Quarles & Brady Names Winners of Michael Gonring Pro Bono Award

MILWAUKEE — The national law firm of Quarles & Brady LLP today announced the recipients of the firm's Michael Gonring Pro Bono Award. The 2018 honorees recognize Team of the Year, Partner of the Year and Associate of the Year. The firm donates $1,000 to nonprofits designated by each team/honoree.

2018 Honorees:

A team of attorneys, led by David Yohannan and Nikia Gray received the Pro Bono Team of the Year Award. The team also included associate, Laura Buchanan and Paralegal, Carla Walters. The team were recognized for representing a defendant in a Hague Convention Case.

Louis Klapp, a partner in the firm's Chicago office, received the Pro Bono Partner of the Year Award. He is honored for researching, drafting and arguing a novel 5th amendment constitutional issue in a Section 1983 case before the Seventh Circuit.

Parwana Noorzad received a Pro Bono Associate of the Year Award. Noorzad assisted a client who had two pending warrants for her arrest in Lake County, Indiana, related to crimes committed while being a victim of human trafficking.

The Gonring Award, named in honor of retired firm partner Michael J. Gonring's longstanding pro bono leadership and commitment to justice for the poor, honors a volunteer attorney(s) or team who has demonstrated dedication to the development and delivery of legal services through one or more pro bono projects during a fiscal year. Gonring served as the firm's national pro bono coordinator for 15 years before his retirement in 2016. He established the firm's pro bono program and made it part of the fabric of Quarles & Brady.