and a Guiding Coalition to establish best practices for and launch a new Pro Bono Impact Team. The Team will be a unique model in Florida with a cadre of lawyers and law firms that are committed to co-counseling with SLC in high impact cases.