Kenzo Kawanabe of Davis Graham & Stubbs writes about the law firm's drive to celebrate a century in business with a good deed for every year in its history.
Davis Graham & Stubbs LLP (DGS) has had the privilege of serving the legal needs of the business community for 100 years. I joined the firm in 1998, but DGS' roots date back to 1915. And while Dick Davis, Don Graham, Don Stubbs and many of our alumni -- including Denver Mayor Quigg Newton and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Byron White -- are no longer with us, they have left a lasting legacy in the legal and greater Colorado community.
To celebrate its 100th anniversary, DGS has launched the Year of 100 Good Deeds (Y100). In selecting 100 Good Deeds, DGS attorneys and staff first nominated potential projects in which they were involved. Then, the DGS Y100 Committee narrowed the nominations to over 100 unique causes that the firm will support throughout the coming year with financial contributions, volunteer projects and pro bono legal services. These 100 Good Deeds are above and beyond the firm's usual contributions to the community.
DGS is making grants to these various organizations through a Business Donor-Advised Fund at The Denver Foundation. The Denver Foundation has been a wonderful partner as it has prudently invested our monies and provided invaluable advice. The Denver Foundation currently manages more than 1,000 charitable funds giving donors like DGS the power of a community foundation without the administrative burdens.
DGS managing partner Chris Richardson says, "When we thought about how we wanted to celebrate our 100th anniversary, we quickly concluded that giving back to our communities was the best choice. We are so grateful to be a part of the Denver community and we would not be here today if it weren't for amazing clients and friends who have supported us all these years."
One of my favorite examples of this is from the early days of DGS, when the firm leaned on the kindness of others during World War I. When the only two DGS partners at the time left to fight in the war, they handed their client files to another firm, Holme Roberts and Owen (HRO). Upon their return from military service, HRO returned the files as well as all the fees received from those clients in their absence -- a profound expression of the practice of law at that time. Since then, we've grown to nearly 145 attorneys, with women comprising nearly one-third of our partnership.
In 2015, two of our Y100 contributions include the Mile High United Way (MHUW) and Colorado Legal Services. For MHUW, DGS has made a contribution to the organization's new corporate headquarters in the historic Curtis Park neighborhood -- contributing to MHUW's mission of helping children be ready for and then succeed in school, and enabling individuals and families to become self-sufficient.
DGS' commitment to Colorado Legal Services goes back to one of our former partners and founding member of the Legal Aid Society, Don Hoagland, who believed that pro bono work not only helped the community but made better lawyers. This Y100 contribution will fund half of the cost of a new Case Management System (the Denver Bar Foundation will fund the other half), in hopes that it will further carry on Mr. Hoagland's vision and help streamline the process to ensure that free civil legal services are available to low-income Coloradans.
Service to the community is one of the firm's core values. It was a standard set by the founding partners at the firm -- and it is a standard that our attorneys and staff strive to continue today with pro bono legal services, community board memberships, volunteer projects, and civic involvement.
To follow the progress of Y100, visit y100.dgslaw.com, where you will find project descriptions and other information about the organizations the firm plans to support.
Kenzo Kawanabe is a partner with Davis Graham & Stubbs and a former Board Chair of The Denver Foundation. Davis Graham & Stubbs LLP, one of the Rocky Mountain region's preeminent law firms, enjoys a strong national reputation for its corporate finance, natural resources and energy law practices, with emphasis on securities and M&A transactions, regulatory guidance and complex commercial litigation
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