60 Years of Impact: Landmark Cases that Shaped Justice in Western Pennsylvania

Tuesday, October 20th, 2026
3:30 PM - 5:00 PM

1 Substantive /.5 Ethics Credits

For six decades, Neighborhood Legal Services (NLS) has stood at the forefront of advocacy, utilizing civil legal aid as a powerful engine for systemic change across Western Pennsylvania. In celebration of NLS’s 60th anniversary, this CLE program brings together longtime advocates and local institutional memory to examine pivotal cases that redefined public interest law in our region and beyond.

The panel will delve into historic milestones, including:

School Desegregation & Civil Rights: The landmark Dorothy Hoots v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, 359 F. Supp. 807 (W.D. Pa. 1973) litigation. Filed in 1971, this historic case spanned over 30 years, resulted in eight Third Circuit decisions (e.g., 639 F.2d 972), and brought together the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and pro bono counsel to desegregate local public schools and establish the Woodland Hills School District.

Institutional Reform & Jail Conditions: Eighth Amendment conditions litigation in Inmates of the Allegheny County Jail v. Wecht, 573 F. Supp. 454 (W.D. Pa. 1983), which reshaped local detention conditions and ultimately drove the construction of a new Allegheny County Jail.

U.S. Supreme Court Precedent: The legacy of Clark v. Jeter, 486 U.S. 456 (1988), the second NLS case argued before the nation’s highest court, which successfully challenged disparate statutes of limitation establishing paternity for children born out of wedlock on Equal Protection grounds.

Public Housing & Civil Rights: Systemic civil rights litigation addressing racial segregation in public housing in Sanders v. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 872 F. Supp. 216 (W.D. Pa. 1994).

Elder Justice & Innovative Impact Advocacy: Creative applications of civil RICO statutory remedies in Hopkins v. Nursing Home Defendants (Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas) to dismantle widespread financial abuse targeting vulnerable senior citizens in nursing homes.

Through firsthand stories from lead litigators and veteran news coverage, this panel explores effective impact litigation strategies, multi-decade structural reform, and the lasting power of civil legal aid in Western Pennsylvania.

Presenters:

Don Driscoll, Esq. (Of Counsel; Community Justice Project),
Daniel Haller, Esq. (Emeritus Attorney, Neighborhood Legal Services),
Harold Hayes (Retired Journalist, KDKA-TV),
Eileen Yacknin, Esq. (Emeritus Attorney, Neighborhood Legal Services)

Moderator: I. Kristine Bergstrom, Esq. (Executive Director, Neighborhood Legal Services)

For any questions, comments, or concerns, please contact:

Quiona Glover at [email protected]

This course has been approved for the listed CLE credits by the Pennsylvania Continuing Legal Education Board.

Neighborhood Legal Services is the CLE provider

Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas

Courtroom 700
City County Building
Pittsburgh, PA, 15219