Honoring Pro Bono Attorney Marsha Taylor

AppalReD Legal Aid was deeply saddened to learn of Marsha's death. Marsha was an incredible pro bono volunteer for AppalReD Legal Aid. In fact, she was previously awarded AppalReD Legal Aid's Pro Bono Attorney of the year.

Marsha was passionate about pro bono service, often saying that all attorneys should take pro bono cases. "I think we, as officers of the court, owe it to the system to make sure everyone is afforded equality before the court. . .There’s too much law for those who can afford it, and not enough for those who can’t.” 

Dana Branham, assistant fiscal officer, worked for many years with Marsha as the Pro Bono Team's Assistant. Dana says, "I don't think there was ever a case I asked her to take that she ever turned down. She has a heart of gold. We will miss her so bad!"

Charnel Burton, AppalReD Legal Aid's Pro Bono Director says, "Marsha definitely had a servant's heart.  I remember the first time I ever saw her in court she was fighting for a juvenile who was facing criminal charges for being beyond the control of the school. It turned out that the teacher who had brought the charges was not even familiar with the child's IEP or what the protocol was for dealing with the child's behavior when their disability led to them acting out in class. She saved a disabled child from having a criminal record and forced the school to actually apply the IEP they had helped create. Not many attorneys will take on a school system. They tend to be the most powerful entities in rural counties because they are also the biggest employers. That sums up Marsha to me. She would fight for the underdog no matter the odds and she did it well."

Marsha is part of the AppalReD Legal Aid family. Her story is our story. And we are so proud to be a part of it. 

Marsha found her way to AppalReD Legal Aid when she was raising her cousins' children. She had no money for a lawyer and needed help with custody. From the moment Marsha discovered what legal aid did, she decided to dedicate her career to low-income people in need of legal help. She later interned for AppalReD and went on to take an incredible 80+ pro bono cases.

She said, "As a struggling student, I couldn’t afford an attorney. . .That was when I became aware of the work Legal Aid does. The summer before my third year of law school I interned at the Richmond office. I decided I wanted to devote my career to providing legal services to those who can’t afford a high-priced attorney."

You can read more about Marsha in a previous interview here and her obituary here.