Kayla Turner: 'How lucky am I that I get to follow in the footsteps of lawyers like Bruce Friedman.'

In accepting this year's Bruce E. Friedman Pro Bono Award, Kayla Turner described how her understanding of what it means to be a lawyer has changed. 

"At one point I wanted to be a lawyer because of how important I could be, but now it’s about how important my work can be, and how I can use this important place in society that we have as lawyers to help as many people as possible,"  said Kayla Turner at the James E. Duggan and Bruce E. Friedman celebration of public service. Turner is an attorney with the Disability Rights Center - NH. 

603 Legal Aid staff with Kayla Turner. 

Rory J. Parnell, attorney with Parnell, Michels & McKay and a 603 Legal Aid board member, presented the 14th annual Pro Bono Award to Turner. 

"What makes Kayla so impressive is not just the ability of her advocacy and the detail and fervor she brings on behalf of her clients but also what she does with her free time," he said.  "The Disability Rights Center is federally funded so Kala cannot work on DOVE (Domestic Violence Emergency Project) cases while she’s there.  So, how does she do it?  She does it on her lunch breaks; she does it after five o’clock; she does it on weekends.   She has taken on over a dozen cases to help not only victims of domestic violence but also stalking victims.  She does this in her free time.  This is the type of person that I think really encompasses what the Bruce Friedman award stands for." 

Attorney Kayla Turner after receiving the 14th annual Bruce E. Friedman Pro Bono Award. 

"I do admit sometimes I get carried away," Turner said.  "I’ll say yes to DOVE cases and doing it on my own after work hours. They’ll say, ‘Oh this case will be a few hours.’  It takes 20 hours.  Or I’ll meet with a client, and I’ll go to their house and suddenly three hours have passed, and I know the name of all ten of their chickens and all five of their fish. Or totally hypothetically speaking I might find myself helping a client pack up and move.  But I’m really proud to be that type of lawyer.  And how lucky am I that I get to follow in the footsteps of lawyers like Bruce Friedman."

In opening remarks, Judge David Ruoff described Duggan and Friedman and their legacies:

"I miss both of them.  I think of them often," he said. "I really hope that the people who are receiving the awards and scholarships here tonight can come away with a sense of what it means to be a professional, particularly in the state of New Hampshire -- that we are endowed with a gift by virtue of our education and our skills to contribute to our community.  And I think that is their legacy --  to make our community a better place."

Interim Dean Courtney Brooks presented the Jim Duggan scholarship to Elliana Martel, 3L, and the Bruce Friedman scholarship to Alycia Wilson, 3L.  

Elliana Martel, Interim Dean Courtney Brooks, Alycia Wilson

The Duggan scholarship was established to support students planning to begin their careers as public defender.  Elliana Martel spent the last two summers working at the NH Public Defenders Office and will return there after graduation.   The Friedman scholarship is awarded to a student who demonstrates a dedicated commitment to social justice and public interest law.  Alycia Wilson has been working towards a career in veterans’ legal advocacy.  She has clerked at the Veterans Legal Institute in California and will return there next summer to work in their women’s law clinic, working with women’s veterans who have experienced military sexual trauma.  

Ellen Musinsky, Director of Development for the law school, thanked donors for their generosity. 

"It’s because of what you do that we are able to give scholarship aid. Law school is crazy expensive. Doing public interest work when you get out doesn’t always pay all the bills. So the more that we can do to help our students while they are in school, the more opportunities we afford to them when they’re done," she said. 

Small donations, she said, have had a big impact. "Last year, we raised $50,000 in small donations. Some went to scholarships; some helped fund public interest summer grants.  Just a couple of gifts helps us put that money together.  I want to say how happy I am that we have these scholarships that honor Bruce Friedman and Jim Duggan. Their legacy is so important, and being able to give these scholarships allows us to ensure that their names continue to live in the school."

Please visit here for information on how to donate to these funds.