Nick Butto of Mintz Honored for Expanding Firm’s Pro Bono Partnership

Elena Rizzo

At this year’s Above & Beyond Awards, Sanctuary for Families is honoring Nick Butto, litigation associate at Mintz, for his exceptional work and long-standing collaboration with Sanctuary for Families.

At this year’s Above & Beyond Awards, Sanctuary for Families is honoring Nick Butto, Litigation Associate at Mintz, for his exceptional work and long-standing collaboration with our organization.

At a time when access to justice is out of reach for so many, individuals like Nick Butto are creating a path for successful partnerships to assist clients in need.

The beginning of Nick’s relationship with Sanctuary for Families was similar to many:  he began working with them on a first pro bono project.  However, Nick was able to build momentum, took on many more pro bono cases (with multiple matters running at the same time), and worked tirelessly to establish and expand Mintz’s partnership with Sanctuary for Families. Since then, his efforts have not only grown his firm’s pro bono practice but have also inspired many of his colleagues to get involved.

Taking the Lead in Pro Bono Matters

Nick has an instinctual skill for negotiation and handling complex legal matters. In the words of Lindsey Song, Associate Program Director of the Family Law Project at Sanctuary, “Nick is so easy to work with and in a recent matter we collaborated on, he promptly took the lead on negotiations.  Despite facing an attorney with 20 years more experience, Nick handled the negotiations in a collaborative manner, but at the same time with confidence and firmness, never showing any signs of hesitation.”

Nick’s success stems not only from his legal acumen but also from his dedication to the clients he represents.

Sanctuary and Nick’s client, Ms. E., explained:

“As a victim of severe domestic abuse, I felt lost, fearful, and uncertain about where to start. Fortunately, I found Nick. His brilliance, dedication, and unwavering support were instrumental in helping me navigate the legal process. He was available 24/7, handling emergencies with immediate responses, and his compassionate approach alleviated my fears. Nick went above and beyond his legal duties by offering emotional support during moments of panic, making me feel safe. I cannot imagine having navigated this ordeal without his support.”

Growing a Pro Bono Legacy and Inspiring Others

What truly sets Nick apart is his leadership in fostering a culture of pro bono service within his firm. Nick has joined Mintz’s Pro Bono Committee, and over the past year and a half, his firm’s collaboration with Sanctuary for Families has expanded significantly.

Nick emphasizes the importance of mentorship in this process, noting that Sanctuary for Families has played a critical role in guiding attorneys at his firm. “Sanctuary has mentored associates at Mintz, and this helped develop the casework,” Nick said. “We’ve seen real progress in the last 18 months, thanks to the support of my firm, which has provided time and resources to run complex cases, and the commitment of my colleagues.”

His efforts have also spurred greater involvement from the firm’s leadership, with partners contributing to case strategy and supervising associates. “We are fortunate not only to have our Pro Bono Committee backing up our collaboration with Sanctuary, but we’ve also seen more partners taking an active role on cases, which has been instrumental,” Nick shared.

Advice to Other Firms on Leveraging Support

Nick is a firm believer in the power of collaboration and communication when it comes to expanding pro bono efforts. In his view, growing a firm’s pro bono practice requires regular communication on the ongoing efforts of peers. “Keeping people updated on what their colleagues are working on and sharing compelling case stories inspires others to take on pro bono matters,” he said.

Nick also sees the long-term benefits of exposing junior associates to this type of work. “The more opportunities junior associates have to work with clients and learn trauma-informed interviewing techniques, the better they become at representing clients in the future,” Nick explains. This approach ensures that pro bono work not only impacts current cases but also builds a skillset that will benefit future clients.

Looking Ahead

Nick’s dedication to pro bono work shows no signs of slowing down. He’s currently juggling multiple cases in collaboration with Sanctuary for Families, including a protective order matter set for trial in September, an asylum case with an upcoming merits hearing, and an appeal in the First Department. This of course, in addition to keeping a busy commercial litigation practice.

