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Providing for the civil legal
needs of low-income individuals and families throughout ten
counties in northwestern Pennsylvania requires a team
effort. As a law firm serving the poor, we bring together a
talented and committed group of legal professionals, along
with administrative and support staff, to serve our clients
to the best of our abilities. Although our organization has
undergone many changes since we were incorporated in 1969,
we are fortunate to have a core staff of experienced legal
services professionals working alongside younger attorneys
and paralegals equally dedicated to our mission. The staff
at NWLS includes the following:
Executive Director -- Robert A. Oakley, Esq., has
served legal aid for more than a quarter century. Prior to
his appointment as executive director of NWLS in 1995, he
worked as executive director of Legal Services for
Southeastern Wyoming, Inc., where he also chaired the Legal
Aid Services Committee for the Wyoming State Bar. Oakley is
a licensed attorney in Pennsylvania, Wyoming and Ohio
(inactive).
Administrative Support Staff -- Assisting the
executive director with administrative duties are a fiscal
manager, a resource developer, and an administrative
assistant.
Staff Attorneys -- NWLS currently has 14 staff attorneys who
provide the full range of legal representation and counsel
for our clients. The majority of these attorneys have more
than five years experience in the legal profession, with a
core group serving in the legal services arena from 10 to 25
years. The breadth of experience this legal team brings to
our client community is an important part of our success.
Paralegals -- In addition to our staff attorneys,
NWLS has three paralegals who handle certain administrative
law cases for our clients. Working under the supervision of
staff attorneys, these paralegals act as important advocates
for clients in areas of the law such as unemployment
compensation and government benefits. They also bring more
than 40 years of combined experience in legal services to
their profession.
Community Educator -- NWLS employs a community
educator to interact with our client community and with
other social service agencies that share part of our
mission. Each year this community educator speaks to
hundreds of client-eligible people about the resources that
NWLS makes available to them.
Support Staff -- Supporting the work of our law
workers is a team composed of secretarial/clerical workers,
and co-directors of technology with responsibility for both
hardware and software components of our information systems.
A total of 9 individuals comprise this group of support
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Dedication to Our Mission
The professional staff at
Northwestern Legal Services is committed to
providing excellent service to our clients. We
are especially proud of their dedication to the
ideals of our organization. We would like to
recognize the following staff members at
Northwestern Legal Services for 20 or more years
of service to legal aid:
Kathy Landis ... Jim Montero ... Paul
Troskosky Debbie Place … Kel McDonald …
Judy Wilson
Bob Oakley … Caulene Sanford … Mary Jane Weed
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