MILWAUKEE – Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren s.c. has recognized litigators Antonio M. Trillo (Tony) and Joseph W. Voiland (Joe) as the firm’s 2010 Pro Bono Attorneys of the Year.
Reinhart’s award, now in its second year, recognizes a firm attorney (or attorneys) who best demonstrated a commitment to serve those unable to otherwise obtain needed legal services.
“Tony and Joe represent all of their clients with a passion for justice and exceptional client service,” said Jerome M. Janzer, Reinhart’s Chief Executive Officer and Chairman, when he announced the 2010 award recipients. “These two lawyers earned Reinhart’s 2010 Pro Bono Attorney of the Year Award by carrying out Reinhart’s tradition of committing time and resources to improving our communities. Their contributions stood out most recently in September when Tony and Joe teamed up to successfully conduct a jury trial, pro bono, on behalf of a pretrial detainee with federal civil rights claims.”
The firm announces the award annually in conjunction with National Pro Bono Week, which this year runs the week of October 24-30. National Pro Bono Week encourages pro bono service by lawyers to meet the increasing need for representation of low-income and vulnerable clients in civil legal matters. Reinhart’s history of providing representation to underserved individuals extends back to the inception of the Legal Aid Society of Milwaukee. It has continued to the Marquette Legal Clinic at the Milwaukee Justice Center where a number of Reinhart attorneys volunteer.
Reinhart hosted a reception for the firm’s attorneys in conjunction with the announcement on Tuesday, October 26, 2010. The reception featured information on pro bono opportunities and the benefits of doing pro bono work by members of the local judiciary and legal services organizations. Milwaukee County Circuit Court Commissioner Laura Gramling Perez, a Reinhart alumna, returned to Reinhart for the reception that also included Judge Richard Sankovitz, Patricia Risser from Legal Action of Wisconsin, Anita Cruise from Kids Matter and representatives from Marquette Law School’s office for public service, the Legal Aid Society, and the Eastern District bankruptcy pro bono program.
Trillo, an attorney in the firm’s Litigation Practice, represents food and consumer goods manufacturers. Voiland, an attorney in the Litigation and Employee Benefits Practices, concentrates his practice on financial services litigation, including ERISA litigation and defending actuarial malpractice claims.
Trillo is active in pro bono service on several fronts. He frequently represents individuals who feel their constitutional rights have been violated by state or federal employees. Trillo has been interested in civil rights since law school and took several classes on the subject. “There is a fine line between a prisoner’s rights and what the state or federal officer does to restrict them,” he said. “Our police and corrections officers can be overtaxed. Sometimes an officer may cross that fine line and the prisoner may have no one to go to for help. I like to assist those people.”
“The primary reason I devote my time to Pro Bono work is to give a voice to people in the community who do not have the financial means to hire an attorney,” continued Trillo. Last month, Trillo and Voiland worked together to try a civil rights case in the Federal District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin.
In addition to civil rights litigation, Trillo handles domestic abuse injunction referrals as part of the Legal Action of Wisconsin’s Volunteer Lawyers Project (VLP). He is also active in the firm’s diversity initiatives and oversees the firm’s Legal Opportunity Youth Internship Program (LOYIP), which offers an inner-city high school student the chance to spend the summer working with lawyers at Reinhart’s headquarters in Milwaukee. He serves as a mentor to the intern and introduces the intern to various aspects of a potential legal career.
Trillo graduated from the University of Wisconsin Law School and received his B.S., cum laude, from the University of Florida.
Voiland has had a career heavily involved with public service, first as a Lieutenant in the United States Navy aboard the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz, later as law clerk at the Wisconsin Supreme Court to the Honorable Diane S. Sykes, and most recently as appointed Public Service Special Prosecutor for the Milwaukee County District Attorneys Office. He has handled numerous pro bono trials and appeals, including one matter pro bono before the Wisconsin Supreme Court involving the constitutionality of certain parental rights statutes.
“All work,” Voiland said, ” whether paid or unpaid, should be for the public good.”
Voiland earned his J.D. with honors from Marquette University Law School and his B.A. from Northwestern University.
ABOUT REINHART BOERNER VAN DEUREN s.c.
Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren s.c. is a full-service, business-oriented law firm with offices in Milwaukee, Waukesha and Madison, Wisconsin and Rockford, Illinois (P.C.). The firm’s more than 200 attorneys serve clients throughout the United States and internationally with a combination of legal advice, industry understanding and superior client service.
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