Max Scott, a partner in Weil’s Technology & IP Transactions practice and who is based in our San Francisco office, was among those honored as a 2024 Pro Bono Advocate of the Year by Kids in Need of Defense (KIND), the preeminent international nongovernmental organization devoted to the protection of unaccompanied and separated children. Presented during National Pro Bono Week, the award recognizes attorneys and volunteers who have advanced KIND’s mission of ensuring that unaccompanied children receive the legal protections they deserve and have made exceptional contributions to their clients' cases.

Max worked with KIND over the last eight years on cases to obtain work permits and green cards for clients through the special immigrant juvenile status process. Special immigrant juveniles can be granted permanent residency in the United States if they have been found to have been subject to abuse, neglect or abandonment by their parents in their home country. Despite the frustrating backlog of cases and long wait times, he has seen the impact of obtaining legal residency on clients’ day-to-day live, which has been fulfilling for him as the pro bono attorney handling these matters.

KIND was founded in 2008 to address the gap in legal services for unaccompanied children. It has offices and staff across the United States, Mexico, and Europe and works with an extensive network of private sector pro bono and nongovernmental (NGO) partners.