Finding a Way 23 Law Firm/Client Partnership Benefits All Parties Elaine struggled to meet expenses on her Social Security disability income. She suffers from many painful conditions and allergies, and her doctor agreed that a number of personal care items were medically necessary to help treat them.The doctor also supported Elaine’s need to keep the heat in her unit much higher than average. Elaine asked her housing authority if she could deduct the cost of these items and get an increased heat allowance, but the authority was not receptive. Seeking assistance, she went to a free legal clinic at a Boston homeless shelter carrying her voluminous collection of receipts, and found a dream team: Mintz Levin attorney Adrienne Walker and Kathy McGrath, Senior Corporate Counsel and pro bono coordinator at Liberty Mutual, a Mintz Levin client. Over the next year, Adrienne, Kathy, and their respective legal assistants worked to demonstrate that Elaine’s unreimbursed expenses significantly reduced her monthly income, and therefore her rent should be reduced. Adrienne and her researchers delved into the HUD regulations and set out the legal criteria; Liberty Mutual’s Arjuna Anderson organized the receipts into a spreadsheet and went through several years of heating bills to show that Elaine deserved a higher utility allowance. Armed with a well-organized explanation of the HUD regulations and an easy-to-read summary of the receipts, Kathy negotiated with the local housing authority. The tag teaming paid off for Elaine. Her rent reduced, her utility allowance increased, and even some past rent reimbursed, Elaine was able to stay in her apartment. Mintz Levin has participated in the Massachusetts Legal Clinic for the Homeless for almost two decades, twice a year.The firm invited Liberty Mutual’s in-house legal department­­—one of the first in Massachusetts to have a formal pro bono program­­ —to participate in a clinic about four years ago, when Kathy was looking for a way to expand her legal department’s pro bono opportunities. “At the clinics, Mintz Levin and Liberty Mutual attorneys pair up to meet with individual clients,” says Mintz Levin’s Colin Van Dyke, who manages the clinics with colleague Jehanne Bjornebye. Over the years, the collaboration has expanded. Mintz Levin’s McKenzieWebster and Lisa Palin now train interested Liberty Mutual law clerks and attorneys to work with clients looking for restraining order protections. Mintz Levin attorneys also mentor Liberty Mutual’s summer law clerks and serve as a resource year-round on domestic violence cases. As the in-house team has matured, the pro bono partnership between Liberty Mutual and Mintz Levin has strengthened. In fact, when Mintz Levin’s Susan Finegan, in her role as a member of the Massachusetts Access to Justice Commission, organized an In-House Counsel Pro Bono Forum, Kathy McGrath was one of the first people she called to speak. Kathy told the audience how much easier partnering with Mintz Levin had made it to find rewarding pro bono opportunities for her Liberty Mutual colleagues. With more in-house lawyers developing an interest in pro bono work, partnerships like that of Mintz Levin and Liberty Mutual are catching on. A Road to Relief The collaboration between the Mintz Levin and Liberty Mutual pro bono teams worked out so well for the client. She really got the benefit of having two law teams meet  her needs. Kathleen McGrath Senior Corporate Counsel Liberty Mutual