Beginning with his first assignment upon joining Foster Garvey in 2008, Jay Donovan (Litigation Principal, Seattle) has provided continuous legal support to Hopelink. That first assignment marked the beginning of a lasting partnership between Jay and Hopelink. Over the years, Jay has developed a deep understanding of Hopelink’s mission and the critical services it provides by counseling Hopelink on a variety of legal matters ranging from housing to transportation.
Founded in 1971, Hopelink is a Washington-based organization that serves homeless and low-income families, children, seniors and people with disabilities in King and Snohomish counties. The organization is committed to promoting self-sufficiency, providing stability and equipping individuals with the skills needed to escape poverty.
One of Hopelink’s essential services involves brokering non-emergency medical transportation for Medicaid-eligible individuals in our community (more than 750,000 trips annually). For the last 15-plus years, Jay has played a significant role in strengthening this essential service by successfully defending Hopelink against numerous lawsuits wrongfully seeking to hold Hopelink vicariously liable for the conduct of independent contractors who provide transportation under the NEMT Program. The courts have uniformly dismissed those claims against Hopelink. Yet, the stakes remain high: an adverse ruling would render it impossible for non-profits such as Hopelink to broker such critical services and leave millions of Medicaid-eligible individuals in our communities without necessary medical transportation.
Jay believes lawyers should strive to maximize the impact of their pro bono work. In the past two years alone, Jay devoted more than 400 pro bono hours to Hopelink with the knowledge that every hour tangibly benefits and impacts members of our community. Jay also emphasizes that attorneys sit in a position of privilege—and, with that privilege, comes a professional, ethical and moral duty to give back to our communities in meaningful ways.
Jay’s pro bono work on behalf of Hopelink is bolstered by a talented team at Foster Garvey, including Andrea Bradford (Litigation Principal, Seattle), Gabriela DeGregorio (Legal Practice Assistant, Seattle), Wendy Foster (Senior Litigation Paralegal, Seattle) and Mikaela Louie (Health Care Counsel, Seattle). He also credits the dedicated team at Hopelink, whose responsiveness and deep appreciation make this partnership especially rewarding.
