2023 Frank Wheat Memorial Awards

Individual Award Winner

Bethany Saul, New York

The Firm is proud to honor Bethany Saul, a litigation associate in the New York office, for her unparalleled commitment to pro bono work and, in particular, the hundreds of hours she has dedicated to helping LGBTQ+ individuals obtain asylum to escape persecution in their home countries. As part of the Firm’s LGBTQ+ Asylum Initiative, Bethany has represented asylum-seekers from around the world, including Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Jamaica, and Nigeria. Many of Bethany’s cases are unusually challenging—either because her clients’ home countries are not typically associated with homophobia or because her clients themselves may not be easily identified as members of the LGBTQ+ community—but she is never deterred by the long odds she and her clients face. In all of these cases, Bethany’s empathy and patience enable her to build strong relationships with her clients (many of whom have experienced unspeakable trauma), helping her maximize their chances of obtaining immigration relief. And, in many cases, her exceptional advocacy already has resulted in positive outcomes for her clients.

One of Bethany’s longstanding pro bono clients is “Amina,” a Nigerian woman who feared for her life because she is a bisexual woman. Amina managed to escape to the United States, but was forced to leave her husband and children behind. Bethany began working with Amina in 2019, just weeks after joining the Firm. Despite being a junior associate at the time, Bethany was a natural advocate and immediately strove to gain Amina’s trust. After a series of difficult conversations, Bethany learned Amina’s story and helped present her asylum claim in the most positive light. Because Amina is married to a man, it was an uphill battle to establish that she faced persecution due to her sexual orientation. But Bethany never wavered and, thanks to her tireless advocacy, Amina was granted asylum in 2020. Bethany immediately turned her attention to helping Amina’s husband and kids, who remained in Nigeria, reunify with her in the United States. Earlier this year, Amina learned that her family had been granted derivative asylum and could reunite with her in New York. Bethany stood by Amina’s side throughout this entire process, even helping her set up a new apartment in anticipation of her family’s arrival in New York and standing alongside her at JFK Airport to welcome her family after years of separation.

Bethany’s work with Amina is just one of many examples of her exceptional pro bono contributions. Bethany also has worked on many other immigration cases on behalf of immigrants fleeing persecution, including helping her clients apply for asylum, legal permanent residence in the United States, and other forms of immigration relief. She has developed significant expertise in immigration law (and particularly asylum law), making her an invaluable resource to other attorneys at the Firm who have less experience with this (often confusing) area of law. In recognition of her commitment to this work, Legal Services NYC, one of the Firm’s most important pro bono partners, named Bethany to its Pro Bono Associate Advisory Board. Bethany also devotes hundreds of hours to other pro bono matters, making her an inspiration to her colleagues across the Firm.

Team Award Winners

Immigration4Ukraine Team, Germany

In response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the resulting displacement of thousands of Ukrainian civilians, attorneys from Gibson Dunn’s Frankfurt and Munich offices—alongside other members of “Association Pro Bono Germany e.V.”—rolled out a joint pro bono initiative to help Ukrainian refugees in Germany. The core of the matter was an internet platform run by German pro bono clearing house UPJ. UPJ is a non-profit NGO that connects German lawyers and law firms to pro bono opportunities. Gibson Dunn has been a member of UPJ for many years, and our attorneys were honored to be part of the coalition that contributed to this important project.

The Immigration4Ukraine platform’s aim was to assist refugees from Ukraine who fled the war to Germany by helping them navigate the legal questions that commonly arose in the first weeks and months after their arrival in Germany. The platform offered both (1) basic legal information on many aspects of daily life in Germany in an accessible FAQ format (e.g., on residence in Germany, on work and taxes, on education and on social welfare) and (2) individual legal advice. With respect to the latter, the platform provided a tool for refugees to post their questions, which could then be answered by attorneys via e-mails or calls. Our Gibson Dunn team was closely involved on both work streams (the FAQ and individual advice), and we were proud to contribute to an invaluable resource for Ukrainians displaced by the war.

