ABA honors 2025 public service award recipients
Creating a holistic public defender system, protecting a vulnerable group from imminent housing loss and advancing the American Bar Association’s mission to assure meaningful access to justice are some of the accomplishments recognized by the ABA Government and Public Sector Lawyers Division (GPSLD) through its 2025 Dorsey, Hodson and Nelson Awards.
The Dorsey Award honors an outstanding public defender or legal aid lawyer; the Hodson Award recognizes an exceptional government or public sector law office; and the Nelson Award recognizes superior, sustained contributions to the ABA by an individual public lawyer.
“Now, more than ever, public lawyers are working tirelessly to provide access to justice and uphold the rule of law,” said Liani Reeves, chair-elect of the ABA Government and Public Sector Lawyers Division. “It is critical for the public to see lawyers and members of the legal profession at the forefront of this work. GPSLD is proud to honor these exceptional public lawyers and leaders, and we thank them for the essential roles they play in building trust and confidence in our justice system.”
This year’s honorees are:
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The 2025 Dorsey Award: Brendon Woods, Alameda County, California Public Defender
Over more than a decade, Brendon Woods has expanded his office to include in-house social workers, immigration attorneys and client advocates, ensuring clients receive holistic support beyond the courtroom. He has led successful legislative efforts, fought for racial equity in jury selection and created civic education and voter engagement initiatives for youth and incarcerated people. He created LYRIC (Learn Your Rights in California), an in-house youth education program that has taught more than 6,000 students their constitutional rights in police encounters; VOICE (Voter Outreach Increases Community Empowerment), which has registered more than 2,300 incarcerated people to vote; and a Racial Justice Act Unit to fight racial bias in prosecution and sentencing.
Woods’ influence extends beyond Alameda County. He has testified before the California Legislature, authored op-eds and served on statewide and national boards, including the California Public Defenders Association, the Council on Criminal Justice and the National Association for Public Defenders. His legislative advocacy helped secure the passage of key reforms like the California Racial Justice Act, AB 3070 (to curb discriminatory jury exclusions) and AB 1981 (to increase juror pay and enhance jury diversity).
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The 2025 Hodson Award: Alameda City Attorney’s Office
The Alameda City Attorney’s Office (ACAO), through collaboration between elected officials, staff and the community, acted with urgency and resolve to protect 50 families living on floating homes in the Barnhill Marina from imminent housing displacement.
In early 2021, a new landlord sought to increase skip rents by as much as 178%. Such a rent increase would have put many tenants at risk of becoming unhoused. About 50% of tenants were over the age of 65. Many were low-income or fixed-income households and without the means to absorb such rent increases.
ACAO moved quickly to draft an urgency ordinance that would extend local rent control protections to maritime residential tenancies. With just two days to spare before a deadline for residents to pay the rent increases, the Alameda City Council unanimously adopted the urgency ordinance. ACAO vigorously defended the newly adopted ordinance in federal court against multiple legal challenges.
When faced with continued non-compliance, ACAO initiated a housing enforcement action seeking to protect the rights of the tenants and to stop the landlord’s continued breaches of local tenant protection laws.
In November 2024, the Alameda County Superior Court ruled fully in favor of the city, imposing more than $335,000 in penalties against the marina owners and issuing a permanent injunction to prevent further harassment of tenants. Additionally, an independent receiver was appointed to manage the marina, ensuring compliance with housing laws and restoring stability to the community.
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The 2025 Nelson Award: Edward Monahan
Edward Monahan, national criminal and public defense consultant and trainer, and former chief defender of the Kentucky Department of Public Advocacy, has engaged in a variety of impactful volunteer work for the ABA. He was co-editor of the ABA’s “Tell the Client's Story: Mitigation in Criminal and Death Penalty Cases” (May 2017), served on the ABA Death Penalty Due Process Review Project Steering Committee and was a member of the ABA Task Force on Preservation of the Justice System.
Monahan is a former GPSLD chair and is the current editor-in-chief of GPSLD’s magazine, “The Public Lawyer.” He recently solicited the article, “How Much do Wrongful Convictions Cost Government Entities?”, written by two lawyers with the Innocence Project.
Monahan has contributed hundreds of hours to advancing the ABA’s mission and to improving a vitally important part of public sector practice — representing indigent people in the criminal justice system.
The Dorsey Award honors an outstanding public defender or legal aid lawyer; the Hodson Award recognizes an exceptional government or public sector law office; and the Nelson Award recognizes superior, sustained contributions to the ABA by an individual public lawyer.