Nick’s leadership in pro bono work, and the contribution Nick and Mintz are making to strengthen their collaboration with Sanctuary for Families, serve as a reminder that associates can truly make a difference when it comes to creating a long-lasting path for pro bono in the legal profession.

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Join us at our Above & Beyond Awards Ceremony on October 8, 2024, as we honor Nick Butto’s outstanding pro bono work.

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Elena Rizzo is a Senior Associate in the International Arbitration team at DLA Piper’s New York office.  Elena is also a member of Sanctuary’s Pro Bono Council and is co-chairing this year’s Above & Beyond Awards reception.  Elena has worked alongside Sanctuary attorneys on numerous matters since 2017.

Charles River Associates Honored for Investigative Work in Support of Survivors

Kate Powers

At this year’s Above & Beyond Awards, Sanctuary is honoring an incredible team at Charles River Associates for their investigative and forensic accounting work on behalf of Sanctuary’s clients. 

At this year’s Above & Beyond Awards, Sanctuary for Families is honoring an incredible team at Charles River Associates for their investigative and forensic accounting work on behalf of Sanctuary’s clients. The team includes CRA vice presidents Lisa Dane and Alexandra Knatchbull, principal Niall Murphy, associate principal Victor Epstein, associates Brenden Ebertz and Trishla Jain, and consulting associate Noah Genovesi.

Charles River Associates (“CRA”) has brought their investigative and forensic accounting expertise to fight for survivors and support Sanctuary’s clients. CRA has supported legal teams on countless cases—cases involving the Domestic Violence Survivors Justice Act (“DVSJA”), divorce matters, international child abduction cases, sex trafficking cases, and incarcerated clients. The team at CRA leverages their resources and skills to combine forces with Sanctuary attorneys and pro bono attorneys to achieve significant and tangible results.

Just some of CRA’s investigative contributions to these matters include:

  • Providing intelligence and conducting source work to locate a kidnapped child who was being hidden outside of the U.S.
  • Forensically examining the financials of a former partner in a custody case.
  • For purposes of serving papers in divorce matters, locating countless opposing party’s addresses or businesses, and for purposes of alternative service, locating opposing party’s social media accounts, phone numbers, relatives, or associates.
  • Locating medical records, criminal records, and even archived police records.
  • Locating former neighbors and friends to serve as witnesses to support survivors in DVSJA re-sentencing matters.
  • Identifying a former partner’s undisclosed assets and companies through corporate registry research.

Reflecting on CRA’s work, Nicole Fidler, Senior Project Director of the Pro Bono Project and the Narkis Golan International Child Abduction Initiative at Sanctuary for Families explained their importance to Sanctuary’s work:

“Our partners at CRA always try to find us something we can use to help our clients in their cases. They are incredibly quick to respond and always eager to help. If there is not an obvious answer to a request, they think outside the box to figure out how they can find useful information or provide helpful analysis. We are lucky to have CRA as an ever-reliable resource. Everyone in Sanctuary’s Legal Department loves working them!”

– Nicole Fidler, Sanctuary for Families

As to CRA’s work with Sanctuary, Lisa Dane, Vice President in CRA’s Risk, Investigations & Analytics Group said, “being able to pivot our investigative skillsets to collaborate with Sanctuary and other pro bono lawyers to help improve people’s lives is deeply meaningful and important to our firm. We are honored and grateful for the recognition and congratulate the other honorees and Sanctuary’s team for their exceptional work.”

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Join us at our Above & Beyond Awards Ceremony on October 8, 2024, as we honor CRA’s outstanding pro bono work.

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Alston & Bird Team Honored for Obtaining a Settlement in a Highly Contested Custody Case

Paige A. Geier

At this year’s Above & Beyond Awards, Sanctuary will honor a team from Alston & Bird for their devoted pro bono representation of “Amber” to obtain a favorable settlement in a complex and highly contested custody case.

