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Ms. Ledbetter is the namesake for the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which was signed into law in 2009. The act followed a long discrimination case that Ledbetter filed against her former employer, Goodyear Tire and Rubber. The suit began after Ledbetter received an anonymous note informing her that she was making thousands of dollars per year less than her male colleagues in similar managerial positions at Goodyear, even after 19 years of working at the company.
After she retired, Ledbetter filed suit against her former company. For 10 years, Ledbetter fought to close the gap between women’s and men’s wages in the historic discrimination case. She was awarded a settlement for gender pay discrimination in federal court, although the U.S. Supreme Court ultimately overturned the ruling saying that Ledbetter hadn't met a time requirement for filing her suit.
However, the U.S. Congress passed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act to loosen the time requirements for the filing of a discrimination suit. President Obama’s first act of business was to sign the Ledbetter Act into law.
Ledbetter is also an author. Her book “Grace and Grit: My Fight for Equal Pay and Fairness at Goodyear and Beyond” was published in 2012. The book will be available for sale and signing following the awards dinner.
The Access to Justice Awards Dinner attracts more than 500 attendees including local and regional community leaders, public officials, attorneys, judges, and community advocates.
Our 2014 Community Advocacy Award recipient is the Northwest Ohio Reentry Coalition for their efforts in eliminating barriers to successful reentry into the community by ex-offenders. A Public Interest Law Award will go to the legal department at HCR ManorCare and the Toledo office of Anspach Meeks Ellenberger, LLP for their creation and ongoing participation in a weekly Lucas County Juvenile Court Pro Se Clinic. A Distinguished Service Award will be presented to local attorney Cary R. Cooper for his commitment to the mission and work of legal aid in northwest Ohio.
Tickets to the Access to Justice Awards Dinner are $100 each and can be purchased online at donate.ablelaw.org or by calling Patti Robb at 419/930-2517.
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