Morrison & Foerster Alumni News - Winter 2020

MoForever Winter 2020 | 26 trying to pass the same bill year after year.” Maya also stays connected to her MoFo family. “Some of my MoFo colleagues are still my close friends today. Every time I go to the Bay Area, I see them socially. I also try to reach out to former colleagues I worked with who make partner or win a big case.” She also frequently runs into MoFo alumni in the community. “It is a wonderful network of people. I’ve seen my colleagues go to the state attorney general’s office. Many go to the bench. I enjoy seeing where everyone lands. You see the expansiveness of the MoFo network and the difference the alumni make in the community.” How You Can Make a Difference Maya’s advice to the alumni network and current MoFo attorneys who want to aid the ACLU’s efforts is to continue serving as great co-counsel. Those who move on to be public defenders can advocate for sentencing reforms and pretrial justice issues or, if they are on the prosecution side, for smart criminal justice reforms. Judges can advocate to fund organizations that provide effective legal representation for parties that cannot afford legal representation. Anyone can donate to the ACLU and the many other amazing groups working in these fields, too. “There are amazing county counsels’ offices that do incredible affirmative litigation for public rights,” Maya says. “There are so many ways to make a difference as a lawyer and at any level of government. People turn to lawyers in a crisis when they face a big challenge or a difficult moment in their life. Being a thoughtful and knowledgeable advocate who helps a person in crisis is one of the best things you can do.” LEARN MORE ABOUT THE AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION