2018 Harrison Awards for Pro Bono and Community Service

Schnader Harrison Segal & Lewis LLP has proudly issued the Firm’s 2018 Harrison Awards for Pro Bono and Community Service.

Arleigh P. Helfer III

Mr. Helfer III, an associate in the Ligation Services Department, was honored by the Firm with the 2018 Earl G. Harrison Pro Bono Award. This award is presented annually to an attorney who has a distinguished record of pro bono service of enduring value to the public good.

Helfer continues Schnader’s proud tradition of pro bono service, tracing its roots to the founding of the Firm in 1935. He successfully briefed and argued the 2018 Third Circuit victory in Berardelli v. Allied Services Institute, helping a young student whose private school refused to allow her to bring her service animal, a seizure alert dog named Buddy, to school. Helfer is also being recognized for his many efforts in support of the ACLU, notably including an amicus brief in Kuren v. Luzerne County on behalf of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the Pennsylvania Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania held in Kuren that claims for anticipated Sixth Amendment ineffective assistance of counsel violations may proceed against counties that underfund public defenders. The Pennsylvania Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers awarded Helfer its Alan Jay Josel Advocacy Award for his work on the brief.

Click here to read the full award profile for Mr. Helfer’s work.

Charles F. Harlow

Mr. Harlow, an associate in the Ligation Services Department, was honored by the Firm with the 2018 Earl G. Harrison Community Service Award. This award recognizes a Firm attorney or staff member who demonstrates an unfailing commitment to helping others and who has set an example for others to follow with regard to volunteering and giving back to the community.

Harlow exemplifies Schnader’s commitment to public service. His tireless efforts over the years as a leader in his church and in the San Francisco community have touched and improved many lives. He serves as a “Stake President” for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or Mormon Church, overseeing as a volunteer leader the 6 congregations totaling 3,500 members in San Francisco’s East Bay area. Harlow spends many dozens of hours each month supervising and supporting initiatives to help disadvantaged individuals and families in the broader community through addiction recovery programs, personal finance and other self-reliance initiatives, pathway to college programs, vocational training, blood drives, meals for women’s shelters, and refugee assistance programs.

Click here to read the full award profile for Mr. Harlow’s work.