In total, the German offices devoted approximately 550 hours on this matter, including approximately 175 hours in 2023. Partners Sebastian Schoon and Jan Schubert and associates Jan Vollkammer and Bastiaan Wolters led the Gibson Dunn team, which also included partners Hans Martin Schmid and Mark Zimmer, of counsel Silke Beiter and Alexander Klein, and associates/staff attorneys Elisa Degner, Katharina Heinrich, Anna Helmer, Lisa Hollfelder, Christoph Jacob, Melina Kronester, Yannick Oberacker, Mariam Pathan, Lena Pirner, Mattias Siegfried Prange, Julian Reichert, Enno Schley, Alessandra Schmidt, and Dennis Seifarth. This pro bono project is one of the largest pro bono matters on which the German offices ever worked, and the team showed very strong engagement and passion about getting the help to the ones who need it the most.

Jones v. City of LA Team, Cross-Office

Deon Jones, a Los Angeles-based performance artist, entrepreneur, and Truman Scholar, grew up in Wiggins, Mississippi, where he witnessed and was subjected to rampant anti-Black racism. He has chosen to dedicate his adult life to serving as a leader and voice for his communities, using his work to help spread messages of inclusivity, social justice, and equality. He counts among his mentors the late Congressman John Lewis, who instilled in him the deep-seated belief that he had a responsibility to stand up and fight against inequality.

On the afternoon of May 30, 2020, Mr. Jones was peacefully protesting at a demonstration in Los Angeles following the murder of George Floyd. LAPD officers outfitted in riot gear arrived, causing the scene to become increasingly chaotic. Mr. Jones and his friend sought refuge in the parking lot of a nearby Trader Joe’s. While peacefully filming the scene with his phone in the parking lot, Mr. Jones was suddenly shot in the face by Officer Peter Bueno with a projectile from a weapon known as a 40mm “less-lethal” launcher. The projectile broke two bones in Mr. Jones’ face and was millimeters away from blinding him, or even worse, killing him.

Mr. Jones brought this civil rights lawsuit to hold the City of Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Police Department, the Chief of the LAPD, and LAPD Officer Bueno accountable for their egregious and unconstitutional conduct on May 30, 2020. When Mr. Jones filed his initial Complaint in the Central District of California on December 9, 2020, he did not know the identity of his shooter. It was only after the City and the LAPD were ordered by the Court to produce critically important documents to Mr. Jones, including documents related to the LAPD’s internal investigation into the shooting, that Mr. Jones was finally able to identify Officer Bueno as his shooter— almost a year after filing his initial Complaint. Mr. Jones’ case then survived multiple motions to dismiss and a motion for summary judgment before proceeding to trial. Mr. Jones also rejected a settlement offer from the City, an offer that would turn out to be less than what Mr. Jones was awarded at trial.

On February 28, 2023, trial commenced before an eight-person jury, with the Honorable Fred W. Slaughter presiding. The trial featured body-worn camera videos that captured the events of the day, including videos showing Officer Bueno using excessive force against Mr. Jones and other protesters. The trial also featured testimony from eyewitnesses of the shooting and LAPD officers and other witnesses who testified it violates LAPD policy to shoot people in the face and otherwise engage in excessive uses of force.

After listening to four days of testimony, the jury deliberated for approximately five hours before returning a unanimous verdict in favor of Mr. Jones on his Fourth Amendment claim against Officer Bueno. The jury awarded Mr. Jones a total of $375,000, consisting of $250,000 in compensatory damages and $125,000 in punitive damages. In awarding Mr. Jones punitive damages, the jury concluded Officer Bueno’s shooting of Mr. Jones was malicious, oppressive, or in reckless disregard of Mr. Jones’ rights.

