The Justice & Diversity Center’s (JDC) Pro Bono Legal Services Program is pleased to spotlight Heather Deixler, an associate with Morgan, Lewis, & Bockius, as our volunteer of the month.  Deixler is a steady volunteer with JDC’s Community Organization Representation Project (CORP) and has taken three pro bono matters within the past year.

CORP provide free business law services to nonprofit organizations that directly serve low-income and underserved communities in Northern California.

Deixler’s current practice, as well as her experience prior to law school, provides the perfect blend of skills needed to assist a variety of nonprofits providing services to low-income communities. Deixler’s practice fo-cuses on healthcare regulatory law, including data privacy and security matters.  Prior to  law school, Deixler worked as a research technician in a neurophysiology laboratory, followed by a Master’s degree in neurophysiology and a brief foray into medical school.  Eventually she found her niche as a healthcare lawyer, and brings forward her expertise to assist nonprofit organizations that otherwise could not afford the legal counsel needed to make informed business decisions.

The pro bono matters that Deixler has handled have been interesting and varied.  Recently, Deixler worked with a nonprofit providing music therapy to at-risk youth.  Although the nonprofit is not a typical medical provider, it was contemplating billing its therapy services to Medi-Cal, and questioned whether it would therefore be regulated under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).  As Deixler explains, “This matter allowed me to use my expertise in health law to assist a local nonprofit organization that provides much-needed services to those in need.”

Deixler is currently working on another matter where she is advising a nonprofit organization that provides financial services to low-income communities. This matter involves drafting the organization’s privacy and security policies and procedures for maintaining financial information. In working on these various matters, Deixler has enjoyed helping clients navigate complex regulatory regimes and providing them with the services that they may not have otherwise had the opportunity to obtain.

The success of CORP rests on the dedication of volunteers like Heather Deixler and firms such as Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, which has taken on 14 new CORP matters within the past 12 months.