Corporate partner brings expertise to Food Finder nonprofit

Geoffrey T. Stover, a partner at Steinbrecher & Span LLP, put his legal experience to work in a different role in 2022 as a new board member of the Los Angeles nonprofit Food Finders.

“I’m the new kid to Food Finders,” Stover, who joined the organization’s board in May, said in a recent interview. “I just feel lucky to be able to help them, and I hope I can.”

Stover has practiced at Steinbrecher & Span since 2011, where he deals with business litigation including complex commercial trade disputes, consumer class action defense and real estate litigation — none of which brought him too deep into the world of food relief. It was Stover’s wife who brought the issue to his attention through her own volunteer work in the area.

“My wife had volunteered at a group that is similar on the Westside, where they do food pickups and distribute to pantries and the like,” he said.

After gaining an interest in the cause, Stover began searching for an organization to which he could devote his time and expertise.

“I very much admire all the nonprofit groups that are legal aid based — your Public Counsels, Inner City Law Center, on which I served for a number of years,” Stover said. “Those are all fantastic organizations, but they’re pretty well staffed, and I thought I would try to help a smaller group that didn’t maybe have an army of lawyers already helping.”

When he learned about Food Finders from another member of the organization’s board, he found that their mission resonated with him.

“I think it’s actually a pretty brilliant idea — it’s simple but it’s brilliant,” he said. “The group’s mission addresses two fundamental and critical needs. It rescues edible food from supermarkets, produce marts and corporate kitchens that would otherwise go into landfills, and it donates the food to those in need — food pantries, shelters and other nonprofits.”

So far, Stover said, he has been able to lend a hand in navigating general commercial contract issues as well as corporate governance matters, although he declined to go into specific detail.

“Things do pop up — it’s part of being in business, or even a nonprofit in California and the United States — so I hope I can give them whatever help they need,” he said.

In addition to his direct legal assistance, Stover says he hopes to benefit the organization by exposing more of his colleagues to its mission.

“We had our annual fundraising dinner back in October, and I invited a few of my colleagues. They got to see what the group is about and … I think they were impressed, and I hope they’ll come back and we’ll have more lawyers in Los Angeles get involved and help raise some money for these folks,” he said.

Moving forward, Stover hopes to continue bringing his expertise to bear in assisting the organization however he can — although he hopes some of his skills won’t be necessary.

“I’m a litigator — hopefully they’ll stay out of litigation,” he said with a laugh. “But I certainly hope that I can help them navigate any issues that might come up.”