At this year’s Above & Beyond Awards, Sanctuary for Families is honoring a team from Alston & Bird, including partner Elizabeth Buckel, and associates Chris Williams, Morgan Meyer, and Ashton Andrews for their compassionate and devoted pro bono representation of “Amber” to obtain a favorable settlement in a complex and highly contested custody case.

“Amber” had previously left an abusive relationship, and the parties agreed to joint custody of their daughter.  Several years later, the arrangement was no longer working and came to Sanctuary for Families as a fraught and difficult custody modification case with a savvy, manipulative pro se respondent.  The hard-working team from Alston & Bird joined the case in 2023.  In addition to filing multiple violation petitions and orders to show cause, the team diligently prepared for trial and had weekslong settlement negotiations with the client’s abuser to work out a custody arrangement that was beneficial to both Amber and her daughter.  Ultimately, the team secured a favorable settlement that gave Amber sole legal custody and primary physical custody of her daughter with limited visitation with the father.

The Alston & Bird team juggled difficult aspects of the case with skill and compassion.  At times, they were simultaneously preparing for trial, engaging in settlement negotiations with an aggressive pro se respondent, and providing ongoing emotional support to their client.  The case was scheduled for trial, so the team started to prepare witnesses, draft direct examination questions, and engage in pretrial discovery.  Settlement negotiations were extremely complicated and, at times, hostile.  The team sent myriad emails, had dozens of phone calls, and – in a three-week span – engaged in five separate settlement talks with the abuser in an attempt to negotiate a custody arrangement.  Associate Chris Williams emphasized the challenge of balancing the various aspects of the case, especially while managing client expectations and ensuring the court system was not being used to work out personal grievances.

This was Chris’ first case with Sanctuary for Families, and he is excited to continue partnering with Sanctuary in the future.  Chris learned a great deal from this case, including key litigation skills like preparing for trial, negotiating settlements, and connecting with clients through empathy and patience.  Chris said this case taught him to be a zealous advocate for his clients, especially after witnessing the systems and institutions survivors interact with.  In this case, the team was able to use their “alternative dispute resolution tools to gain the best outcome for our client, but also for [her] family and future going forward.”

Erin Mears, Senior Staff Attorney at Sanctuary for Families, praised Chris for his continued empathy, compassion, and patience when working with Amber.  She remarked on how empowering it is for survivors to have “a team of fantastic, dedicated, conscientious lawyers” behind them.  It was especially important for Amber and had the crucial effect of shifting the power dynamic in the case – once the Alston & Bird team was brought on, it was no longer a David and Goliath scenario where the abuser could continue to exert control through the litigation process.  Erin commended the team’s dedication throughout the difficult process of preparing for trial: “Elizabeth and the team were responsive, detail-oriented, and hard-working throughout the case.  They were thorough and well-prepared in each document drafting, filing, and court appearance, and they were particularly attentive to the client and her daughter, taking special care of their mental health and well-being.”

Amber expressed her gratitude to the team after they secured her a favorable outcome.  She wrote: “There are no real words that can encompass how grateful and fortunate N and I are to have such an incredible team on our side.  I know that at times I have been one to overreact emotionally and perhaps illogical at times.  My intentions were never to be difficult but know it was always from a place of fear and desperation.  I truly have struggled in the last year the most and lived in a strange dark place where I felt almost not human.  You all have been so kind and generous with your humanity towards me and forever I will be grateful and appreciative.”

Sanctuary is incredibly grateful for the invaluable pro bono work of this amazing and supportive team.

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Join us at our Above & Beyond Awards Ceremony on October 8, 2024, as we honor Alston & Bird’s outstanding pro bono work.

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Milbank LLP Secures Divorce for Survivor After 4-Year Litigation Battle

Anastasia Regne

At this year’s Above & Beyond Awards, Sanctuary will honor will honor SA’s dedicated team of Milbank attorneys who have repeatedly achieved remarkable outcomes over the course of their 4 years representing SA in his initially uncontested divorce.

