Lanie Yeames, ’21, is working to get law students involved in court watching projects throughout Chicago.

By Robert DeNunzio, ’21

Lanie Yeames ’21 has always felt lawyers have a responsibility to give back to their communities. After visiting a Cook County criminal courthouse for Criminal Law as a 1L, Lanie discovered court watching projects as a means of improving the legal system that was especially accessible to younger law students. As a result, Lanie was inspired to get involved with the Chicago Appleseed Fund for Justice, a non-profit that seeks to promote best-practices and transparency in the justice system. “Court watching is a great pro bono opportunity, especially for 1Ls looking for a way to get involved,” Lanie says, “because you don’t need a 711 license or extensive legal experience. You can get plugged in right away within your own community.”

Working at Appleseed during her 1L summer, Lanie participated in a court watching program for immigration bond hearings. The project sought to shine a light on problematic practices in immigration proceedings. “Law school implies the system works how it is supposed to, but in practice that’s not often true,” Lanie says. “On the ground, justice systems are frequently deeply flawed.”

In total, Appleseed and its partners have observed over 200 immigration bond hearings as part of the project. Describing some of the project’s most troubling findings, Lanie said judges sometimes made bond determinations before hearings occur, or made decisions based entirely on the detainee’s criminal record rather than factoring in ability to pay (as required by law). Despite many detainees being self-represented, some hearings for non-English speaking detainees lack a translator. Appleseed has compiled a set of recommendations and best practices for immigration bond hearings based on the project. Lanie has also worked with Appleseed’s Criminal Justice Reform Committee, researching issues related to discretionary parole and compassionate release of inmates and assisted with the implementation of the Early Resolution Program at the Daley Center, an administrative hearing process to streamline domestic relations cases for unrepresented litigants.

After the summer, Lanie remained involved at Appleseed as the Law Student Board Member. She has also begun the process for creating an Appleseed chapter at the law school, which she hopes to be able to resume when COVID-19 conditions improve. Lanie said she has particularly enjoyed working with Appleseed because the organization brings together Chicago lawyers with diverse backgrounds to work on collective social justice issues and reform the courts.

At the law school, Lanie is a member of the Pro Bono Board, the University of Chicago Legal Forum, and has previously been involved in the Exoneration Project clinic. While she is going into corporate practice, Lanie plans to continue partnering with Appleseed after graduation.