Atlanta Injury Lawyer Blog
I had the distinct honor of being inducted into the International Academy of Trial Lawyers a couple of weeks ago at the Mid-Year Meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia. It was spectacular! There is no question that this is one of the biggest honors of my 38 year career (so far) of practicing law. But when I was introduced, only 3 minutes was permitted and, unfortunately, the things I am most proud of never got mentioned. So I wanted to share with you the things I am most proud of:
1. I obtained a Presidential Pardon from President Barack Obama for a client who had served in the U.S. Army and was tried and convicted of being gay in the military, when it was illegal to serve in the military if you were gay. He served 2 1/2 years in Ft. Leavenworth Military Prison. The conviction prevented my client from being able to obtain a mortgage, get a car loan, obtain employment, etc. I worked pro bono for 6 years for him and finally received a full pardon on January 17, 2020, just three days before President Obama officially left office.
2. I opposed a ballot initiative to amend the Georgia Constitution to include: “This state shall recognize as marriage only the union of man and woman. Marriages between persons of the same sex are prohibited in this state.” I represented St. Mark United Methodist Church, a predominantly gay congregation, in the litigation against the Governor of Georgia, O’Kelley v. Perdue, 2004CV93494, 2006 WL 1350171, at *1 (Ga. Super. May 16, 2006), rev’d, 280 Ga. 732, 632 S.E.2d 110 (2006). The St. Mark Congregation adamantly opposed this discriminatory language. Our efforts were ultimately vindicated with Obergefell v. Hodges in 2015.
