The Erie County Bar Association Volunteer Lawyers Project (VLP) recently named Executive Director Rachel Mathews among the 2020 class of Rising Champions of Justice! The VLP is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation that provides free civil legal services to low income individuals and small nonprofits in Western New York. Established in 1983 as a project of
What a year it has been. In 2019, our foundation provided advances to over 80 families to help them make ends meet while they pursued justice. Some of the people we helped were trying to escape homelessness. Others were struggling to keep the lights on or put food on the table. Each person’s unique
For-profit funders will often seek out plaintiffs in tough spots and essentially exploit them, loaning them money without making it clear what they might owe back once their settlement comes in.
If you’ve heard about our foundation, you know that we are shaking up the norm in the plaintiff funding industry. Unlike the for-profit companies who charge exorbitant interest rates and make the cost of capital expensive for plaintiffs in need, the Bairs Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides funding with low, simple interest. Our
U.S. District Court Judge Anita Brody voided all existing funding agreements with the former players, so Thrivest Specialty Funding sought to have the matter sent to arbitration.
We are grateful for our veterans’ service and sacrifice. And in our little corner of the civil justice space, our nonprofit is proud to serve them in our own way when they need help making ends meet during litigation.
The Bairs Foundation Ambassador Program brings together a network of trial lawyers and civil justice stakeholders who have an appreciation for the work the Foundation does, and who want to contribute to its continued success.
The Foundation for Improvement of Justice has named John Bair among its recipients of the 2019 Paul H. Chapman Award. The foundation is honoring John for his efforts to assist plaintiffs with financial support while they go through litigation, and for his creation of the Bairs Foundation to reform the non-recourse lending industry.
Our foundation is pleased to share this year’s cofounders’ letter. We think that the protection and guidance that litigants receive during the course of their lawsuit speaks volumes about our Seventh Amendment and the Civil Justice system in general.