“Now, more than ever, public lawyers are working tirelessly to provide access to justice and uphold the rule of law,” said Liani Reeves, chair-elect of the ABA Government and Public Sector Lawyers Division. “It is critical for the public to see lawyers and members of the legal profession at the forefront of this work. GPSLD is proud to honor these exceptional public lawyers and leaders, and we thank them for the essential roles they play in building trust and confidence in our justice system.”
This year’s honorees are:
—————
The 2025 Dorsey Award: Brendon Woods, Alameda County, California Public Defender
Over more than a decade, Brendon Woods has expanded his office to include in-house social workers, immigration attorneys and client advocates, ensuring clients receive holistic support beyond the courtroom. He has led successful legislative efforts, fought for racial equity in jury selection and created civic education and voter engagement initiatives for youth and incarcerated people. He created LYRIC (Learn Your Rights in California), an in-house youth education program that has taught more than 6,000 students their constitutional rights in police encounters; VOICE (Voter Outreach Increases Community Empowerment), which has registered more than 2,300 incarcerated people to vote; and a Racial Justice Act Unit to fight racial bias in prosecution and sentencing.
Woods’ influence extends beyond Alameda County. He has testified before the California Legislature, authored op-eds and served on statewide and national boards, including the California Public Defenders Association, the Council on Criminal Justice and the National Association for Public Defenders. His legislative advocacy helped secure the passage of key reforms like the California Racial Justice Act, AB 3070 (to curb discriminatory jury exclusions) and AB 1981 (to increase juror pay and enhance jury diversity).
—————
The 2025 Hodson Award: Alameda City Attorney’s Office
The Alameda City Attorney’s Office (ACAO), through collaboration between elected officials, staff and the community, acted with urgency and resolve to protect 50 families living on floating homes in the Barnhill Marina from imminent housing displacement.
In early 2021, a new landlord sought to increase skip rents by as much as 178%. Such a rent increase would have put many tenants at risk of becoming unhoused. About 50% of tenants were over the age of 65. Many were low-income or fixed-income households and without the means to absorb such rent increases.
ACAO moved quickly to draft an urgency ordinance that would extend local rent control protections to maritime residential tenancies. With just two days to spare before a deadline for residents to pay the rent increases, the Alameda City Council unanimously adopted the urgency ordinance. ACAO vigorously defended the newly adopted ordinance in federal court against multiple legal challenges.
When faced with continued non-compliance, ACAO initiated a housing enforcement action seeking to protect the rights of the tenants and to stop the landlord’s continued breaches of local tenant protection laws.
In November 2024, the Alameda County Superior Court ruled fully in favor of the city, imposing more than $335,000 in penalties against the marina owners and issuing a permanent injunction to prevent further harassment of tenants. Additionally, an independent receiver was appointed to manage the marina, ensuring compliance with housing laws and restoring stability to the community.
—————
The 2025 Nelson Award: Edward Monahan
Edward Monahan, national criminal and public defense consultant and trainer, and former chief defender of the Kentucky Department of Public Advocacy, has engaged in a variety of impactful volunteer work for the ABA. He was co-editor of the ABA’s “Tell the Client's Story: Mitigation in Criminal and Death Penalty Cases” (May 2017), served on the ABA Death Penalty Due Process Review Project Steering Committee and was a member of the ABA Task Force on Preservation of the Justice System.
Monahan is a former GPSLD chair and is the current editor-in-chief of GPSLD’s magazine, “The Public Lawyer.” He recently solicited the article, “How Much do Wrongful Convictions Cost Government Entities?”, written by two lawyers with the Innocence Project.
Monahan has contributed hundreds of hours to advancing the ABA’s mission and to improving a vitally important part of public sector practice — representing indigent people in the criminal justice system.
D.C. lawyer and immigration advocate Karen T. Grisez to receive ABA 2025 Pickering Award
By American Bar Association
Karen T. Grisez, pro bono counsel in the Washington, D.C., office of Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP, is the 2025 recipient of the John H. Pickering Award of Achievement, presented by the American Bar Association Senior Lawyers Division. Grisez will be recognized at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 9, as part of the American Bar Assoiciation Annual Meeting, which will be held Aug. 6-12 in Toronto.
The award honors the life and accomplishments of John H. Pickering, co-founder of the Washington, D.C., law firm formerly known as Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering (now WilmerHale), who was involved in a variety of pro bono activities and law-related societal issues affecting older adults. It recognizes lawyers or judges who demonstrate outstanding legal ability and have compiled a distinguished record of service to the profession and their communities, resulting in significant contributions to improving access to justice for all.
