May 11, 2017, NEW YORK—Susan J. Kohlmann, Esq., Managing Partner of Jenner & Block’s New York office, was elected Chair of Legal Services NYC’s (LSNYC’s) Board of Directors at the Board’s annual meeting on May 9, 2017. Ms. Kohlmann has served on LSNYC’s Board as a Director since 2010 and as Vice-Chair for the past three years.Ms. Kohlmann succeeds Michael D. Young, Esq., a founder and full-time mediator and arbitrator with JAMS who was elected Chair in 2014. LSNYC bylaws limit the Chair to a single term. Mr. Young, a member of LSNYC and LSNYC constituent corporation boards since 2004, will remain a Director.
“We are thrilled to welcome Susan as the new chair of LSNYC,” said Legal Services NYC Executive Director Raun J. Rasmussen. “She is passionate about our mission, a strategic thinker, and will provide the wisdom and guidance we need to help protect our clients and our funding at a time when both are threatened.”
Ms. Kohlmann is an experienced litigator in Jenner & Block’s Content, Media & Entertainment Practice, co-chair of the Trademark, Advertising, and Unfair Competition Practice, and chair of the firm’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee. Clients seek her counsel on a wide variety of complex matters, including copyright, trademark, and trade secret disputes. She has also represented companies in various class action and other complex commercial matters. In addition to her extensive experience in jury and bench trials and arbitration proceedings, Ms. Kohlmann has extensive experience briefing and arguing appeals in the New York appellate courts and several federal circuit courts. She is a member of Jenner & Block’s Policy Committee, the firm’s governing body, and was named Managing Partner of the firm’s New York office effective January 1, 2016.
In addition to her leadership at Jenner & Block, Ms. Kohlmann has served as a member of the New York City Bar's Executive Committee, Chair of its Committee to Enhance Diversity, and a member of its Nominating Committee. She is also a member of the boards of New York Lawyers for the Public Interest and the City Bar Justice Center.
“Susan is a tremendous lawyer and importantly a fierce community advocate who embodies Jenner & Block’s commitment to pro bono and public service,” said Terrence J. Truax, the firm's managing partner. “We are very proud that Susan has been entrusted with the important responsibility of helping to lead LSNYC’s board of directors. Susan’s leadership of LSNYC aligns perfectly with our firm’s strong support of the Legal Services Corporation nationally, and local LSC-funded firms throughout the United States. She will be a wonderful leader.”
"I have been fortunate enough to have seen firsthand the great work that LSNYC does, working with Michael Young and the board of directors, as well as on pro bono matters with LSNYC’s dedicated and talented staff,” said Ms. Kohlmann. “It’s an honor to be elected as chair of the board of LSNYC and I look forward to continuing to work with the board to expand access to justice for low-income New Yorkers who cannot afford to pay for critical legal representation.”
At the same meeting, William T. Russell, Jr., Partner at Simpson Thacher, was elected Board Vice Chair. Donna Daniels, Executive Director, Fraud, Investigations and Dispute Services at Ernst & Young, will continue as Board Treasurer, and Liza May Velasquez, Partner at Paul Weiss, was elected as Secretary. Fern Finkel, an attorney in private practice, Ana Melendez, an appointee of Youth Ministries for Peace & Justice, and Diego Parra, an appointee of New Immigrant Community Empowerment, were elected to the Board’s Executive Committee.
Legal Services NYC fights poverty and seeks racial, social, and economic justice for low-income New Yorkers. For nearly 50 years, we have challenged systemic injustice and helped clients meet basic needs for housing, access to high-quality education, health care, family stability, and income and economic security. LSNYC is the largest civil legal services provider in the country, with deep roots in all of the communities we serve. Our neighborhood-based offices and outreach sites across all five boroughs help more than 80,000 New Yorkers annually.
"I have been fortunate enough to have seen firsthand the great work that LSNYC does, working with Michael Young and the board of directors, as well as on pro bono matters with LSNYC’s dedicated and talented staff,” said Ms. Kohlmann. “It’s an honor to be elected as chair of the board of LSNYC and I look forward to continuing to work with the board to expand access to justice for low-income New Yorkers who cannot afford to pay for critical legal representation.”
At the same meeting, William T. Russell, Jr., Partner at Simpson Thacher, was elected Board Vice Chair. Donna Daniels, Executive Director, Fraud, Investigations and Dispute Services at Ernst & Young, will continue as Board Treasurer, and Liza May Velasquez, Partner at Paul Weiss, was elected as Secretary. Fern Finkel, an attorney in private practice, Ana Melendez, an appointee of Youth Ministries for Peace & Justice, and Diego Parra, an appointee of New Immigrant Community Empowerment, were elected to the Board’s Executive Committee.
Legal Services NYC fights poverty and seeks racial, social, and economic justice for low-income New Yorkers. For nearly 50 years, we have challenged systemic injustice and helped clients meet basic needs for housing, access to high-quality education, health care, family stability, and income and economic security. LSNYC is the largest civil legal services provider in the country, with deep roots in all of the communities we serve. Our neighborhood-based offices and outreach sites across all five boroughs help more than 80,000 New Yorkers annually.
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