Given his legal experience, longtime commitment to helping those who have few places to turn, and his sense of community responsibility, it’s not a surprise that Harlin Adelman is the new president of the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland’s board of directors.
Adelman, chief legal officer for University Hospitals (UH) Health System, was elected this past December and will serve a one-year term.
“It’s so valuable for us to have him as board president,” says Colleen Cotter, Legal Aid’s executive director. “Harlin knows how nonprofits run and is part of a very sophisticated nonprofit. He brings all that knowledge to the board. Harlin has been engaged with Legal Aid as a volunteer for years. I am very excited that Harlin will use his skills and insights to leverage key partnerships with organizations, governments and institutions to benefit our clients.”
Adelman’s belief in legal representation for everyone runs deep. As a student at Boston University School of Law, he joined the Public Interest Project, now part of the Public Interest Law Society. The student-run organization promoted community service and pro bono activities for emerging lawyers. A fellowship took Adelman to Harvard Law School and its Prison Legal Assistance Project. There, he and six other students represented inmates in Massachusetts prisons.
“That was completely eye-opening,” says Adelman. “It made me realize I didn’t want a career in criminal legal practice, but that I wanted to find ways to help people who couldn’t really help themselves.”
Adelman never lost sight of that personal goal and managed to honor it in various ways throughout the years. He started his legal career as an associate in the Benesch law firm’s health care practice group in 1990. Several years later, he joined a national health care consulting company. He has also served as a guest lecturer at Case Western Reserve University School of Law and as an adjunct professor at the business school at Kent State University.
Benesch offered its lawyers pro bono opportunities to work with Legal Aid, and Adelman called it a “no-brainer” for him to participate. It was then that the mutual admiration between Adelman and Legal Aid really solidified. Now, Adelman draws on all his experience to become a strong Legal Aid board director.
“I have been very lucky in my career. I have built a wonderful network over the years of colleagues and lawyers throughout the city and country,” says Adelman, elected to his current UH position in 2019. “In my role as chief legal officer, I may not be on the front line treating our patients, but I strongly believe that my call as a lawyer means to make things better for our patients in multiple, different ways and in ways most people don’t see.”
Cotter credits Adelman for encouraging UH to get on board with Legal Aid’s successful medical-legal partnerships, joining the MetroHealth System and Cleveland Clinic. UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Ahuja Center for Women & Children on Euclid Avenue, for instance, is a prime example of an opportunity where individuals receive medical treatment but also have access to onsite legal assistance if needed.
“I will leverage my role to help others see the value of Legal Aid and to understand what the organization does and how they do it,” says Adelman, who has used his respect, leadership and influence to gain support for Legal Aid both financially through fundraising activities and with the recruitment of volunteers. “Law firms are competing for the same top legal talent, and by supporting Legal Aid, they can distinguish themselves from others.” Adelman also believes supporting health care institutions, including UH’s Center for Women & Children, financially and with volunteer lawyers, is another way a law firm can show its commitment to a neighborhood in need.
Cotter says Adelman is also well-suited to continue to focus on and advance Legal Aid’s 2023-2026 Strategic Plan. She sums up that direction as “being better and doing more with our client community.” She sees Adelman particularly adept at zeroing in on two of Legal Aid’s six strategic goals. The first is to “establish reciprocal relationships and partnerships with our clients and client communities to increase impact.” The second is to “deepen reciprocal relationships and partnerships with organizations to increase impact.”
“When people come in, we should get them what they need. And if it is outside our expertise, we need to find where they can get help,” says Cotter. “Harlin understands that.”
Adelman also knows being Legal Aid board president is a huge responsibility, demanding time, thought, courage and good negotiating skills, among other traits.
“I am following in some pretty big footsteps. You have to approach this with some humility,” says Adelman. “And I have a really busy job at University Hospitals, which is my main focus. But yet I feel so strongly about advancing Legal Aid. I did have a conversation with Colleen before I accepted this position. I want to be the right person, not elected just because my name was next on a list. I wanted her to understand my professional and personal commitments. I wanted to make sure we were on the same page.”
Cotter had no doubts.
“If Harlin’s personality was different, it could be a little intimidating, because he is always very clear and transparent. He fully wants to know what my expectations are of him, what expectations the organization and board have of him and what his expectations are of me and the board,” says Cotter. “But that attitude, combined with his kindness and calmness, provides for a very supportive leader.”
Adelman describes himself as someone open to ideas that differ from his and desiring “a cross section of input before any decisions are made.” He believes that way of operating will create a vital, problem-solving board and an even stronger Legal Aid, and provide a boost to the community.
“It’s not only about sustaining the work Legal Aid is doing, but advancing in innovative and creative ways that benefit as many people as possible,” says Adelman. “It’s about helping our partners realize that social determinants of health can’t necessarily be solved in an exam room. You need caregivers and other disciplines to help with multifaceted problems.”
Cotter is grateful for the respect Adelman shows others.
“Harlin doesn’t expect me to change who I am. But he expects me to continually get better, and I love that, because I want to get better,” says Cotter. “I don’t want a board president who thinks about things exactly like I do. That would not add value. He has been engaged with Legal Aid for many years. He’s a great spokesman for Legal Aid and talks about its work and strengths all the time.”
