PORTLAND, Oreg. (November 8, 2016) - Perkins Coie LLP announced today that it will make a donation to help fund an Employment Specialist position at United Cerebral Palsy Association of Oregon and SW Washington (UCP) in Oregon with a portion of the fees awarded to the firm in a class action lawsuit challenging the State’s provision of supported employment services to individuals with intellectual and development disabilities.

Perkins Coie will dedicate the remainder of the fee award to pro bono and public service initiatives and expenditures at the firm. “Our practice is that any fees awarded to Perkins Coie for its work on pro bono and public service related purposes — either donated to nonprofit public service organizations or used to fund pro bono initiatives at the firm,” said John Devaney, Managing Partner of Perkins Coie . “Perkins Coie is deeply committed to pro bono legal service. We are proud of the work by our attorneys and staff on the Oregon disability rights case and thrilled that we can use the award of attorneys’ fees to help further this and other important causes.”

In the first class-action lawsuit of its kind in the nation, eight individuals with disabilities and UCP filed suit in 2012 under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The action was brought on their behalf as well as other individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) who were in or referred to sheltered workshops. The plaintiffs claimed that although they would have preferred to work in an integrated employment setting, the Oregon Department of Human Services failed to provide adequate resources to help them find community-based jobs, which kept them unnecessarily segregated in jobs that paid less than minimum wage and violated the ADA's integration mandate.

In 2015, the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon approved a settlement agreement providing significantly improved opportunities to thousands of Oregonians with I/DD who can and want to work in typical employment settings in the community. The individual plaintiffs, were represented by a Perkins Coie pro bono team working with the Center for Public Representation, Disability Rights Oregon (DRO) and Miller Nash Graham & Dunn; the United States was also a plaintiff. Through this settlement, the State has committed to transform its employment service system over seven years by carrying out a broad range of reforms. The reforms include ending new entries to sheltered workshops, training, certifying service providers, coordinating more closely with schools and increasing services designed to achieve integrated employment.

About UCP: United Cerebral Palsy Association of Oregon and SW Washington is an Oregon nonprofit whose guiding vision is "Life Without Limits" for people experiencing I/DD. It is UCP’s mission to advance the independence, productivity, and full citizenship of people with disabilities, working to ensure their inclusion in every facet of life. Since its inception in 1955, UCP has evolved in response to emerging best practices and innovative new strategies to support and advocate for individuals experiencing I/DD. Over the years, this has included leading the trend away from segregation and group-centered care to supporting individuals to live, work, and play as independently as possible, in communities of their choosing.

With support from Perkins Coie, UCP’s Employment Solutions will add and train an employment specialist. Once trained, the employment specialist will begin to provide direct employment services to 10-12 job seekers experiencing intellectual and developmental disabilities at any given time. Within one year of hire, the employment specialist should generate 6-10 jobs for job seekers. Their service contracts will support the additional growth and sustainability of Employment Solutions, a team of over 23 full-time employees practiced in the craft of delivering quality employment services to our customer base.

Perkins Coie is a leading international law firm that is known for providing high-value, strategic solutions and extraordinary client service on matters vital to our clients’ success. With more than 1,200 lawyers in offices across the United States and Asia, we provide a full array of corporate, commercial litigation, intellectual property, and regulatory legal advice to a broad range of clients, including many of the world’s most innovative companies and industry leaders as well as public and not-for-profit organizations.

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