Mintz Levin Attorney Elissa Flynn-Poppey to Receive Suffolk University Law School Pro Bono Award

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mintz Levin attorney Elissa Flynn-Poppey will be recognized for her pro bono efforts on behalf of victims of domestic violence by the Rappaport Center for Law and Public Service at Suffolk University Law School.

“We congratulate her on this well deserved recognition.”

Ms. Flynn-Poppey, a 2000 graduate of Suffolk University Law School, is being honored as part of the school’s recognition of its students, alumni and faculty who have participated in the school’s pro bono program and otherwise engage in pro bono service. The ceremony and reception, being held at Suffolk Law School’s Faculty Dining Room on April 21, will also recognize National Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

Ms. Flynn-Poppey was part of a team of attorneys from Mintz Levin who drafted the legislation that would offer protection to victims of sexual assault, criminal stalking and criminal harassment. Prior to the passage of the bill, which was signed into law by Governor Deval Patrick in February, victims did not qualify for a protective order as Massachusetts law afforded victims of abuse the right to a protective order only if the perpetrator had a family, household, or substantial dating relationship. Law enforcement and advocacy groups for survivors heralded the Act as a long overdue public safety measure for these victims.

“Elissa worked tirelessly as part of the Mintz Levin team, to ensure that this bill had the necessary support and statutory language it needed, to finally become law,” said Susan M. Finegan, Chair of Mintz Levin’s Pro Bono Committee and a Member in the firm’s Litigation Practice. “We congratulate her on this well deserved recognition.”

In addition to her work on the restraining order legislation, Ms. Flynn-Poppey is being honored for her other pro bono work including leading the development of an emergency disaster relief guide for use by governors, in conjunction with Mintz Levin's pro bono response to Hurricane Katrina. She also provides pro bono legal services for veterans trying to obtain government benefits, assists domestic violence victims to obtain necessary legal protections and visas to remain in the country, and helps domestic violence shelters to comply with laws and regulations.

Ms. Flynn-Poppey is a board member of Friends for Children, a Massachusetts- based non-profit whose mission is to prevent and end child abuse. She is also a board member of the New England Legal Foundation Advisory Council and a board overseer for the MSPCA. Ms. Flynn-Poppey also serves as a Trustee of Bridgewater State College and as an editor of the Massachusetts Bar Association Law Review.

Ms. Flynn-Poppey is an associate in the firm’s Litigation Practice and chairs Mintz Levin’s Government Law Practice Group. She represents government and private entities, as well as individuals, on matters regarding ethics, government ethics, corporate compliance, public contract procurement, conflict of interest laws, public records law, lobbying, campaign finance, open meeting law, and other government areas. Prior to joining Mintz Levin, Ms. Flynn-Poppey was Deputy Legal Counsel to Governor Mitt Romney and Executive Director of the Judicial Nominating Commission for the Office of the Governor of Massachusetts.

For more information about Mintz Levin, please visit www.mintz.com.