This week’s edition of P.S. features two law firms’ school supply giveaways; August dates for the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program’s legal clinics (plus sponsor info); a new award for Rusty Hardin presented by a foundation; a Weil associate’s remarkable track record for pro bono work, which recently resulted in an award; fundraising results for a recent Dallas Association of Young Lawyers event; new leadership at Hispanic bar associations in Houston and Austin; and awards recently presented to law firms and individuals by a Houston nonprofit dedicated to combatting gender-based violence.

In a Q&A with The Lawbook, Elkin discusses her background and decision to dedicate her legal career to pro bono, why she joined Haynes Boone and what she hopes to achieve there.

This week’s edition of P.S. features a federal judge in the Eastern District of Texas who was honored with Baylor’s Lawyer of the Year award, Hurricane Beryl disaster relief information from the State Bar of Texas and a Nacogdoches lawyer committed to the civil justice gap who has joined forces with Legal Service Corporation.

Without legal aid, domestic violence survivor Veronica Gonzalez was almost certain she would have been forced to return to her abuser in Washington state and lose custody of her child. Getting pro bono representation prevented that from happening, but at least hundreds of thousands of other domestic abuse survivors — and over 1 million other low-income Americans facing civil legal issues — are turned away from legal aid organizations each year due to a lack of funding. Gonzalez, Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Nathan Hecht, and two other witnesses sought to remedy this issue last week when they testified before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee to advocate for increased funding to Legal Services Corporation.

“The justice gap burdens society, the economy, businesses and taxpayers who must pick up the costs of people’s inability to make do because of unmet civil legal needs that study after study has confirmed,” Hecht said during his testimony.

This week’s edition of P.S. includes an upcoming inaugural convention in Houston aimed at supporting and empowering Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, a series of awards recently received by the Dallas Bar Association and the 4/11 on the PUC’s newest board member, who happens to be a lawyer.

This week’s edition of P.S. features a Dallas-area law school’s new six-figure research project aimed at protecting Sixth Amendment rights, July dates for the Dallas Bar Association and Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program’s pro bono legal clinics (virtual, telephone and in-person), and background on a national animal rights-focused nonprofit that recently hired a new director in Texas.

Many female litigators believe an “all or nothing” narrative they’ve been fed: They cannot raise a family while also advancing in their careers. But Reese Marketos’ Kendal Simpson is here to challenge that narrative with an alternative way of practicing law. After taking six years off to be a stay-at-home mom, Simpson recently returned to her firm with the goal of growing a team of high-achieving women who want more flexibility without having to leave their practice. In a Q&A with The Lawbook, Simpson discusses her part-time arrangement at her firm, how it’s added value and how others can pursue these types of opportunities.

“When we are the sex expected to do it all — that is unsustainable,” Simpson said. “This model is about women being able to sustain a skillset that they worked so hard to develop while also not neglecting other parts of life.”

This week’s P.S. features the winners of two ABA awards that recognize outstanding public defenders and other public sector lawyers and details on a Dallas law firm’s hefty batch of higher education scholarships being distributed to students in DFW, Chicago and Atlanta to the collective tune of nearly $900,000.