Robinson & Cole managing partner Rhonda Tobin told Law360 Pulse on Thursday that the law firm started its efforts at the beginning of March as the situation began unfolding in Ukraine, realizing "we had a whole community of people who wanted to help and weren't sure how."
"And it gave people a way to sort of come together and do it as a group and know that their dollars would be matched and have a greater impact than if they just did it on their own," she added.
The law firm has contributed more than $40,000 toward those impacted by the crisis since Tobin initially sent out a firmwide email asking staff to donate to humanitarian aid organizations working in the region, explaining that the firm would match any donation dollar for dollar.
The firm has said those monetary donations assisted in providing food, housing, medicine and transportation for those fleeing Ukraine.
Last week, the U.S. Senate passed a $40.1 billion emergency aid package for Ukraine, following a weeklong holdup after Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., raised concerns over aspects of the bill. The senators passed H.R. 7691, the Additional Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations Act, which includes a broad range of military and humanitarian assistance for Ukraine amid the invasion by neighboring Russia.
Firms across the country have become involved to support Ukraine in its war effort, including Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, Morrison Foerster LLP, Steptoe & Johnson LLP and Milbank LLP.
Robinson & Cole has also joined other major law firms across the country that are working to provide pro bono assistance for Ukrainian nationals in the United States.
Tobin said the firm is working with Lawyers for Good Government to assist eligible Ukrainians who are in the U.S. temporarily "to ensure that they have the right to remain here to live and work for a temporary period."
"I think the latest stat that I saw is there are about 75,000 Ukrainian nationals currently living in the U.S., obviously it's too dangerous for them to return when their immigration status lapses, so the government did designate them as eligible for temporary protected status," Tobin said.
She said the firm has worked to assist those individuals on their applications to extend their temporary protection status.
--Additional reporting by Daniel Wilson and Rachel Rippetoe. Editing by Orlando Lorenzo.
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