Law Practice
Jul. 19, 2002
New Lawyer's Services Are on the House
SANTA ANA - Family law attorney Stephen N. Livingston doesn't want anyone to pay for his services. A few years ago, however, Livingston led a different life. He was a honcho in an online media company that was very much interested in making money.
A few years ago, however, Livingston led a different life. He was a honcho in an online media company that was very much interested in making money.
His successful transition from media executive to pro bono lawyer will be recognized tonight at the Public Law Center's annual dinner. The center also will honor Crowell & Moring partner Steven P. Rice.
Livingston, 50, a former IBM systems engineering manager, had co-founded the Johnson-Grace Co., a small online business that perfected "still image compression" - the reduction of digital pictures to a fraction of their original size.
Media giant America Online bought out Johnson-Grace in 1996, and image crunching became a tool for keeping AOL users interested in watching the computer screen.
Livingston cashed in. As AOL's director of management information systems, he earned a handsome salary and stock options to direct the large staff at his new company.
But while attending part-time classes at Whittier Law School - originally to bolster his knowledge of contract law for his job reviewing contracts at AOL - the father of two had a change of heart.
So in 1998, at age 47, Livingston exercised those stock options and walked away into a world of guardianships and adoptions, completing his Whittier law degree in 2001.
His new career as a full-time pro bono attorney with the Public Law Center of Orange County has led him into nursing homes, mental institutions and the lives of several Vietnamese clients in Orange County.
In one case, he negotiated with a bank on behalf of a 71-year-old Vietnamese doctor with Alzheimer's disease. The man was unable to communicate to the reluctant bankers that he needed his elderly sister to withdraw $2,000.
Livingston pressed for power of attorney for the sister, and the bank paid up.
He said it felt good to help the family - a feeling he hadn't had in the corporate world.
"At some point you feel enough is enough," he said. "I didn't want to work for a big company anymore. I think it's more personally satisfying because I'm the one doing everything. Working for the big companies, you're just a cog in the wheel."
Eight months and nine cases later, the Public Law Center will honor Livingston tonight as New Attorney of the Year at its annual Volunteer Recognition Dinner.
The center also will honor Crowell & Moring's Rice as Attorney of the Year for twice taking on cases many partners might have handed off to their associates.
In one case, Rice, 46, a complex business litigation attorney, engineered a settlement for a disabled Anaheim mother with a drug history, who had gotten herself into trouble by taking out several predatory, high-interest loans with a finance company. The woman put her car and home up for collateral.
When she couldn't pay back the more than $30,000 she owed, the owner of the finance company drove away in her car and started eviction proceedings.
"This guy was preying on her," Rice said. "She had the same problems with money that she did with drugs. The fact is that the money went through her hands like water."
In the settlement, Rice, along with last year's Attorney of the Year, John Miller, not only had the debt reduced and the fees and costs waived but also won deferral of payment until the mother of two sold her mobile home.
"The story just really struck me that this was a person who was on the verge of having something really horrible happen to her," Rice said. "It's very rewarding to represent people where the work that you do affects their survival in some way."
Kenneth Babcock, executive director and general counsel for Public Law Center, said that the honorees are examples of the best justice has to offer and that they deserve recognition for their contributions.
The center also will honor Latham & Watkins as Law Firm of the Year for providing legal assistance in separate zoning lawsuits involving a mental health clinic and a sober living home, as well as for help in several domestic violence, family law and guardianship matters.
The center also will honor St. Joseph Health System, which assists the poor, as Community Partner of the Year.
St. Joseph provided financial help to ongoing Public Law Center operations and technical assistance and training to the center's development staff.
Babcock said he expects a big turnout for the dinner, the center's largest fundraiser of the year. He is hoping for $125,000 in donations as opposed to the $85,000 raised last year.
Jenna Bordelon
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