IADC member Matthew D. Keenan has been appointed by President Trump and confirmed by the U.S. Senate as one of eight new members of the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) board of directors.
Matt, a partner at Shook, Hardy & Bacon L.L.P. in Kansas City, Missouri, was sworn in as an LSC board member on October 2 by U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts following his August 1 Senate confirmation. The LSC is the largest provider of civil legal assistance for low income people in the nation. Its 11-member board is bipartisan: No more than six members may be of the same political party.
Matt is past Chair of the IADC's Social Justice Pro Bono Committee and is a current member of the Trial Techniques and Tactics Committee. He serves on the board of Legal Aid of Western Missouri and previously served for eight years as chair of Shook, Hardy & Bacon’s Pro Bono Committee.
As a leading product liability lawyer, Matt focuses his practice on pharmaceutical and medical device litigation. He also focuses on the preparation and defense of a number of corporate witnesses in many MDL proceedings. During his career, he has tried jury trials in seven states.
An independent nonprofit established by Congress in 1974, the LSC promotes equal access to justice by awarding grants to legal services providers through a competitive grants process. LSC distributes more than 90 percent of its total funding to 132 independent nonprofit legal aid programs with more than 800 offices. The LSC also conducts compliance reviews and program visits to oversee program quality and compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements, as well as restrictions that accompany LSC funding, and provides training and technical assistance to programs. For more information, visit www.lsc.gov.