Maureen Thornton Syracuse began her legal career as a staff attorney with the Legal
Assistance Foundation of Chicago, where she practiced in a neighborhood office for 5
years. Next, she directed a public interest litigation program for the national League of
Women Voters and served as Director of the League of Women Voters Education
Fund. From 1987-1990, Maureen was Executive Director of Physicians for Social
Responsibility. Maureen served as Executive Director of the D.C. Bar Pro Bono Program
from 1992 to 2011. Under her leadership, the Pro Bono Program became a nationally recognized and award-winning program and one of the largest providers of civil legal
services in the District, operating the Advocacy & Justice Clinic that provides
representation; the Advice & Referral Clinic that offers brief services in two District
neighborhoods, the Immigration Clinic; four court-based resource centers, the Health Care
Access Project, and the Community Economic Development Project that represents
community-based nonprofits, tenant associations, and disadvantaged small
businesses. Maureen has been a frequent presenter at Equal Justice, NLADA, and Pro Bono
Institute conferences, and has consulted widely on pro bono delivery. Currently, she is a
consultant to the D.C. Access to Justice Commission and the Legal Services Corporation, and
a member of the Board of Directors of the Women’s Bar Association Foundation.
Maureen graduated from Simmons College and the University of Chicago Law School.
Maureen is a recipient of the Justice Potter Stewart Award from the Council for Court
Excellence, the President’s Award from the Washington Council of Lawyers, and the William
J. Brennan, Jr., Award from the District of Columbia Bar.
