CHICAGO – Earlier this month, DiCello Levitt Gutzler announced the establishment of its charitable foundation, “DLG Cares.” DLG Cares’ primary mission is to identify nonprofits focused on access to justice and to partner with those organizations through meaningful financial contributions.
For its first contribution, DLG Cares is proud to become a partner of Justice Defenders, making an important initial financial commitment to that organization of $100,000 over the next four years ($25,000 per year). Justice Defenders is a nonprofit organization that provides access to justice in Kenya and Uganda by training prisoners to become paralegals and lawyers. Founded in 2007 as African Prisons Project, Justice Defenders is a community of prisoners, prison officers, lawyers, judges, and allies working together for justice.
To date, Justice Defenders has trained 341 auxiliary paralegals running legal practices at 46 prisons in Uganda and Kenya; has provided free legal advice to 30,903 imprisoned people without access to justice; has enrolled 68 prisoners and prison officers in its law degree program with the University of London; and has held legal awareness sessions for 102,000 people.
Operating on the principle that “those who need justice most are least likely to gain access to it. And those with lived experience within the justice system are least likely to be heard,” Justice Defenders’ goal is to bridge the justice gap by “[e]quipping the accused. Informing the indicted. Educating the incarcerated. And taking the law to the margins of society to uproot the unjust.”
“After watching a 60 Minutes story a couple of weeks ago and visiting with Justice Defenders’ leadership, we cannot think of a worthier organization for DLG Cares to partner with as its first donation recipient,” stated Adam J. Levitt, DiCello Levitt Gutzler co-founding partner. “Not only does the Justice Defenders mission directly coincide with DLG’s commitment to access to justice, but, as a U.S.-based law firm partner, we’re excited to work with Justice Defenders to help it expand its U.S. footprint. Moreover, our decision to partner with Justice Defenders also reflects our expanding international practice.”
DiCello Levitt has led numerous class action, commercial litigation, product liability, public client, and civil rights cases, resulting in groundbreaking results with one overarching belief – that law is a means of using the civil justice system to protect and help people and companies, whether through trial, pretrial resolution, or otherwise.
On the creation of the foundation, co-founding partner Mark A. DiCello commented, “We’re trying to do the right thing for as many people as possible – to change lives.”
About Justice Defenders
Justice Defenders is a registered UK charity and U.S. nonprofit working to provide legal education, training, and practice within defenseless communities. Founded in 2007, we work across Africa where prisoners and officers train and provide legal services for themselves and others. This year, 250 of our paralegals and 50 law students will reach 100,000 people in 40 prisons. Our work helps the humans within the criminal justice system flourish. And this increased capacity promotes more equitable, just, and peaceful societies, in keeping with the UN’s 2030 SDG 16. Visit justice-defenders.org
About DLG Cares
DLG Cares is a charitable foundation established by DiCello Levitt Gutzler. The foundation aligns with the firm’s values, mission, and outlook. DLG Cares identifies and financially supports nonprofits dedicated to access to justice. One overarching goal is for DLG Cares to help provide access to justice—one person at a time.
About DiCello Levitt Gutzler
DiCello Levitt combines excellence in commercial litigation, class action litigation, mass tort litigation, catastrophic injury litigation, medical malpractice litigation, and civil rights litigation. Practicing nationwide—and internationally—from offices in Chicago, Cleveland, New York, St. Louis, and Washington, DC, we are an aggressive, attentive, and creative complex litigation firm whose work speaks for itself—billions of dollars in recoveries in some of the highest-profile matters in U.S. history. Revered by clients and respected by defense counsel, our team gets results.