Duffy Fellow Honored with Equal Justice Award
(Philadelphia) Community Legal Services (CLS) has presented its Duffy Fellow Jennifer Burdick with the 2022 Equal Justice Award for her work in advocating for low-income and disabled Philadelphians. Burdick is a supervising attorney in the Supplemental Security Income Unit at CLS.
“It is impossible to adequately convey the powerful combination of creativity, excellent lawyering, and relentless passion for justice that Jen and Kristen bring to this important work, said Kathy Gomez, CLS Deputy Director of Legal Practice. “Thank you to Tom Duffy for helping to make this work possible!”
During the pandemic, Burdick was a part of the legal team of McGruder v. Mnuchin that sued the U.S. government to ensure low-income parents with disabilities were able to access stimulus benefits for their children. With co-counsel from an outside law firm and the Villanova Tax Law Clinic, the team was successful in their litigation, which resulted in critical procedural changes that allowed 250,000 families nationwide to access stimulus benefits.
Burdick also led citywide advocacy for the Child Tax Credit that directly resulted in more than $6.4M in Child Tax Credit and stimulus payments. Her work helped more than 1,600 families be able to afford necessities, including school clothes and childcare.
“It is an honor to be able to fund the work of people who care about what is just and right and fair,” said Tom Duffy. “I am fortunate and proud to be associated with CLS.”
Burdick’s role at CLS is part of the Duffy Fellowship, established in 2012 by Tom Duffy to underwrite staff attorney salaries at some of the area's foremost legal service nonprofit organizations. Duffy Fellows are also situated at the Legal Clinic for the Disabled and the Homeless Advocacy Project. The Duffy Fellowship continues to give back, not just in the work of the fellows, but how they also work to change the stigma of the poor or disadvantaged.
Since 1988, Tom Duffy's law firm has advocated on behalf of victims of catastrophic injury and their families, obtaining results in the hundreds of millions for clients. To learn more, visit www.duffyfirm.com.