Hahn Loeser & Parks LLP is pleased to announce its pro bono partnership with Veterans Legal Institute (VLI) to provide pro bono support to veterans, as well as a successful recent discharge upgrade case with the help of attorney John D. Drdek, who also currently serves as Lieutenant Commander in the U.S. Navy Reserve.
To launch its partnership with VLI, Hahn Loeser recently served as a sponsor of the 2023 Lawyers for Warriors Networking & Fundraising event at Lyon Air Museum. The gala and live auction filled with fun, food and surprises, is annually held around Veterans Day.
Through his pro bono work, Drdek recently earned a discharge upgrade to “Honorable” for his client, Private First Class Kevin Lee Stovall. The upgrade enables Stovall to receive his education benefits and attend college under the Post-9/11 GI Bill.
Drdek met Mr. Stovall through VLI, learning about his initial discharge due to errors and absences beyond his control. Following a review of hundreds of pages of Mr. Stovall’s military record, Drdek, with support from another pro bono attorney, drafted a comprehensive 24-page brief with 50 exhibits and submitted it to the Board for Correction of Military Records (BCMR). More than a year later, BCMR granted the discharge upgrade.
VLI is one of the leading veterans pro bono organizations in California with a focused footprint in Southern California. Its gala’s proceeds help provide free legal aid to veterans.
Drdek’s prior work for veterans, includes successfully launching an initiative that established partnerships among VLI, California Veterans Legal Task Force and the Veterans Legal Clinic at the University of San Diego Law School, that earned him an award for significant contributions to pro bono work.
