We are proud to share that Hawks Quindel shareholder Chris Donahoe was published by the State Bar of Wisconsin on September 14, 2026. Her article, “I Took on a Pro Bono Case Outside of My Practice Area — You Should Too,” ran on the State Bar’s Civil Rights & Liberties Blog.
Chris’s practice at Hawks Quindel focuses on employment discrimination, employment law, and sexual harassment. The case she writes about sat well outside that lane. Amid this year’s escalation in immigration enforcement, she agreed to represent a person held in ICE detention, filing a habeas corpus petition that challenged agency positions departing from decades of settled precedent, in an area of law she had never practiced.
Her answer to that gap was to build a team around it. She worked alongside Elisabeth Lambert of the Wisconsin Education Law & Policy Hub, immigration attorney Gabriela Parra of Layde & Parra, S.C., Kate Frigo Drury of the Community Immigration Law Center, and co-counsel Daniel Narvey, drawing on their subject-matter experience while handling the federal litigation.
The habeas petition was granted in July 2026. The client’s immigration case has continued past that win, and the litigation remains ongoing.
Chris’s message to other Wisconsin attorneys is a practical one: a pro bono case outside your practice area is not out of reach. Consult lawyers who know the area, do the research, and ask colleagues to work it with you.