Lawyers — young and old — from the Keys to Miami to Palm Beach honored for pro bono work

Miami Herald

28-01-2025

Lawyers representing children, and an octogenarian who has spent the Florida revival of his law career as a Legal Aid attorney are among the South Florida attorneys honored during the 2025 Florida Bar President's Pro Bono Service Awards.
In addition to an attorney from each Florida judicial district and a Florida Bar member working outside the state, there are awards for law firms, young lawyers, judicial service, federal judicial service and voluntary bar associations.
The awards were presented at a ceremony on Jan. 16 by Florida Bar President Roland Sanchez-Medina Jr., a partner at Coral Gables' SMGQ Law.
In alphabetical order:
Tenikka Jones, 11th Judicial Circuit, Miami-Dade County
Nova Southeastern College of Law Professor and former Carlton Fields partner Tennika Jones has spent more than 800 pro bono hours on children's cases, according to the Florida Bar, including her time as an attorney ad litem in Miami-Dade's Juvenile Dependency Court through Dade Legal Aid's Put Something Back Program.
'In one case, Jones was assigned to represent a child who was on the cusp of turning 13,' the Florida Bar said. 'Despite the complexities of the issues and length of time involved in handling the case, coupled by the demands of working at a private firm, Jones dedicated hundreds of hours of her time to the case and continued to support and advocate for the youth until she reached age 18.'
Jones is a graduate of the University of Miami School of Law.
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Amber Kornreich, Miami
Another lawyer who has put in significant time with Dade Legal Aid's Put Something Back, 34-year-old Amber Kornreich of Miami's Kornreich & Associates, received the Young Lawyers Division Pro Bono Service Award. This award honors a lawyer who is either under 35 or hasn't been practicing for longer than five years.
Shortly after her 2015 Florida Bar admission, Kornreich began taking 'some of the toughest cases involving victims of domestic violence, contested divorce, and children who have experienced severe trauma,' the Florida Bar said. 'She is relentless in her representation, compassionate towards her clients, and creative in finding solutions that serve her clients' needs within a system that is often difficult to navigate for those without resources.'
Also, while Miami-Dade Chapter for Women Lawyers president in 2023-24, Kornreich began including community service in most organization events.
Kornreich is a graduate of the FIU School of Law.
Jenelle La Chuisa, 17th Judicial Circuit, Broward County
Janelle La Chuisa has long been a volunteer with the Broward Lawyers Care Legal Aid Hotline and is co-chairperson for Fort Lauderdale's Hinshaw & Culbertson's Pro Bono and Community Involvement Committee.
With the former, 'she answers questions about family law, consumer law, real property law, bankruptcy, housing, and tax/IRS controversies,' the Florida Bar said. 'She and other attorneys from the firm have also given of their time to volunteer through the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition, helping felons restore their voting rights.'
La Chuisa is a graduate of the St. Thomas University School of Law.
Loriellen Robertson, 16th Judicial Circuit, Monroe County
Loriellen Robertson of Key West's Robertson & Hunter works with the 16th Judicial Circuit Pro Bono Committee, which hosts pro bono clinics sponsored by Legal Services of Greater Miami.
'Robertson is a tireless advocate for clients at the clinic who are often facing some of the most challenging circumstances imaginable,' the Florida Bar said. 'These are individuals who come to the clinic for advice on how to get out of unsafe living conditions, abuse survivors and those with complicated long-term health issues.
Robertson is a graduate of the University of Miami School of Law.
Judge Samantha Schosberg Feuer, 15th Judicial Circuit
Judge Samantha Schosberg Feuer, who sits on the bench in probate court in Palm Beach County, received this year's Distinguished Judicial Service Award, which was presented by Chief Justice Carlos G. Muñiz
'Judge Feuer was instrumental in revitalizing the 15th Judicial Circuit's Pro Bono Committee, where she served as chair from 2016 to 2024,' the Florida Bar said. 'She co-founded the Women's Foundation of Palm Beach County through which she started the Girls Leadership Institute (GLI) and the Road to the Bench program.'
She's been president of the Florida Association for Women Lawyers' Palm Beach County chapter and 'emphasized the need for women to 'Get a Seat at the Table' and strive for leadership roles, elected offices, and managerial/executive positions. '
Feuer graduated from the University of Florida School of Law and mentors UF students.
Michael Stern, 15th Judicial Circuit, Palm Beach County
Juno Beach's Michael Stern Jr. didn't come from Syracuse to Palm Beach County to retire, at least not the way most people think of retiring. Stern, now 85, started work on a sequel to his previous life in New York, making a secondary plot point the main thing.
After graduating from Syracuse University, then State University of New York-Buffalo Law School, Stern worked part time as an Associated Press photographer, then the Syracuse Post-Standard, said an Editor & Publisher obituary of his father, former lawyer and reporter Michael Stern Sr.
E&P noted Stern Jr. 'went straight into newspaper management training after graduation, limiting his practice of law to pro bono representation.'
So, after retiring as Post-Standard production director in 2007, when Stern Jr. moved to Florida, he did what most retiring lawyers gleefully celebrate that they'll never have to do again: took a bar exam. Stern was admitted to the Florida Bar in 2007, reached out to Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County and resumed pro bono work with no hindrance from another job.
'For the past 17 years, Stern has dedicated at least 20 hours each week to his work with the Legal Aid Society, where he is known for taking cases Legal Aid might not otherwise have been able to take in-house,' the Florida Bar said. 'The Legal Aid Society estimates Stern has donated 17,000 hours to helping more than 850 clients.'
An online check says Stern is still licensed in New York, as he has been since 1965.