LSC Chairman Announces Members of Fiscal Oversight Task Force

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Sep 21, 2010, 03:21 ET

WASHINGTON, Sept. 21 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- John G. Levi, Chairman of the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) Board of Directors, today announced members of a Special Task Force on Fiscal Oversight charged by the Board with reviewing LSC's fiscal oversight responsibilities and how LSC conducts fiscal oversight of its grantees.

"This group will be strong and cohesive, and I am confident that the collective expertise of the Task Force and its findings will help us in our efforts to continuously improve LSC's fiscal responsibilities," Chairman Levi said. "The findings will be especially important as the Board works to expand legal assistance to low-income Americans across the nation."

The co-chairs of the Task Force are:

Robert J. Grey Jr., a member of the LSC Board and a partner with Hunton & Williams. He is a former president of the American Bar Association.

Victor B. Maddox, a member of the LSC Board and a partner with Fultz Maddox Hovious & Dickens. He is a former Department of Justice trial attorney and a former counsel at the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee.

The members of the Task Force are:

Christian L. "Chris" Campbell, senior vice president, general counsel, secretary and chief franchise policy officer for Yum! Brands, Inc.

Jane Elizabeth Curran, executive director of the Florida Bar Foundation and a leading expert on Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts.

M. Christine DeVita, president of The Wallace Foundation and an expert on innovative philanthropic practices.

Terry M. Fraser, principal, LarsonAllen LLP. She is a certified public accountant with experience advising more than 100 nonprofit organizations across the nation.

Ronald M. Shaich, co-founder of the Panera Bread Co. and executive chairman of the company's board. He has more than 25 years of experience as a chief executive.

Paul L. Snyder, retired Midwest area managing partner at KPMG. He is a certified public accountant and widely recognized expert on internal financial controls.

Allan J. Tanenbaum, general counsel and managing partner of Equicorp Partners. He has advised boards of directors concerning corporate governance, represents the State of Georgia in the

American Bar Association's House of Delegates and is a leader in the Atlanta Bar Foundation.

Nikki L. Tinsley, a project management consultant. She served as inspector general for the Environmental Protection Agency from 1998 to 2006. A certified public accountant, she oversaw nationwide audits while at EPA.

Douglas N. Varley, a lawyer with Caplin & Drysdale's Washington office. His practice focuses on advising exempt organizations, including private foundations. He previously administered grant-making programs at the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Michele S. Warman, general counsel and secretary of The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Before joining the Mellon Foundation, she was a Rhodes Scholar, an associate at a law firm and a clerk at the U.S. Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit.

The Board approved the Task Force's formation on July 21 and the above members were announced at the Board's meeting today. Chairman Levi said he may announce a few additional members in coming weeks.

The Task Force's report and findings are expected in the Spring of 2011. The Task Force will operate independently of LSC, but is authorized to conduct its work with any necessary support from the LSC staff and to engage consultants with the approval of the Board Chairman.

Established in 1974, LSC, an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, receives an annual appropriation from Congress to promote equal access to justice and to provide for high-quality civil legal assistance to low-income individuals and families. About 95 percent of the appropriation is distributed as grants to 136 independent nonprofit legal aid programs across the country.