08/08/2008
Hotline Established for San Diego County Holocaust Survivors Regarding Reparations Program Eligibility
San Diego, CA—August 8, 2008—Cooley Godward Kronish LLP is pleased to announce its local participation in a program established by the German government to provide pro bono legal services to Holocaust survivors. Cooley's San Diego office, along with three other area law firms, will assist residents in San Diego County in the application process for a new reparations program created by the German government. A reparations hotline (858-550-6494) has been established for free legal assistance.
The German government has created the "Ghetto Work Payment Program" that entitles survivors who worked in German-controlled ghettos to receive a one-time payment of 2,000 Euros (approximately $3,000).
"It doesn't sound like an enormous amount of money, but for a lot of survivors who live well below the poverty limit, that kind of money can make a huge difference in their quality of life," said Cooley Partner Michael Levinson. "For many survivors, the reparations payments are not about the money they receive, but the recognition by the German government of its past wrongs."
In order to assist survivors with the technical application process, a national program of law firms in 36 cities has been established. The program was successfully piloted in Los Angeles, where over 600 survivors to-date have submitted applications, and is now expanding nationwide. Applications filed without the assistance of an attorney have shown a significantly lower success rate.
In San Diego, Cooley is the coordinating law firm. Attorneys and paralegals from Cooley will join their counterparts at three other local firms, Heller Ehrman LLP, Latham & Watkins LLP and Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP, to provide pro bono legal services to survivors.
Holocaust survivors who might qualify, or their friends or relatives, should leave a message on the hotline to be contacted by an attorney to assist with the reparations process. Those who are interested in the program but do not reside in San Diego County should contact their local Jewish Family Service (JFS) office to be directed to participating firms in their area.
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