Toomey Selected as Recipient of Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association Barristers Pro Bono Award
Foley announced today that Erin Toomey, associate in the Detroit office, has been selected as the 2010 recipient of the Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association Barristers Pro Bono Award. This prestigious honor recognizes young attorneys within the Detroit legal community who have been in practice for 10 years or less and have made outstanding accomplishments through their participation in pro bono activities.
The Pro Bono Award is presented as part of the DMBA Barristers Outstanding Young Lawyers Awards. These awards are given in recognition of the accomplishments of young attorneys who have, despite being in the early stages of their career, demonstrated great potential as future leaders of the legal community.
A member of the Detroit office’s Pro Bono Committee, Toomey received the DMBA Barristers Pro Bono Award in large part because of her work in coordinating pro bono efforts with the Michigan Innocence Clinic. Launched in 2009 at the University of Michigan Law School, the Clinic litigates claims of actual innocence by prisoners in cases where DNA evidence is not available.
Toomey initiated and has since coordinated the pro bono involvement of 23 Foley & Lardner Detroit office lawyers to support the Michigan Innocence Clinic. Her efforts have created a comprehensive support and analysis infrastructure to assist the Clinic in reviewing the more than 3,000 claims of actual innocence by Michigan prisoners that have already been submitted for consideration in little more than a year.
In addition to her work with the Michigan Innocence Clinic, Toomey is actively involved in helping Michigan non-profit organizations investigate and consider federal contracting opportunities made available by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. She is one of five Foley & Lardner attorneys in the government contracting group seeking to assist non-profit organizations in application and compliance processes typically beyond their capabilities.
Our sincere congratulations go to Erin Toomey for being chosen as the recipient of this year’s DMBA Barristers Pro Bono Award. This distinct recognition highlights Toomey’s continued dedication to bettering her local community through pro bono involvement.