2026 Equal Justice Conference has ended

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2026 Equal Justice Conference

AM

Anne Milne

Legal Services of Eastern Missouri

Senior Social Worker

St. Louis, MO

https://lsem.org/legal-advocacy-for-adults-with-mental-illness/

7:30am EDT

Lactation Room Lower Symphony Lounge Pre-Conference Registration Symphony Foyer Quiet Room - sponsored by Mutual of America Financial Group Piedmont

12:00pm EDT

Conference Check-In Symphony Foyer

3:00pm EDT

CLE/Help Desk Symphony Foyer Conference Check-In Symphony Foyer Exhibitor Showcase Symphony Foyer

7:30am EDT

CLE/Help Desk Symphony Foyer Conference Check-In Symphony Foyer Exhibit Hall Symphony Foyer Lactation Room Lower Symphony Lounge Quiet Room - sponsored by Mutual of America Financial Group Piedmont Self-Care Station - sponsored by Justice Works Symphony Foyer

7:45am EDT

Breakfast - sponsored by Complete Equity Markets, Inc. Symphony Foyer

8:30am EDT

Opening Plenary Symphony 4Liz Clasen-Kelly

10:00am EDT

Bringing Home the Crisis in Legal Aid Funding Symphony 6Lisa Singer • Hilaire Armstrong • Felecia Pettway Finding the Story in the Numbers: Turning Court Data into Action Governers 1&2Tanisha Pierrette • Lillian Patil Rethinking Brief Services Evaluation – A Strategic Approach to Understanding the Impact of Brief Services Mecklenburg 1Neil Steinkamp • Melanie MacBride

11:30am EDT

Exhibit Hall Raffle Drawing Symphony Foyer Networking Lunch: Building a Shared Message for America’s Civil Justice System Together: From Challenges to Opportunity Carolina C Networking Lunch: Racial equity in the delivery of pro bono legal services Mecklenburg 2

1:15pm EDT

(ETHICS) Automating Solutions for the Sh&! You Don’t Want to Do but Must Do to Keep Your License Mecklenburg 1Maggie R. Robb • Melinda Fithen Fostering Collaborative State Agency Partnerships Mecklenburg 3Elizabeth Hom • Lorin Kline • Kara Brodfuehrer • Samiel a. Thumma • Chris Groninger From Scarcity to Abundance: #JustOC - A New Model for Collaboration and Innovation Governers 5&6Monica Eav Glicken • Kate Marr • Brooke Weitzman Law Firm and Corporate Engagement in MLPs: A Scalable Model for Access to Justice Symphony 5Angie Zimmern • Allison Held • Jontile Ray • David J. DePippo • Carol Wyatt Using Evidence to Allocate Scarce Resources Mecklenburg 2D. James Greiner • Renee L. Danser

2:30pm EDT

Exhibit Hall Raffle Drawing Symphony Foyer

2:45pm EDT

(ETHICS) AI in Legal Aid: Ethics, Bias, Privacy, and Regulation Carolina AErin Riker • Ellen Samuel • Sarah J. Duval Built to Deliver, Designed to Learn: Linking Project Management with Evaluation Governers 5&6Shellie Reid • Kelly Shaw-Sutherland • Katherine Wines Going on Offense: Using Affirmative Litigation to Achieve Better Outcomes in Eviction Cases Symphony 2Lydia Ellsworth • Beverly Beaver Making your Evaluation Meaningful from Design to Impact Mecklenburg 2Julia Schutt

4:00pm EDT

4:15pm EDT

If You Build It, They Will [Advocate]: How to Develop Your Own Guardianship Defense Practice Governers 5&6Karen Nicolson • Sara E. Planthaber Reimagining the Justice Experience: Designing Justice Systems Through User Feedback and Lessons from Other Sectors Symphony 1Samantha DiDomenico

