Area Lawyers Honored

Asheville Citizen-Times
by staff reports
published April 18, 2008 

ASHEVILLE — Three area attorneys were honored for providing free civil legal assistance to low-income residents at a recent meeting of the 28th Judicial District (Buncombe County) Bar.

Cynthia Strom, Susan Dotson-Smith and Brad Stark were recognized for their volunteer service through the Mountain Area Volunteer Lawyers Program, which is administered by Pisgah Legal Services. The program, which asks that attorneys accept two cases or donate 20 hours of legal work per year, is made up of more than 250 private attorneys in Western North Carolina.

Strom, of the Law Office of Cynthia A. Strom PA, surpassed all other volunteers in 2007 by performing 644 pro bono hours as she helped 51 disabled clients obtain Medicaid coverage.

Dotson-Smith, a longtime MAVLP and Pro Bono Hotline volunteer, in 2007 helped save a client’s home through a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, among other cases.

Stark, of the Van Winkle Law Firm, represented a client whose landlord removed all of her belongings while she was in the hospital. Stark was able to settle the matter in mediation. That client, Barbara Segraves, also appeared at the awards ceremony to tell her story.