OLAF | Gary Smith Awarded Statewide Honors

Press Release

Gary Smith Awarded Statewide Honors

September 1999

Gary Smith, litigation director for Ohio State Legal Services Association, was presented the Ohio Legal Assistance Foundation's Denis Murphy Award for outstanding service in a legal aid society.

OLAF created the Murphy Award in 1998 to honor its founding board president, former Columbus lawyer Denis Murphy. The award is annually presented to a legal aid society advocate for exemplary advocacy and leadership.

OLAF is a statutorily created non-profit charged with administering state funds for Ohio's legal aid societies and developing innovative approaches to serving the civil legal needs of the poor. OLAF was created following the release of a 1991 statewide study that revealed that only 17 percent of the civil legal needs of Ohio's poor receive attention.

Smith is the director of litigation for OSLSA which serves 29 counties through its offices that operate under the name of Southeastern Ohio Legal Services. As litigation director, he assists in coordinating the litigation handled by the law firm and serves as a trainer and mentor for lawyers in reviewing strategies and advocacy skills. Additionally, Smith serves part-time as special litigation counsel with the Equal Justice Foundation based in Toledo.

The nominations for Smith reviewed by the OLAF board in selecting an award winner praised Smith's commitment to his clients and his strong desire to gain meaningful improvements in their lives. His professionalism and innovative legal strategies were also noted, as well as the numerous major legal victories he has won in the areas of domestic violence, right to counsel, due process in utility terminations and other areas that strongly impact the low income community.

Smith's home office is in New Philadelphia, but he travels broadly throughout the state as he manages a broad array of litigation. Smith is a graduate of the Ohio State University College of Law.

Smith can be reached in New Philadelphia at (330) 339-3998. For additional information about Smith's efforts, feel free to contact Tom Weeks, executive director of Ohio State Legal Services Association at (614) 299-2114.

Ohio's legal aid societies serve low-income Ohioans with civil legal needs. Clients include victims of domestic violence, senior citizens who have mistakenly lost health care benefits, and families who have been wrongfully forced into homelessness by unscrupulous landlords.

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