6:00pm EDT

Welcome Reception - HopFly Brewing Company 1327 S Mint St. Charlotte, NC, 28203

7:30am EDT

CLE/Help Desk Symphony Foyer Conference Check-In Symphony Foyer Exhibit Hall Symphony Foyer Lactation Room Lower Symphony Lounge Quiet Room - sponsored by Mutual of America Financial Group Piedmont Self-Care Station - sponsored by Justice Works Symphony Foyer

7:45am EDT

Breakfast Symphony Foyer

8:30am EDT

Booked Up, Logged In, and On the Road Again-- Close the Justice Gap with a Public Library Partnership Symphony 1Katherine Hope Chew • Julie M. Brophy • Karie Schulenburg Fail Smart, Win Big: Overcoming Fear to Unlock Innovation Potential Carolina AAndy Cole • Ashley Holliday From Casework to Capacity-Building: Supervisors as Change Agents Carolina CHolly Beck • Kadeem Morris • Jenna Collins The Golden Years Challenge: The Experience of Aging Observed Through a New Lens Symphony 6Kay Hightower • Susan Ingles • Sally Nesemeier

9:45am EDT

10:00am EDT

Community-Based Legal Innovation: Research on Justice Worker Programs in Indian Country Mecklenburg 2Cody Nelson • Rebecca Sandefur • Matthew Burnett • Sarah Carver Enforcing the Disability Rights of Public Benefits Applicants and Recipients Under Federal Anti-Discrimination Laws Governers 5&6Saima A. Akhtar • Haley Kulakowski • Elizabeth Woods Impact of Disaster Related Payouts to Public Benefit Recipients Symphony 5Carlos Valdes • Jonathan Brown • Bernadette Segura Justice Isn't Blind: The Role of Implicit Bias in the Courts Mecklenburg 3Rita Cameron Wedding • Shalinee Hunter

11:15am EDT

Exhibit Hall Raffle Drawing Symphony Foyer

11:45am EDT

Awards Luncheon Symphony 4Michelle A. Behnke • Radhika Singh

1:00pm EDT

1:30pm EDT

50 Tech Tips: Tools to Boost Everyday Practice Mecklenburg 1LaDierdre Johnson • Shellie Reid • Jane Ribadeneyra • Angela Tripp Digital Accessibility and Disability Justice Mecklenburg 2Gabriella Vazquez • Grace Spulak • Emily F. Deines • Jill Roberts Emergency and Estate Planning for Vulnerable Communities Mecklenburg 3Jennifer Anders-Gable • Bertha Sanchez Hayden

2:45pm EDT

Exhibit Hall Raffle Drawing TBA

3:00pm EDT

Data with Balance: Captivating Funders Without Becoming Captive to the Numbers Carolina D&EAntonia More • Bonnie Rose Hough Developing and Delivering Community Legal Services in Hawaiʻi Through Expungement and Bench Warrant Recall Clinics Mecklenburg 3E. Edward Aquino • Daylin-Rose H. Heather • Sergio Alcubilla • Melanie May Empowering Legal Aid: A Toolkit for Serving Communities Impacted by Opioid Use Disorder Symphony 2Touri Goode • Lauren Williams • Carrie Stambaugh • Justin Apperson • Helen Gratil

7:30am EDT

CLE/Help Desk Symphony Foyer Conference Check-In Symphony Foyer Exhibit Hall Symphony Foyer Lactation Room Lower Symphony Lounge Quiet Room - sponsored by Mutual of America Financial Group Piedmont Self-Care Station - sponsored by Justice Works Symphony Foyer

7:45am EDT

Coffee Service Symphony Foyer

8:30am EDT

Justice Without Walls: Virtual Models That Bring Legal Help Home Carolina ASylvia Novinsky • Joseph Schieffer • Fern Fisher Meeting ‘em Where They’re At: How Civil Legal Aid Promotes Overdose Prevention and SUD Advocacy Mecklenburg 3Charles Bowen • Karyn Rotker • Nicole Gorscak • Malinda Eskra

10:00am EDT

Closing Plenary Brunch: Expanding Access to Justice - The Health Sector Joins Forces with Civil Legal Aid Symphony 4Jason Patnosh • Bethany Hamilton • Lauren Smith