Pro Bono
Contacts
Partner & Pro Bono Chair
We approach pro bono with the same relentless commitment we bring to paying client work. Our focus on impact litigation and firmwide participation has earned national recognition. Our commitment to the principles of opportunity, participation and commitment drive our success.
Opportunity – Initiative is expected and supported here. Our program brings together people from across the firm, each contributing distinct skills and passion to help those who need it most.
Participation – Everyone does their part. We log more than 50 pro bono hours per lawyer annually, exceeding 75% of firms surveyed in the 2024 Best Law Firms survey. In 2025, 97% of associates did pro bono work despite extremely busy practices.
Commitment – Firm leadership supports pro bono programmatically—with a 100-hour pro bono credit—and opportunistically, as when we sent three lawyers to Alaska for a three-week trial to protect foster children, or dispatched lead lawyers and summer clerks alike to Texas for a fight against prison heat
Punching Above Our Weight
“Wheeler Trigg O’Donnell has brought the level of rigor and excellence one would expect in the highest-stakes commercial litigation, and they have delivered it in service of the public good.”
— Dr. Amite Dominick, Founder of the Texas Prisons Community Advocates
Impact Litigation
Partner Organizations
Cases
Representing foster children in Louisiana, West Virginia, and Alaska in class actions to compel state agencies to fix broken foster care systems.
Won a preliminary injunction for plaintiffs suing the Elizabeth (Colorado) School District over a book ban violating free speech protections. We are partnering with the ACLU of Colorado and representing students of the school district, the Rocky Mountain NAACP State Conference CO-MT-WY, and The Authors Guild.
Drafted an amicus brief for the University of Colorado Law School's Korey Wise Innocence Project, which successfully convinced the Colorado Supreme Court to revisit the standard for appointing indigent pro se criminal defendants post-conviction counsel.
Secured a settlement for a pro bono client who sued her landlord for wrongful eviction and breach of contract.
Represented a civil rights organization in certiorari and merits-stage briefing before the U.S. Supreme Court in a Fourth Amendment case with national implications.
Prepared and submitted an amicus brief for the Texas Civil Rights Project to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit addressing municipal and public officer liability issues raised by challenge to Texas S.B. 12.
Representing foster children in Louisiana, West Virginia, and Alaska in class actions to compel state agencies to fix broken foster care systems.
Won a preliminary injunction for plaintiffs suing the Elizabeth (Colorado) School District over a book ban violating free speech protections. We are partnering with the ACLU of Colorado and representing students of the school district, the Rocky Mountain NAACP State Conference CO-MT-WY, and The Authors Guild.
Drafted an amicus brief for the University of Colorado Law School's Korey Wise Innocence Project, which successfully convinced the Colorado Supreme Court to revisit the standard for appointing indigent pro se criminal defendants post-conviction counsel.
Secured a settlement for a pro bono client who sued her landlord for wrongful eviction and breach of contract.
Represented a civil rights organization in certiorari and merits-stage briefing before the U.S. Supreme Court in a Fourth Amendment case with national implications.
Prepared and submitted an amicus brief for the Texas Civil Rights Project to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit addressing municipal and public officer liability issues raised by challenge to Texas S.B. 12.
We approach pro bono with the same relentless commitment we bring to paying client work. Our focus on impact litigation and firmwide participation has earned national recognition. Our commitment to the principles of opportunity, participation and commitment drive our success.
Opportunity – Initiative is expected and supported here. Our program brings together people from across the firm, each contributing distinct skills and passion to help those who need it most.
Participation – Everyone does their part. We log more than 50 pro bono hours per lawyer annually, exceeding 75% of firms surveyed in the 2024 Best Law Firms survey. In 2025, 97% of associates did pro bono work despite extremely busy practices.
Commitment – Firm leadership supports pro bono programmatically—with a 100-hour pro bono credit—and opportunistically, as when we sent three lawyers to Alaska for a three-week trial to protect foster children, or dispatched lead lawyers and summer clerks alike to Texas for a fight against prison heat
Punching Above Our Weight
“Wheeler Trigg O’Donnell has brought the level of rigor and excellence one would expect in the highest-stakes commercial litigation, and they have delivered it in service of the public good.”
— Dr. Amite Dominick, Founder of the Texas Prisons Community Advocates
Impact Litigation
Partner Organizations
Cases
Representing foster children in Louisiana, West Virginia, and Alaska in class actions to compel state agencies to fix broken foster care systems.
Won a preliminary injunction for plaintiffs suing the Elizabeth (Colorado) School District over a book ban violating free speech protections. We are partnering with the ACLU of Colorado and representing students of the school district, the Rocky Mountain NAACP State Conference CO-MT-WY, and The Authors Guild.
Drafted an amicus brief for the University of Colorado Law School's Korey Wise Innocence Project, which successfully convinced the Colorado Supreme Court to revisit the standard for appointing indigent pro se criminal defendants post-conviction counsel.
Secured a settlement for a pro bono client who sued her landlord for wrongful eviction and breach of contract.
Represented a civil rights organization in certiorari and merits-stage briefing before the U.S. Supreme Court in a Fourth Amendment case with national implications.
Prepared and submitted an amicus brief for the Texas Civil Rights Project to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit addressing municipal and public officer liability issues raised by challenge to Texas S.B. 12.
Representing foster children in Louisiana, West Virginia, and Alaska in class actions to compel state agencies to fix broken foster care systems.
Won a preliminary injunction for plaintiffs suing the Elizabeth (Colorado) School District over a book ban violating free speech protections. We are partnering with the ACLU of Colorado and representing students of the school district, the Rocky Mountain NAACP State Conference CO-MT-WY, and The Authors Guild.
Drafted an amicus brief for the University of Colorado Law School's Korey Wise Innocence Project, which successfully convinced the Colorado Supreme Court to revisit the standard for appointing indigent pro se criminal defendants post-conviction counsel.
Secured a settlement for a pro bono client who sued her landlord for wrongful eviction and breach of contract.
Represented a civil rights organization in certiorari and merits-stage briefing before the U.S. Supreme Court in a Fourth Amendment case with national implications.
Prepared and submitted an amicus brief for the Texas Civil Rights Project to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit addressing municipal and public officer liability issues raised by challenge to Texas S.B. 12.
Contacts
Partner & Pro Bono Chair