The Latest in Green Pro Bono Work

April.22.2014

In recognition of Earth Day, below is a selection of just a few of Orrick's pro bono engagements that are making a green impact.

Providing comprehensive legal support to RARE, a leading environmental conservation nonprofit that, for the last 40 years, has worked with communities in 56 countries to tackle environmental problems with locally led solutions. RARE's motto is "inspiring change so people and nature thrive." Our team over the years has included Shelley Zhang, Jing Sun, Yan Zeng, Laura Becking, Joyce Chen, Winston Suntaree, Kristin Cornuelle, Linda Partmann, Jen Liu, Dolph Hellman, Jason Flaherty and Rene Kathawala.
Conducting an analysis for Ceres, a nonprofit organization focused on water sustainability, on the ability to use municipal bond proceeds to finance distributed infrastructure on private property to reduce water consumption and storm water runoff. This analysis will be incorporated into an upcoming Ceres report on the opportunity for bond financing distributed water infrastructure. Our team includes Stephen Spitz, Mayling Leong and Scott Schickli.
Representing Energy Solidarity Cooperative (ESC) in connection with a small-scale commercial solar project finance. ESC is a Cooperative Corporation working with low-income communities in the renewable energy sector. The team of Les Sherman, Julianne Spears and Christie Lim will help ESC develop project finance legal documentation, including a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) and an agreement between the parties of the project's Special Purpose Entity.

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Rene Kathawala Pro Bono Counsel

New York

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Rene Kathawala Pro Bono Counsel

New York

Rene works with other pro bono counsel and legal services nonprofits to increase the quantity and quality of pro bono representation that is being provided to indigent clients in each of the cities worldwide where Orrick has a presence. In addition, he supervises and directly works on cases in such diverse areas as immigration law, family and matrimonial law, housing law, public benefits law, employment law counseling, impact litigation and nonprofit advice and counseling. Rene has worked on many substantial matters in the federal and state systems over his career that are reported as precedent. He also works with firm attorneys to strengthen the firm's innovative Impact Finance team that he founded and that provides representation in diverse transactional areas to nonprofit, for profit and hybrid organizations dedicated to providing basic services to poor persons around the world in areas including microfinance, water, education, energy, housing and health.

Based on his long-standing commitment to access to justice issues, Rene has been appointed to serve as co-chair of the New York City Bar Association Race Equity in the New York State Courts Working Group, co-chair of the Association of Pro Bono Counsel Transactional Law Working Group, as member of the New York City Bar Association Right to Counsel Task Force, as member of the New York City Bar Association Family Court Judicial Appointment & Assignment Process Work Group, as member of Sanctuary for Families' Narkis Golin Initiative, and as member of the Kids in Need of Defense's New York Advisory Committee. In recognition of his exemplary work in family law, United States District Judge Bloom appointed Rene as a special master in a federal court family law matter in 2014 in the Eastern District of New York in case number 07-cv-02565-ARR-LB, styled Garmhausen et al v. United States Department of Justice et al. Rene also appeared in a documentary with wide release, called "The Accidental Spy," about his pro bono immigration client, Mr. Blerim Skoro, for whom Rene spent six-years in the New York City immigration court and gained deferral of removal under the Convention Against Torture for the client.