Hodges Loizzi partners Stan Eisenhammer and Pam Simaga will receive Awards for Excellence in Pro Bono and Public Interest Service in an award ceremony held on Thursday, September 9 beginning at 2pm CT.
The award is presented by the federal Judges of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and the Chicago Chapter of the Federal Bar Association. W. West Allen, President of the Federal Bar Association, will be the keynote speaker in the ceremony.
Stan and Pam are being honored for their work on the 2016 pro bono case Manuel v. The City of Joliet which they successfully appealed all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. In the case, Hodges Loizzi represented Elijah Manuel, an indigent man, who claimed his Fourth Amendment rights were violated after being stopped and detained by City of Joliet police officers. Manuel sought to bring a malicious prosecution suit in federal court against the police officers and the City of Joliet.
Stan and Pam argued his case to the U.S. Supreme Court and won despite having their arguments rejected by two lower courts. The Court then sent the case back to the Seventh Circuit to determine whether Mr. Manuel’s claim was timely. After holding oral arguments to determine when the statute of limitations began for the federal malicious prosecution claim, the Seventh Circuit issued a decision finding that Mr. Manuel’s claim was timely.
Nominees for the Annual Awards for Excellence in Pro Bono and Public Interest Service are selected based on their:
- Dedication to pro bono or public interest work
- Handling of a civil or criminal matter in the District Court representing an indigent party
- Successful representation in a difficult case
- Extraordinary number of hours committed to pro bono work
Guests can join the ceremony via WebEx here.
Congratulations to Stan and Pam for this well-deserved honor.
Stan Eisenhammer, a firm founder and now senior counsel, focuses his practice on consulting clients on complex constitutional issues affecting schools and other public bodies.
Pam Simaga’s practice covers a broad range of matters within the areas of litigation, students, property tax appeals, and investigations.
