Julie Stevens Receives 2023 Legal Aid Pro Bono Volunteer of the Year Award

by Brett Cattani Pro Bono Coordinator/Staff Attorney Legal Aid Services of Oregon

Stevens is the 2023 Legal Aid Volunteer of the Year Award recipient for her exceptional commitment to pro bono service through Legal Aid Services of Oregon’s (LASO) Domestic Violence Project (DVP). This award is presented annually to a lawyer or lawyers, who have displayed an outstanding commitment to the delivery of critical pro bono services to lowincome persons through LASO or the Oregon Law Center. Julie’s service will be recognized at the MBA’s Annual Meeting and Dinner on May 24.

Julie’s commitment to providing critical pro bono legal services is exceptional and truly deserving of this award. After serving Oregon’s low-income communities as a civil legal aid attorney for over 40 years, in her retirement and as a pro bono member of the bar, Julie continues to provide the highest quality legal services to lowincome survivors of abuse and stalking. She has been a consistent leading volunteer with LASO’s DVP this last year. Julie explains, “It’s such important work and a privilege to help represent clients who otherwise would not be able to afford an attorney. Also, after being an attorney for 46 years, it’s hard to let go.”

“Julie is a force to be reckoned with,” said Emily Brown-Sitnick, Regional Director of LASO’s Portland Regional Office. “Julie’s unwavering support of survivors in our community is not only inspiring, but also monumental. We are a better community because of lawyers like Julie. Her tireless commitment to this work has helped make communities and families safer. The countless hours she has provided for families promotes a stable, safe and healthy environment for our clients and their children. The impact she has had is vast and we are appreciative and humbled by her commitment and work.”

Julie grew up in Coos Bay. After graduating from the University of Oregon, Julie obtained her law degree from Columbia University Law School in New York City. She was admitted to the OSB in 1973 and returned home to Oregon to practice law. Julie launched her career as an attorney through the federal Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA) program, a vital resource in the fight against

Julie Stevens

poverty. Julie was then hired to manage legal aid services in Coos Bay before entering private practice as a family law practitioner. For most of her legal career, Julie was employed as a staff attorney with LASO where she maintained a heavy case load, representing abuse survivors and their children in a variety of domestic relations cases including child custody, marriage dissolution, and contested protective order cases. Fun fact: Julie has also been a contestant on America’s favorite quiz show, Jeopardy!

Julie’s commitment to her clients and her strong traumainformed advocacy continues in her retirement. In the last two years, Julie has accepted over 20 pro bono family law cases through LASO’s DVP. The DVP is a volunteer lawyer program where survivors of abuse and stalking are matched with pro bono attorneys for representation in contested

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