As reported on the front page of the Los Angeles Times, this verdict is “the first verdict of its kind since mass protests swept Los Angeles in 2020,” with several other similar lawsuits ending in settlement with no acknowledgement of any wrongdoing by the City of Los Angeles or the officers involved. This verdict in favor of Mr. Jones helps pave the way for future protesters to exercise their fundamental constitutional rights without fear of police violence and retaliation. In July 2023, Gibson Dunn announced the settlement of the remainder of Mr. Jones’ case. The officer agreed to forego any appeal of the jury’s verdict, ensuring the verdict will continue to stand as a national message of accountability for police misconduct. The City has also agreed in the settlement to pay Mr. Jones additional damages to avoid a second trial that would have likely been held next year. That trial would have addressed and further exposed the City and LAPD’s historic abuses against civil rights protesters like Mr. Jones. Rather than proceed to that second trial, the City agreed to pay Mr. Jones $860,000 to resolve all claims—more than double the amount the jury awarded against the officer that shot Mr. Jones.

A cross-office team of Gibson Dunn attorneys dedicated countless pro bono hours to Mr. Jones’ case, from taking the case, to drafting the complaint, discovery, motions practice, trial, and ultimately, settlement. The trial team included partners Orin Snyder, Katie Marquart, Matt Kahn, Lauren Blas, and Karin Portlock, as well as associates Lee R. Crain, Mark J. Cherry, Lauren Dansey, Tim Biché, Courtney Johnson, Ariana Sañudo, Chaplin J. Carmichael, Viola Li, Rebecca Rubin, Isabella Sayyah, Brian Yeh, Katy Baker, Lana El-Farra, Jabari Julien, Amanda Sadra, Sam Whipple, Terry Wong, Nicolas Rossenblum, Yan Zhao, Mitchell Wellman, and Geronimo Morales, and paralegals Dan K. Tom, Leigh Fandy, and Josh Green, with exceptional support from Marcy Callahan, Dora Moran, Rudy Ramirez, Juan Corona, Tony Escutia, and Ramon Hernandez.

Staff Award Winners

Katy Lysaght, Palo Alto Katy, a legal secretary based in Palo Alto, has distinguished herself as a go-to person to help with pro bono paperwork. Whenever she is involved in opening a new pro bono matter, we can be sure the paperwork has been completed flawlessly and all necessary steps have been taken. Katy’s expertise is particularly valuable because, as a member of a Team Support pool, she works with attorneys across multiple offices and at a wide range of seniority levels. We can think of no one better to help guide our new attorneys through the internal processes associated with opening a new pro bono matter!

Dianne Macri, New York Dianne, New York’s Catering Manager, always goes out of her way to make our pro bono clients feel special and welcomed in the office. Whether catering a large-scale pro bono clinic, an individual client meeting, or the office’s Pro Bono Pride celebration, Dianne always thinks of our clients and their needs. From picking up cupcakes for our clients’ kids to serving culturally-appropriate meals, she goes above and beyond to ensure our clients feel valued—and to make the experience meeting with attorneys at a big law firm just a little less intimidating. It is such a comfort knowing that Dianne will ensure our pro bono clients arriving in the New York office are made to feel at home.

Rosemary McCague, New York For years, Rosemary has been an invaluable part of the pro bono operations in New York. Whether she is helping guide attorneys through the paperwork necessary to onboard new pro bono matters or volunteering to hand-deliver important documents, Rosemary never hesitates to lend a hand. We are so grateful for Rosemary’s enthusiasm for pro bono work and dedication to supporting the continued growth of our pro bono practice. Her deep knowledge of the pro bono practice and can-do attitude make her an incredible resource for attorneys and staff in the New York office and beyond.

2023 Frank Wheat Award Nominees

Individual:

Neil Fogel (Dallas)
Daniela Tapia Devia (Los Angeles)
Tessa Gellerson (Washington, D.C.)

Team:

K.A. Team (Dallas)
Domestic Violence Team (Los Angeles)
E.H. Team (Washington, D.C.)
J.R. Team (New York)
L.I. Team (Cross-Office)