City Bar Justice Center to Honor BNY Mellon and Mayer Brown with 2023 City Bar Justice Awards for Pro Bono Service

New York, March 16, 2023 – The City Bar Justice Center’s 18th Annual Gala, The Power of Pro Bono, will be held on April 4, 2023, from 6:00pm-8:30pm, at the New York City Bar Association. BNY Mellon and Mayer Brown will receive 2023 City Bar Justice Awards for their commitment to promoting racial, social, and economic justice through a range of pro bono legal services and other philanthropic commitments.

The celebration will feature live music and dance performance, immersive art, and an inspiring program championing the honorees’ pro bono service. Susan J. Kohlmann, New York City Bar Association President, and Kurt M. Denk, City Bar Justice Center Executive Director, will provide remarks, and Carol Villegas, City Bar Fund Chair, will present the awards to be accepted by Kevin McCarthy, General Counsel of BNY Mellon, and Matthew Ingber, Managing Partner of Mayer Brown’s New York office.

BNY Mellon’s global legal department fosters a culture of commitment to pro bono and leverages resources and experience to help increase access to justice for underserved communities. BNY Mellon’s pro bono program has grown by leaps and bounds since it was established over a decade ago, becoming a global program, with lawyers and non-lawyers participating in locations including Brazil, Hong Kong, India, and Luxembourg, in addition to their London and US offices. In 2022, BNY Mellon employees logged more than 1,800 volunteer hours through its pro bono program to give back to communities.

Mayer Brown is a leader in developing innovative approaches to pro bono work. Mayer Brown was the first major law firm to develop and implement a pro bono strategic plan, and the firm strives to pioneer projects that will have a substantial impact, both locally and globally. Mayer Brown has long deployed the firm’s resources to advance justice and confront systemic problems, and each year donates tens of thousands of hours of legal services to those with limited means and to the organizations that serve them. In 2020, Mayer Brown launched a racial justice-focused initiative, Project Equity.

BNY Mellon and Mayer Brown are two of the City Bar Justice Center’s longest-standing partners, having worked across multiple pro bono practice areas. “BNY Mellon supported a successful #Wifi4Homeless campaign that resulted in Wi-Fi being installed in over 250 New York City shelters and recently helped the Justice Center update technology for client intakes, and Mayer Brown is a years-long partner with our legal clinics for micro-entrepreneurs and is increasing collaboration with our homeowner stabilization work. Together, our honorees have made deeply impactful and increasingly sophisticated contributions to multiple communities that we serve,” said City Bar Justice Center Executive Director Kurt M. Denk. “By expanding and deepening their pro bono work, our 2023 honorees embody this year’s gala theme – The Power of Pro Bono – and exemplify the impact pro bono can have in making New York a place of more vibrant hope for our neighbors in need.”

About the City Bar Justice Center

The City Bar Justice Center furthers access to justice by addressing unmet civil legal needs of New Yorkers struggling with poverty and other systemic socioeconomic barriers, providing pro bono legal services benefiting upwards of 25,000 New Yorkers each year. The Justice Center mobilizes law firms, corporate legal departments, and other legal institutions to provide pro bono legal services; educates the public on pertinent legal issues; fosters strategic community relationships; and impacts public policy. www.citybarjusticecenter.org 

About BNY Mellon

BNY Mellon is a global investments company dedicated to helping its clients manage and service their financial assets throughout the investment lifecycle. For more information on how BNY Mellon uses its corporate resources and the talents of its employees to make a positive impact in communities around the world, please visit BNY Mellon | Corporate Giving and Community Impact.

About Mayer Brown

With more than 1,800 lawyers throughout the Americas, Europe, and Asia, Mayer Brown is uniquely positioned to advise the world’s leading companies and financial institutions on their most complex deals and disputes. They are a leader in developing innovative approaches to pro bono work and have long deployed the firm’s resources to offer access to the justice system and confront systemic problems worldwide. www.mayerbrown.com/en