Posted October 2, 20257:30 am
Adele Hyde, a Client Relationship Manager for Renner Otto, first heard of Legal Aid when her Legal Studies professor at Ursuline College invited the class to volunteer at a Brief Advice Clinic.
After graduating, Adele continued to volunteer with Legal Aid. Being new to the Cleveland area, volunteering allowed her the opportunity to meet new people that were in the same profession. But she also understood how important it was to volunteer.
“Legal Aid's work is important because it fills a void that grows greater every day, here in the Cleveland area especially,” said Adele. “We think of access to justice as being a public defender, but when it comes to civil and domestic issues, there's a serious void that Legal Aid fills. Looking around the world right now, it can be depressing seeing the inequalities in our city, in our state, in our country. Legal Aid gives me a small opportunity to push back on that. Being able to show up at the legal clinics, making a connection with Legal Aid clients and hopefully sending them back into the world better than when they came in is an excellent way to spend your Saturday.”
Adele volunteers often with her colleague, Jonathan Platt, a Partner at Renner Otto. For Jonathan, who has volunteered with Legal Aid for nearly 10 years, volunteering was an easy decision.
“I think it's important that everybody be treated as human beings in this society. I think there's not as much of that as there should be and my goal in working for Legal Aid is to help bring that to more people,” said Jonathan. “It's certainly important for people who are dealing with the legal system to be treated as important and to get legal advice that will help them navigate through the system.”
Jonathan believes strongly that everyone has a part to play in improving the difficult conditions that many people are facing, including volunteering with Legal Aid.
“There's a lot of inequality in this society and people who need caring. I'm a little person - I can't change the world on my own, but if we all give a little bit of a nudge to the world, we can get it moving in a better direction.”
Lily Mann, Senior Attorney in Legal Aid’s Intake Group and Volunteer Lawyers Program, has worked closely with Adele and Jonathan at several clinics.
“Jonathan is always willing to jump in to help a client. On issues he's unfamiliar with, he's quick to ask questions and verify to make sure the client gets the best advice possible. He's always educating himself to be a better advocate for clients at the clinics,” Lily said. “Adele organizes the whole Renner Otto crew to come to the clinics. Adele is excellent at what she does and really makes the clinic a community outreach event for the staff of Renner Otto.”
To learn more about volunteering with Legal Aid, visit the volunteer section of our website, or email probono@lasclev.org.
To watch the video interview with Adele Hyde: Celebrating Pro Bono Month with Renner Otto's Adele Hyde
To watch the video interview with Jonathon Platt: Celebrating Pro Bono Month with Renner Otto's Jonathan Platt