After beginning her career as a litigation associate at Fried Frank in 1990, Grisez managed the Washington office’s pro bono program for more than two decades. In that role, she provided supervision and direct representation to pro bono clients in traditional civil poverty law cases including veterans’ benefits, Social Security disability, family law and housing, and became increasingly involved in asylum and other immigration matters. Since early 2023, she has focused exclusively on the firm’s immigration pro bono docket in both the New York and Washington offices.
Grisez has extensive litigation experience in federal courts, before the Board of Immigration Appeals and in immigration courts around the country. She is a frequent speaker and trainer on legal topics relating primarily to asylum, other forms of immigration relief, immigration court reform, detention, ethics and representation of victims of torture and trauma. She has testified three times before Congress and once before the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights as the ABA’s representative on immigration-related topics.
Grisez is a member of the ABA, a former chair and former member of its Commission on Immigration and the Working Group on Unaccompanied Minor Immigrants. She has served on the Advisory Board of the ABA Immigration Justice Project in San Diego and previously served on the ABA Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service.
Grisez is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and served for many years on its national Pro Bono Committee and the District of Columbia chapter’s Pro Bono Committee. She currently represents AILA in the ABA House of Delegates.
Grisez served as former member and chair of the board of trustees of the Center for Migration Studies of New York, a member of the board of directors of the Capital Area Immigrants’ Rights Coalition (now Amica Center for Immigrant Rights), the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs, and is a longtime member of the board of the Washington Council of Lawyers. She is also a former chair of the District of Columbia’s Advisory Committee on Pro Se Litigation and just completed her tenure as a board member on the Indigent Civil Litigation Fund of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. She practices before other courts in the District of Columbia and Maryland.
Grisez received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland and a law degree from the Columbus School of Law at Catholic University of America. She is the recipient of AILA’s 2025 Michael Maggio Memorial Pro Bono Award and the 2024 Humanitarian Service Award from the Center for Migration Studies of New York.
(https://www.americanbar.org/news/abanews/aba-news-archives/2025/07/karen-t-grisez-to-receive-pickering-award/)
Karen T. Grisez, pro bono counsel in the Washington, D.C., office of Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP, is the 2025 recipient of the John H. Pickering Award of Achievement, presented by the American Bar Association Senior Lawyers Division. Grisez will be recognized at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 9, as part of the American Bar Assoiciation Annual Meeting, which will be held Aug. 6-12 in Toronto.
The award honors the life and accomplishments of John H. Pickering, co-founder of the Washington, D.C., law firm formerly known as Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering (now WilmerHale), who was involved in a variety of pro bono activities and law-related societal issues affecting older adults. It recognizes lawyers or judges who demonstrate outstanding legal ability and have compiled a distinguished record of service to the profession and their communities, resulting in significant contributions to improving access to justice for all.
After beginning her career as a litigation associate at Fried Frank in 1990, Grisez managed the Washington office’s pro bono program for more than two decades. In that role, she provided supervision and direct representation to pro bono clients in traditional civil poverty law cases including veterans’ benefits, Social Security disability, family law and housing, and became increasingly involved in asylum and other immigration matters. Since early 2023, she has focused exclusively on the firm’s immigration pro bono docket in both the New York and Washington offices.
Grisez has extensive litigation experience in federal courts, before the Board of Immigration Appeals and in immigration courts around the country. She is a frequent speaker and trainer on legal topics relating primarily to asylum, other forms of immigration relief, immigration court reform, detention, ethics and representation of victims of torture and trauma. She has testified three times before Congress and once before the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights as the ABA’s representative on immigration-related topics.
Grisez is a member of the ABA, a former chair and former member of its Commission on Immigration and the Working Group on Unaccompanied Minor Immigrants. She has served on the Advisory Board of the ABA Immigration Justice Project in San Diego and previously served on the ABA Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service.
Grisez is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and served for many years on its national Pro Bono Committee and the District of Columbia chapter’s Pro Bono Committee. She currently represents AILA in the ABA House of Delegates.
Grisez served as former member and chair of the board of trustees of the Center for Migration Studies of New York, a member of the board of directors of the Capital Area Immigrants’ Rights Coalition (now Amica Center for Immigrant Rights), the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs, and is a longtime member of the board of the Washington Council of Lawyers. She is also a former chair of the District of Columbia’s Advisory Committee on Pro Se Litigation and just completed her tenure as a board member on the Indigent Civil Litigation Fund of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. She practices before other courts in the District of Columbia and Maryland.
Grisez received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland and a law degree from the Columbus School of Law at Catholic University of America. She is the recipient of AILA’s 2025 Michael Maggio Memorial Pro Bono Award and the 2024 Humanitarian Service Award from the Center for Migration Studies of New York.
(https://www.americanbar.org/news/abanews/aba-news-archives/2025/07/karen-t-grisez-to-receive-pickering-award/)
