Panel on Ensuring Access to Justice in Rural Maine

Distinguished jurists and leaders from government and legal aid will gather on Monday, July 29, in Portland for the Legal Services Corporation’s (LSC) Forum on Increasing Access to Justice. LSC is hosting two panel presentations in conjunction with its Board of Directors’ quarterly meeting.

Hancock Lumber CEO Kevin Hancock will deliver opening remarks. He is a notable advocate for justice issues, the recipient of the 2016 Muskie Access to Justice Award, and a longtime supporter of Pine Tree Legal Assistance. He will be joined by LSC Board Chair John G. Levi.

The first panel, “Maine’s Approach to Meeting the Needs of Survivors of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault,” will highlight legal aid’s important role in assisting survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. The speakers will include Lucia Chomeau Hunt, Directing Attorney, Family Law and Victim Rights, Pine Tree Legal Assistance; Representative Lois Galgay Reckitt, 31st District, Maine House of Representatives; Commissioner Michael Sauschuck, Maine Department of Public Safety; and Elizabeth Ward Saxl, Executive Director, Maine Coalition Against Sexual Assault.

The second panel, “Ensuring Access to Justice in Rural Maine,” will explore the special challenges of meeting the legal services needs of Mainers living in remote areas. The panelists will include Katy Childs, Managing Attorney, Lewiston Office, Pine Tree Legal Assistance; Maine Attorney General Aaron M. Frey; Krista Selnau, Portfolio Manager, Equal Justice Works; and Justice Daniel E. Wathen, formerly Chief Justice of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court and now Of Counsel with Pierce Atwood LLP.

The forum will begin at 2 p.m. at the Portland Regency Hotel, 20 Milk Street. Members of the press are invited to attend.