We’re pleased to announce the Koch Pro Bono Initiative will receive our 2026 Pro Bono Partner Award at LCBH’s annual Fall Benefit on October 15th, 2026. The Koch Pro Bono Initiative works with non-profits and community groups to create lasting partnerships that bring legal services, like free access to tools and documents, directly to those who need them most. Between 2023 and 2025, LCBH partnered with Koch and Jones Day to host five community clinics focused on assisting tenants facing unsafe or unhealthy conditions in their apartments. Volunteers from Koch and Jones Day have helped 26 tenants draft 14-day conditions letters requesting their landlords to make the necessary repairs.
Learn more about Koch Pro Bono Initiative’s impact from volunteer attorney and member of Koch’s Pro Bono Committee, Adam Schaeffer.
The Outstanding Pro Bono Service Award is given annually to people or organizations who help LCBH advance our mission through volunteering. Why is pro bono service an important part of Koch’s work? At Koch, we believe in people, and we’re guided by the idea of a system of equal rights and mutual benefit, where individuals succeed by helping others succeed. Pro bono work is where that belief becomes tangible. It gives us a way to use our legal expertise to reach people who are often the most vulnerable and who might not otherwise have access to legal help at all. Our work spans a lot of ground because of that: criminal record expungement and record sealing, driver’s license restoration clinics, veterans’ discharge upgrades, support for nonprofits working to make a difference in their own communities, and housing initiatives that help tenants facing unsafe living conditions, wrongful evictions or withheld deposits get real next steps in hand.
What ties it all together is the idea of removing barriers so people can move forward and reach their own potential. Whether that’s someone walking out with a cleared record and a shot at a new job, a veteran finally getting the benefits they earned, or a tenant leaving with a demand letter that protects their home, the impact is concrete and personal. And this work isn’t confined to our legal department. People across the business get involved, and we partner broadly outside Koch to multiply what we’re able to do. That combination, real need met with real expertise, is exactly why pro bono matters so much to who we are.
Koch provides a variety of pro bono services. Why is volunteering on matters related to housing important to you? Housing touches everything in a person’s life. If your living situation is unstable, it’s hard to focus on anything else. For children, the need is magnified – everything flows from a safe place to live. That’s what makes this kind of legal help so direct. Handing someone a letter that addresses unsafe conditions, or helping them understand their rights with respect to a bad living situation, gives them something concrete they didn’t have walking in.
For LCBH in particular, it’s really important to me to give back to the city that is my adopted home of 26 years and that has given so much to me. Chicago has a real housing crisis and it is really meaningful to be able to do just a little bit to help. This is consistent with how the Koch Pro Bono Initiative approaches their matters as well: looking to give back in the communities in which we operate. It’s really doing what we should as good citizens to give back.
Koch and Jones Day helped LCBH host numerous community-based clinics for renters facing substandard apartment conditions. What are some examples of the conditions being faced, and how did your team support the renter? The most meaningful situation was one where we unfortunately could not use the city’s tenant rights laws to help. Instead, we helped guide a client to find another place to live. I think we were able to make a meaningful difference, helping her understand that the conditions would never be safe for her family and that it was time to move on. It was a hard conversation to have, but one she needed to hear. We have helped clients with many different kinds of problems, from plumbing issues to security issues – doors and windows that wouldn’t lock – to fire safety issues. It has really run the range of conditions. In many of those cases, we can arm the client with a letter to the landlord outlining the reasons for lawfully withholding rent or, in some cases, terminating a lease. It can be a powerful tool for a tenant up against a landlord that typically knows the law better than they do.
Did you learn anything new or gain a new perspective from your experience working with LCBH? In addition to learning enough to now be dangerous enough with tenant rights to be able to give unaided advice, I have absolutely gained additional appreciation for the housing conditions in our city. It’s a problem I knew we had, but I did not realize how bad things were until I started talking to these clients. It’s shocking how widespread these issues are and how hard it is for people to find alternative housing. Affordable housing in Chicago is already hard to find, and for lower-income residents, even the limited options available often come with serious problems.
What advice would you give an attorney who is considering volunteering with LCBH? Jump in! You don’t need to have any particular experience to make a real difference in somebody’s life. The LCBH staff is absolutely outstanding and among the best in the field when it comes to tenant rights. They will make sure you have the training, materials and support you need to help support the clients you will meet.
Secure your tickets to the celebration today! Early bird ticket sales end September 15th!