“Dick has strengthened not only Lawyers Clearinghouse, but seemingly every housing-related effort in Massachusetts with his expertise, intelligence, and kindness.
He is a tireless advocate for clients, an engaged mentor to pro bono volunteers—from new associates to retired judges—and a dedicated organizer, who has brought nonprofits, affordable housing developers, community and neighborhood development corporations, and pro bono attorneys together to improve our systems and support our most vulnerable communities.”
– Susan Gedrick, Executive Director, Lawyers Clearinghouse
Meet Dick Bauer, Lawyers Clearinghouse Access to Justice Fellow and Clinic Consultant and the recipient of our 2024 Pro Bono Excellence Award!
Lawyers Clearinghouse staff chose to recognize Dick due to his years as a Fellow and clinic mentor, his meaningful support of Clearinghouse clients and volunteers, and his ongoing work on eviction appeals and affordable housing cases.
Dick was first connected with the Clearinghouse in 2015, when he signed on to become an Access to Justice Fellow following a 30-year career as a full-time legal services Staff Attorney with Greater Boston Legal Services (GBLS).
As a Fellow, Dick partnered with GBLS and the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) to support pro bono clients, assist with appeals cases and simulated appellate trials (known as moots), and volunteer with other initiatives to increase access to justice throughout the Commonwealth.
In 2018, as the Clearinghouse expanded its Legal Clinic Program, former Clinic Manager Mia Friedman recruited Dick to serve as a consultant and mentor on housing cases. In this capacity, Dick provided vital support to clinic volunteers—screening potential clients, assisting with intake interviews, and discussing case strategies—and even took on several cases himself, in one case getting a court order requiring the housing authority to give the client acquire a much-needed extension on her housing voucher, and in another in another appealing multiple times to get the Appeals Court to order the Housing Court to dismiss a case that should never have been brought in the first place.
Today, Dick continues his pro bono work with GBLS and NCLC, where, by his estimate, he has assisted with at least 300 appeals cases and appellate moots, helping volunteer attorneys practice their arguments and prepare for hearings, and sometimes doing amicus briefs in their support. He also does a mix of pro bono and paid consulting work with organizations like Massachusetts Law Reform Institute (MLRI), Volunteer Lawyers Project (VLP), and MLPB (formerly known as Medical-Legal Partnership Boston), and leads a legal services housing appeals task force.
Dick has been a major asset to the Massachusetts legal services community for many decades, and his work has not gone unnoticed. In 2018, he received an Access to Justice Lifetime Achievement Award from the Massachusetts Bar Association, and the Massachusetts Chapter of the National Lawyers Guild presented him with their Lawyer Award in 2021—two well-deserved honors in recognition of his ongoing dedication to advocacy and service.
We look forward to celebrating Dick and highlighting his work at our 36th Annual Meeting, where we’ll also recognize Nolan Leadership Honoree Clark Ziegler, Executive Director of Massachusetts Housing Partnership, and Community Impact Awardee Hugo Carvajal, Executive Director of Latino Support Network CDC. Join us on September 26!
