Making a Difference in One’s Legal Career and in the Lives of Many

Across the United States and Canada individuals and families lack access to justice. While there are many young lawyers and law students who seek to focus their careers on public interest, many are unable due to lack of opportunity or financial resources. Chair of the Access to Justice Distinguished Pro Bono Fellows Program and Winston & Strawn Partner Kimball Anderson and his wife Karen Gatsis Anderson have created and funded numerous public interest law internships and fellowships for decades through the University of Illinois College of Law. 

Kimball spoke on the importance of the fellowships by stating, “For almost twenty years, Karen and I have funded an annual public interest fellowship. Each Anderson Fellow receives a grant of $50,000 paid out over five years. Fellows are outstanding lawyers who work in Chicago area public interest organizations. They are burdened with significant school debt which makes it difficult for them to continue in the field of public interest law. We started this Fellowship program because a survey of Illinois public interest lawyers, which I commissioned as President of the Chicago Bar Foundation, showed low salaries and very high school debt. Karen and I started the program to help ensure that the best and brightest public interest lawyers can remain at their public interest agencies. We have been very gratified to see that Anderson Fellows have remained at their agencies. Many have become executive directors or other leaders of their organizations. All have been essential to improving access to justice in Illinois.”

Read more in the Winter 2023 issue of the American College of Trial Lawyers Journal (see page 79).