Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi
William O. Douglas Award
Nancy Pelosi served as the 52nd Speaker of the House of Representatives, having made history in 2007 when she was elected the first woman to serve as Speaker of the House. She made history again in January 2019 when she regained her position second-in-line to the presidency – the first person to do so in more than six decades.
Pelosi is the chief architect of generation-defining legislation under two Democratic administrations, including the Affordable Care Act and the American Rescue Plan. She led House Democrats for 20 years and previously served as House Democratic Whip. In 2013, she was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame at a ceremony in Seneca Falls, the birthplace of the American women’s rights movement.
Pelosi has represented San Francisco in Congress for 36 years. Currently serving as Speaker Emerita of the House and as the Representative for California’s 11th Congressional District, she is fighting For The People to lower costs, grow paychecks and create jobs.
Under the Biden Administration, Speaker Pelosi led the design and passage of the life-saving American Rescue Plan. This law turned the tide of the pandemic: vaccinating hundreds of millions of Americans, delivering direct assistance to families, creating millions of new jobs, supporting frontline workers and returning children safely to schools. Pelosi engineered passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to strengthen roads, bridges, ports, water systems and broadband access across the country. Under her leadership, the House paved the way for historic laws to lower health care costs and combat the climate crisis with the Inflation Reduction Act and reinvigorate American manufacturing and innovation with the CHIPS and Science Act.
During the Obama presidency, Speaker Pelosi orchestrated passage of the landmark Affordable Care Act: which has guaranteed protections for Americans with pre-existing conditions, forbid insurers from discriminating against women, ended annual and lifetime limits on coverage, and expanded affordable insurance to tens of millions more Americans. Pelosi also delivered the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to rescue the nation from the depths of the financial crisis; the Dodd-Frank reforms to rein in big banks and strengthen consumer protections; and the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act to restore the ability to fight pay discrimination in court.
A champion on climate, Pelosi has passed key investments in clean energy, conservation and community resilience. A defender of democracy, she has spearheaded House efforts to protect voting rights, to impeach President Trump for violating his oath of office, and to create the bipartisan Select Committee to Investigate January 6th. A force for full equality, she has led the fight to repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” secure new protections against hate crimes and advance the watershed Equality Act. For decades, Pelosi has been a powerful voice for human rights in China and all around the world.
Additional key accomplishments signed into law during her four terms as Speaker include: landmark gun violence prevention measures; reform of the college financial aid system; expanding health care to eleven million American children; stronger ethics and transparency requirements in government; and more benefits for veterans and caregivers.
Pelosi comes from a strong family tradition of public service in Baltimore. Married to Paul Pelosi, she is a mother of five and grandmother of nine.
Mattel, Inc.
Corporate Achievement Award
Mattel is a leading global toy company and owner of one of the strongest portfolios of children’s and family entertainment franchises in the world. Mattel creates innovative products and experiences that inspire, entertain, and develop children through play through its portfolio of iconic brands including Barbie, Hot Wheels, Fisher-Price, American Girl, Thomas & Friends, UNO, and MEGA.
The company’s aim is to contribute to a more diverse, equitable, inclusive, and sustainable future. It is committed to being a responsible corporate citizen and actively supporting the communities where its employees live, work, and play.
Mattel believes every child has a fundamental right to play. Through its partnerships, sponsorships and community support, the company is helping organizations overcome barriers to play and providing unforgettable memories for kids in need.
The Mattel Children’s Foundation draws on its corporate resources to support the wellbeing of children and families around the world. Through the Barbie Dream Gap Project and the Ruth Handler Mentorship program, Mattel is creating a pathway for girls and young professionals, and the company actively supports communities around the world through employee volunteerism, gifts, grants, and disaster relief support.
Since its founding in 1945, Mattel is proud to be a trusted partner in empowering children to explore the wonder of childhood and reach their full potential. Visit mattel.com to learn more.
Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP
Law Firm Pro Bono Award
Contributing to the community through pro bono work is a core tenet of the culture at Munger, Tolles & Olson. Our attorneys are encouraged to pursue pro bono matters they care about deeply and, as a result, they have made an impact on many social issues through pro bono advocacy, including veterans rights, civil liberties, affordable housing and LGBTQ+ rights. MTO has a robust pro bono practice focused on helping clients obtain immigration relief and reforming anti-immigrant policies. We also continue to focus on our Combatting Systemic Racism Task Force, which works to develop informed strategies and solutions that address issues of systemic racism that exist in the firm’s community and the legal profession.
MTO consistently devotes more than three percent of all attorney time to delivering pro bono legal assistance. In 2022, our lawyers completed 41,362 pro bono hours.
We regularly seek out high-impact pro bono cases that effect change. In 2023, MTO secured an appellate ruling to end “poverty tows” throughout California; achieved a historic preliminary injunction pausing the enforcement of Los Angeles County’s cash bail schedule; filed a federal lawsuit challenging an Idaho school facilities law that singles out transgender students for discriminatory treatment; secured class certification in a federal lawsuit challenging certain home arrest policies and practices of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement; and filed a lawsuit against the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation challenging the agency’s discriminatory immigration-enforcement practices. In partnership with Public Counsel, we also filed a major child welfare reform lawsuit, challenging Los Angeles County and California’s failure to ensure that transition age foster youth have access to the housing and services to which they are legally entitled.
MTO is proud and deeply honored to be recognized by Public Counsel as the 2023 Law Firm Pro Bono Award recipient.
