In the Community
The Duffy Firm is committed to making a difference in the lives of all those in need in the City of Philadelphia and surrounding regions.
The very first Duffy Fellows in 2012: Community Legal Services Staff Attorney Jen Burdick, left, CLS Executive Director Cathy Carr, Tom Duffy, The Legal Clinic for the Disabled Executive Director Linda Peyton, and LCD Medical Legal Partnership attorney Elizabeth Oquendo.
The Duffy Firm is not just a top Philadelphia personal injury law firm that effects positive change in the lives of clients who have suffered tragedy; we are committed to making a difference in the lives of all those in need in the City of Philadelphia and surrounding regions.
That was the impetus behind the Duffy Fellowship, a program created in 2012 by founder Tom Duffy. “We are all in this together,” is a mantra of Tom’s. As such, this program provides our neighbors facing some of the harshest realities of life – unsafe, health issues or income insecurity - with the help to overcome these barriers to better living.
How it works:
We cannot possibly donate to all of the worthy charities in our area. However, by underwriting staff attorney salaries at some of the area's foremost legal service nonprofit organizations, the Duffy Fellowship is able to touch tens of thousands of people each year through their work. Here’s just a glimpse of how Duffy Fellows are transforming lives every day:
The Legal Clinic for the Disabled
A lifeline for patients facing health-related hardships
At the Legal Clinic for the Disabled, two Duffy Fellows provide free legal representation to help people overcome obstacles that affect their independence, health, or quality of life. Through the nonprofit’s “Medical/Legal Partnership,” the LCD works onsite at a number of healthcare facilities to interact with the medical staff and identify and address hardships negatively affecting patients' health (or hardships that caused those health issues in the first place). These issues include landlord-tenant matters, family law issues, special education deficiencies, or immigration matters.
The LCD operates these clinics at 5 locations throughout Philadelphia: Magee Rehabilitation Hospital, Stephen Klein Wellness Center, Family Practice & Counseling Network, St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children and Hahnemann Cancer Center.
Community Legal Services
Navigating the complex maze of public benefits
At Community Legal Services, two Duffy Fellows help poverty-level Philadelphians navigate the complex world of public assistance. They ensure that those in need can access essential benefits, such as cash assistance, SSI disability, food stamps, health insurance and more.
CLS assists clients when they face the threat of losing their homes, incomes, health care, and even their families. The CLS’ mission is to fight poverty, challenge systems that perpetuate injustice, and change lives through cutting-edge advocacy and exceptional legal representation.
Homeless Advocacy Project
Shelter from the storm for Philadelphia's homeless and veterans
Since its founding in 1990, the Homeless Advocacy Project has been a beacon of hope for over 35,300 homeless individuals in Philadelphia. The project has provided $50.5 million in free legal services for individuals and families who experience or face homelessness. This includes SSI, TANF, medical assistance, food stamps, veterans’ compensation/pensions, upgrading veteran discharge characterization, custody/family law issues, identity documentation, accessing shelter and other housing-related services, and more. Through the program, two Duffy Fellows help give dignity and justice to those who need it most.
Temple University Summer Legal Fellowships
Advocacy in the public interest
The newest addition to the Duffy Fellowship family, Temple University Beasley School of Law now sends ten students to work in public interest roles in various organizations around the region for their summer internships. To be selected by the university as a Duffy Fellow, interested students who are planning to pursue a career in public service choose an organization that meets an acute community need and then share their vision for a legal project that will further that organization’s mission.
Through the work of the Duffy Fellows, we are able to lift up those most in need. Working together, we can – and we do – make a difference.