Siri and her husband Wayne live on a sleepy, dirt road in Farmington Township, PA where the median income for an individual is just $16,747, roughly half of national average. Before working with Fair Shake the Lawsons spent nearly 40 years battling the destructive practices of Oil and Gas operators. They lost 3 homes along the way and suffered unimaginable lung and respiratory damage that they still are being treated for today, yet they never saw a dime for those damages.
This reality is a symptom of a much large issue that we are trying to address. Polluters and irresponsible operators are getting away with environmental and personal damages because rural and urban communities of low income do not have the means to hire representation that can defend them. To get any form of relief they either need to move on their own (which they often cannot afford) or take extreme measures of self-defense.
Fair Shake provided Siri and Wayne pro bono representation on 2 occasions to help them and their community fight back against the injustices they were experiencing. For the first time in 40 years the Lawsons were able to have their voices heard by authorities with the powers to make the changes they needed.
To this day Siri is still being heard. Our case was thrust into the spotlight and brought attention to an issue very few knew about at the time. You can read more about that case here:
