Attorney Larry Ruemmler devoted 43 years of his life to providing legal assistance to low-income Illinoisans.
He retired from our Mount Vernon office in 2015 after receiving the Joseph Bartylak Advocacy Award from our organization in 2011.
Below Larry discusses his career at Land of Lincoln and why he dedicated his life to legal aid.
When did you start at Land of Lincoln?
I began as a law graduate on September 1, 1972, and was sworn in as an attorney at the office of Supreme Court Justice Joseph Goldenhersh on my birthday, November 2, 1972.
Why did you devote your career to Land of Lincoln?
When I grew up there was a sense of community. People looked out for me and provided encouragement. I’ve always felt empathy for people who weren’t as fortunate as I was, and I felt a duty to make the world a better place, fostered by my experiences as an Army sergeant in Vietnam.
I still have a list of all the people who worked with me at the Mount Vernon office over a period of 29 years—over 100 people including summer law students. We worked together, as a team, with very few problems within the office. I can picture each one of them and hear each of their voices. They were a huge part of my life, and I am grateful to each one for their outstanding devotion to their jobs and for their friendship which I will always treasure.
With help from my staff, always good people, we were able to make a difference in the lives of thousands of people. That sense of accomplishment and purpose to my life is why I made a career out of being a legal aid lawyer.
Tell us about a client you achieved a good result for.
“Dawn” sent her daughter to see her father in Texas over summer vacation. At the end of vacation, she tried to get her daughter back toward the end. She went to Texas to get her daughter, age 10, as her father would not bring her back to Illinois. Although she had a copy of her judgment of dissolution showing she had custody, no authorities in Texas were willing to help. Having spent money she couldn’t afford on her trip to Texas, Dawn didn’t know what else to do.
I contacted Corpus Christi Legal Aid and found a staff attorney who was willing to help us. I obtained an Order of Habeus Corpus from a Marion County, IL judge, and sent certified copies of this order and the Judgment for Dissolution by express mail. The Texas legal aid attorney entered both orders in that county and obtained a detailed order allowing her and a constable to pick up the child from the island off the coast where she and her dad were.
The Texas legal aid attorney took the girl home with her, made dinner for her, fixed a bed for her, and the next morning took her to the airport for a flight to St. Louis, where her mother was waiting.
It took two attorneys and two courts for the girl to get back to school in Centralia, Illinois. Corpus Christi Legal Aid really got the job done.
What were the best parts of the job?
The best part of my job was hearing a woman say to me, after her Order of Protection and/or divorce, “I feel like I’ve been born again” or “I’m free! I can begin a new life.” Additionally, I enjoyed hearing similarly successful results from staff attorneys.
Why is civil legal aid important?
Civil legal aid is important because there is a great need for help in a wide variety of situations, not only in court but also in obtaining or keeping housing, education and basic benefits. Legal aid attorneys are a voice for those who would otherwise have no voice. In a country where money is power, legal aid attorneys seek to rectify injustices suffered by the poor, the homeless, the disabled, and all who live on the margins of society.
In honor of Larry Ruemmler, we encourage you to take our Founders’ Day Challenge by making a gift to Land of Lincoln.