White Named Legal Services Lawyer of the Year
Attorney Maureen White has been named the Ellen
Hines Smith Legal Services Lawyer of the Year for 2009. She leads
the bankruptcy practice group for South Carolina Legal Services
(SCLS) and is responsible for instruction and resource to other
attorneys on staff. Under her leadership bankruptcy cases have
tripled as an important tool in SCLS’ quest to defend foreclosures,
protect clients’ equity in their homes and prevention of
homelessness.
Andrea Loney, SCLS Executive Director said,
“Maureen is an energetic, highly capable and admired attorney on our
staff. She is responsible for improving the competency of scores of
attorneys who otherwise would be reluctant to enter the difficult
practice area of bankruptcy. Through her instruction to these
attorneys, as well as her own personal advocacy on cases assigned to
her, she has been instrumental in permanently improving living
conditions for thousands of impoverished persons who entrust their
legal work to SCLS. She carries out this difficult work with high
ethical standards, diligence, commitment and a contagious attitude
of service to our clients. We have many other excellent attorneys
who will be recognized at some future date but I feel certain we
will never find anyone who exceeds her combination of strengths in
serving our clients. It is an honor to have her on staff and to have
her as a friend.”
White has practiced law since 1983, first in
Ohio and then in South Carolina since 1996 after her marriage to
Steve White and her move to Greenville. She has two daughters and is
active in her church, Prince of Peace.
White, a repeat triathlon competitor, is an
avid participant in her daughters’ school programming. Maureen was
born with congenital cataracts and, until an operation in recent
years, was unable to drive. She completed nineteen years of formal
education, including college and law school, prior to the surgery
that improved her vision.
The Ellen Hines Smith Legal Services Lawyer of
the Year Award is presented jointly by the South Carolina Supreme
Court Access to Justice Commission and the South Carolina Bar
Foundation. White will receive the award on Thursday, March 11, 2010
at the Bar Foundation’s annual gala.
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