Mar. 8, 2014

Bet Tzedek throws annual fundraising gala

Hundreds of lawyers, judges, professionals and others convened in Los Angeles on Wednesday night to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Bet Tzedek at the public interest law firm's annual gala. All told, the fundraising event brought in more than $2.5 million to help support Bet Tzedek's work providing free legal services to low-income individuals and families. According to a spokesman for the group, it was the largest annual gala in terms of attendance and second-largest by gross receipts. Five former executive directors of the organization took home its Rose L. Schiff Commitment to Justice Award. They included Terry B. Friedman, a retired Los Angeles County Superior Court judge who now works as a neutral; Mike Feuer, now the city attorney of Los Angeles; David A. Lash, now managing counsel of O'Melveny & Myers LLP's public interest and pro bono services; Mitchell A. Kamin, now a principal at Bird, Marella, Boxer, Wolpert, Nessim, Drooks & Lincenberg PC; and Luis Lainer, who co-founded the organization 40 years ago in a storefront office on Fairfax Avenue. "We really thought that if we could keep it going for six months or a year, it would be a victory," Lainer said in a video about Bet Tzedek that was shown at the event. Four decades later, the nonprofit boasts thousands of success stories on behalf of clients, including its successful efforts to protect federal benefits for Holocaust survivors and to ensure that elderly tenants of the Cadillac Hotel in Venice were allowed to keep their low-rent apartments for life. Bet Tzedek bestowed its Luis Lainer Founder's Award to Stanley P. Gold and Bruce M. Ramer, two longtime friends who practiced law together at Gang, Tyre, Ramer & Brown Inc. Gold now serves as president and CEO of investment firm Shamrock Holdings, while Ramer, still a Gang Tyre attorney, serves as a member of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting's board of directors. The organization also honored Andrea Ambrose Lobato and Aaron J. Spiwak with the Rebecca Nichols Emerging Leader Award. - Ben Adlin