A Courageous Advocate
Mike Eagen Earns Merilee Turner Volunteer of the Year Recognition
Along with ProKids CASAs, who are the experts on our children, and CASA Managers, who are experts on child protection, ProKids attorneys are our experts on the court system and how it too can work in the best interest of children who are the subjects of child protection cases.
Mike Eagen has served as a volunteer attorney for about 6 and a half years, working well over 100 cases and serving over 200 children. Mike’s caseload, at times, has even approached that of a full-time staff attorney. And during the COVID-19 pandemic, as we saw case numbers rising and timelines extending, his service was essential to ensuring our kids were covered.
Coming to us with over 40 years of experience, including product liability defense work, mass tort litigation, commercial litigation, and more, understandably, child protection was new to Mike. In retirement, he was a rookie again. Looking back, he jokes that all he really knew was to be polite to the person who was sitting on the bench in front of him.
Unquestionably, Mike hit his stride. He even went on to create ProKids’ attorney manual, passing on the knowledge he obtained to our incoming staff members.
In the courtroom, Mike is both determined and methodical. In one case, he helped ProKids protect three siblings from someone who had been a source of harm. Mike stepped in and filed the appropriate motions to keep that petitioner at bay. His legal maneuvering on that case was complex, took effort and skill, and ultimately, kept the boys safe from further harm.
Mike says each case is unique — with every child and family facing different challenges in their journeys. But in each case, Mike’s work helps our CASAs and CASA Managers raise their concerns and recommendations to the court, helping kids reach the safe, permanent, and nurturing homes they deserve, whether by returning to their parents who’ve learned to parent differently, moving in with loving relatives, or being freed for adoption.
And his position in the community as a respected attorney hasn’t just led to better outcomes for kids. It’s led to more eyes on our mission. Just last year, Mike nominated ProKids to receive an award through the Potter Stewart Inn of Court, a legal society that helps law students, lawyers, and judges rise to higher levels of excellence, professionalism, and ethical awareness.
At the organization’s annual banquet, thanks in part to Mike, members of the ProKids Litigation Team accepted the Andrew B. Dennison Courageous Advocate Award, presented to attorneys or organizations that uphold the professional obligation to represent the most vulnerable among us.
ProKids is proud to count Mike as an incredibly courageous advocate — though he says the reason he’s stayed with us has been “largely selfish,” as it’s given him “purpose” in his retirement.
He had this to say about his advocacy for our kids: “Well, I don’t repair vintage cars, and I don’t do carpentry work, and I don’t wanna visit every Civil War battleground known to man. I still enjoy being in the courtroom, and what could be a better objective than trying to help kids who are in distress? I’m sure that I’ve gotten more out of ProKids than I’ve given to it.”