At this year’s Above & Beyond Awards, Sanctuary for Families will honor SA’s dedicated team of Milbank attorneys who have repeatedly achieved remarkable outcomes over their 4 years representing SA in his initially uncontested divorce.

SA’s Milbank team consists of associates Ashley A. Satterlee, Elizabeth Hamilton, Morgan M. Williams, Alisha Gupta, and Leslie Irwin and partner Stacey J. Rappaport.

While living in Nigeria, where it is unlawful to be gay, SA’s abuser engaged in many methods of abuse, including forcing SA to engage in polyamory despite SA’s protests and to be on heavy medication which dulled SA’s senses.  The abuser constantly threatened to tell SA’s family and friends in Nigeria about SA’s sexuality, which would have put SA’s life at great risk. Subsequent to their marriage, the abuser also attempted to use the United States’ immigration system to control SA.

Lauren Patel of Sanctuary filed for the uncontested divorce in 2020 which turned into a complicated case as a result of the abuser’s litigation tactics.  After the abuser filed multiple interlocutory appeals in 2022, Milbank then offered to co-counsel to help SA.   Over the last two years, Milbank and SA have had to bat away constant filings – including extraordinarily lengthy requests to file counterclaims alleging fraud and demands for punitive payment, and multiple motions and appeals – all part of the abuser’s attempts to abuse the justice system to continue to assert power and control over SA.  These verbose filings (many over 100 pages long) are riddled with insulting jabs at the court and SA’s attorneys and contain slanderous allegations designed to humiliate SA.

However, as Milbank associates Morgan and Elizabeth explained, “The courts have seen straight through the abuser and that he is using the courts to abuse” SA.  SA and his Milbank team have succeeded in opposing a significant amount of relief sought by the abuser, and in February 2024, obtained a judgment of divorce for SA.

Milbank’s team was initially engaged to assist with an interlocutory appeal, but ultimately helped complete the divorce in chief and has remained on to represent SA in multiple subsequent filings including three appeals.  Because the abuser is pro se, the papers and arguments are difficult to understand.  As described by Lauren, Milbank’s pro bono team “constantly goes above and beyond to respond to each and every argument, motion, and paper to zealously advocate and protect SA against this abuse.  It has required a significant amount of legal research, time, and drafting to be able to continue to knock down each attempt, and they continue to be dedicated to doing so.”

The diversity of experience across Milbank’s incredible pro bono team allowed them to jump right in on SA’s case.  Each member of the team is passionate about working with SA: as Elizabeth noted, “everyone puts their whole hearts into it.” Morgan added “Sanctuary has been so amazing, Lauren is such an amazing resource in helping understand this case.”

Though the constant litigation has been arduous for SA and his lawyers, Morgan explained that she has learned a lot about drafting and client advocacy along the way.  She explained it recently occurred to her how much professional growth she’s had while working on SA’s case.  While drafting an outline, Morgan realized “when I was first added to the case, it would have taken me months to draft this,” and now she is able to put papers together much more quickly.  Morgan also said that working on SA’s case has strengthened her understanding of the importance of advocacy for Sanctuary clients.  Elizabeth explained that the team has continued to not only work with SA to defeat the abuser’s constant frivolous filings, but to help work with SA to stay safe by ensuring that SA’s whereabouts and contact information are kept away from the abuser, consistent with the confidentiality order in place in the case.

The Milbank team and SA continue to fight SA’s abuser and plan to defeat him in his third appeal.  Morgan explained that the abuser “might file something wild or crazy, but we are ready to fight it vigorously.” She further provided, “Our firm is committed to pro bono work – the firm recognized us for this case last month.”   Elizabeth added, Milbank knows it’s important to “fight for a righteous cause and take care of other people who need someone to stand up for them.”   Now that the team secured the judgment of divorce this February, Milbank and SA continue to work together on the third appeal, and expect oral argument to be held in October.

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Join us at our Above & Beyond Awards Ceremony on October 8, 2024, as we honor Milbank’s outstanding pro bono work.

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Anastasia Regne is a member of Sanctuary’s Pro Bono Council.