Allison M. Stocker of Jacksonville is the recipient of the 2018 Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division Pro Bono Service Award. The award recognizes public service or legal aid performed by a lawyer who is younger than 36 or who has not practiced for more than five years.

Stocker proves that young and talented lawyers can advance their careers while still providing meaningful pro bono service to the community.

Stocker earned her J.D. from the University of Florida Levin College Of Law in 2010. She now works in the Jacksonville office of Akerman LLP. In 2016 and 2017, she was recognized by Super Lawyers as a “Rising Star” for Business Litigation, and she was recently selected as a Florida Trend Legal Elite “Up and Comer” for Commercial Litigation.

But Stocker also has devoted hundreds of hours to a major pro bono case, while remaining active in her community and the legal profession.

The signature case, to which Stocker dedicated more than 560 pro bono hours, was a civil rights lawsuit stemming from the city of Jacksonville’s interpretation of a zoning rule, which prohibited Ability Housing from purchasing and renovating an apartment building as part of a nearly $1.4 million project to create permanent, supportive housing for disabled homeless veterans.

A historic settlement approved in 2017 between the nonprofit organization and the city − with Jacksonville paying about $2 million in penalties, legal fees and a grant for a supportive housing facility for people with disabilities − will have a significant impact for low-income people with disabilities in the Jacksonville community and nationwide.

Akerman filed the federal lawsuit on Ability Housing’s behalf in 2015, and Stocker was instrumental in advancing the case, handling almost every aspect of the litigation.

Stocker is active in the Junior League of Jacksonville, serving on the board as legal counsel and participating in several community-related projects. She also serves on the Grievance Committee of the Fourth Judicial Circuit and is a past associate of the Chester Bedell American Inn of Court.

Within the firm, Stocker was recognized for her pro bono leadership and service as one of the inaugural recipients of the Akerman Impact Awards in 2017.