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'Heroes' get help with wills

The Young Lawyers Division of the Utah State Bar is pleased to have brought the Wills for Heroes Program to Utah. More Wills for Heroes events are being planned for other areas of Utah. Specifically, Salt Lake on May 2nd and Provo in September. For more information, please visit the Utah State Bar website or the Utah Young Lawyer Division's website.

Stephanie Pugsley
President, Utah Young Lawyers Division

I was privileged to be in St. George last week and participate in the Wills for Heroes project with the St. George Fire and Police Departments. It was an honor to be able to create estate documents--wills, advanced medical directives, and durable powers of attorney--for these great individuals, couples, and families who give so much to our communities. It was also obvious that this project would not have gotten off the ground if it weren't for the generous donation of laptops, staff, travel support, licensed software, materials, training, legal forms and documents, supplies, and other necessities from Ballard Spahr (a national Philadelphia based law firm with an office in Salt Lake City) and Lexis Nexis (an online legal resource and research database used throughout the world). We truly appreciate Ballard Spahr and Lexis Nexis. Of course, the volunteers from the Utah State Bar, particularly the Young Lawyers Division, were the fuel that made this engine work. They showed great leadership in taking on this monumental task and making it a success. I hope that partnerships and leadership like this can continue to bring Wills for Heroes to Utah's heroes.

Nathan D. Alder, President-Elect
Utah State Bar

Thank you - to the Utah Young Lawyers Division, the law firm Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll and Lexis Nexis, who sponsored this event. I had the chance to volunteer at the event in St. George and it was an amazing experience to give back to those who do some much to protect us. I overheard one firefighter comment that the lawyers were protecting them as much as the fire and police departments protect the public -- what we did definitely does not come close to the daily personal sacrifices that these first responders make for us, but I am glad that we could give back in a small way.

Thanks to Lexis and Ballard Spahr Law Firm for their significant support. This was a meaningingful, well-organized event.

I was a volunteer at the event and found it a fantastic and rewarding experience. I am glad that the legal profession can give back to those who do so much for us. And I look forward to the Utah Young Lawyers Division holding more events like this throughout the state.

It is important to note that the event could not have been held without the sponsorship of Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll and LexisNexis. Their continuing generosity and enthusiasm for the project is much appreciated. In addition, the hard work and dedication of Utah young lawyers Stephanie Pugsley, Rachel Terry, Emily Smith, Chris Snow, and Kurt Hawes were essential to the success of the event. Just as significantly, Deacon Haymond and Mark J. Morisse were instrumental in preparing the legal documents used at the event. Last, but certainly not least, thanks must go out to the many volunteer lawyers, paralegals, and staff who attended the event and made it such a success.


Karthik Nadesan
President-Elect, Utah Young Lawyers Division