Pictured L-R: Pat McDonald, project manager and chair of the veterans Employee Resource Group, Thomson Reuters; Rick King, chief operting officer, Technology, Thomson Reuters; Maj. Gen. David J. Elicerio, Minnesota Army National Guard; and Minnesota State Senator Ted Daley.

Rick King, chief operating officer, Technology, Thomson Reuters, accepted the award on behalf of the company. “Being recognized as a Yellow Ribbon Company is a tremendous honor for Thomson Reuters, but the true recognition goes to all the veterans and active-duty service members and their families,” he said.

“We value excellence in everything we do at Thomson Reuters and there is not a better source when we are looking for team members than from the ranks of the United States Armed Forces. These men and women have leadership skills and a strong work ethic that contributes to making Thomson Reuters a successful company and a great place to work,” added King.

The Yellow Ribbon proclamation recognizes the long-standing and continued support Thomson Reuters has provided to service members and their families. The numerous veterans, military reservists and National Guard members who work at the Eagan campus are represented by the Veterans Employee Resource Group, which was the driving force behind pursuing the Yellow Ribbon recognition.

Several Thomson Reuters veterans pose with Maj. Gen. Elicerio

“Thomson Reuters has and continues to be a tremendous supporter of our nation’s service members and their families,” said Annette Kuyper, director of Military Outreach, Beyond the Yellow Ribbon. “By becoming a Yellow Ribbon Company, they are not only demonstrating their continued commitment to our service members and their families, they’re setting a stellar example for other employers in the community.”

A Yellow Ribbon Company unites key areas within its structure, such as human resources, recruiting, training and community outreach departments, to create a comprehensive network that connects and coordinates these areas throughout for the purpose of proactively supporting service members and military families.

This publicly available database contains more than 650 opinions from the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention and will serve as a valuable resource supporting advocacy work and protecting human rights. As the Working Group issues new opinions, we will update the database.

I’m proud to be part of this important work, and I’m delighted to support this effort as part of our ongoing commitment to the rule of law.

You can learn more about the project from the news release.

This is particularly the case with our clients who are non-profit organizations.  Obtaining and managing their finances is sometimes challenging, and they often need help beyond the issues that are strictly legal in nature, and look to us for business advice.  We take the commitment to our clients very seriously, but that is especially the case for the non-profits that provide such great services to our community.

That’s one of the reasons we were extremely delighted and honored when we received word that we are the 25,000th small law firm to adopt WestlawNext.  In addition to the recognition to our firm, which is greatly appreciated, Thomson Reuters has announced donations to two of our non-profit clients that are important parts of the community here in the Greater Philadelphia area.   Intercommunity Action (www.intercommunityaction.org) provides a wide variety of programs in the areas of behavioral health, developmental disabilities and aging, and Liberty Resources, Inc. (www.libertyresources.org) advocates and promotes independent living for persons with disabilities.

As long-time Westlaw users, we appreciate the quality of Westlaw research.  As a small firm with both local and national clients, we look forward to the increased efficiencies of WestlawNext to help us continue to provide outstanding service to our clients.  From all of us at Semanoff Ormsby Greenberg & Torchia, LLC. our thanks to Thomson Reuters for having us be part of celebrating the advances of WestlawNext, and supporting some of our non-profit clients in the process.

Michael Torchia is a managing member of Semanoff Ormsby Greenberg & Torchia, LLC

Organizations such as Diversity in Practice, located in Minneapolis, MN are working hard to change those statistics by supporting and encouraging lawyers of color. 

On Oct. 27, 75 minority law students from local law schools will gather to meet their mentors for a 6-month Ambassador program. The kick-off event, which starts at 5 p.m. at the Minneapolis offices of Faegre & Benson, is one of several programs that Diversity in Practice coordinates to fulfill their mission to recruit, retain and promote lawyers of color here in the Twin Cities metro area. 

To learn more about the Twin Cities Diversity in Practice organization or to participate in an upcoming event, logon to diversityinpractice.org.

The 2010 Corporate Responsibility Report highlights employee volunteering, pro bono services, employee giving, and general philanthropy, but it is just a small sampling of the inspiring work that was done by our employees.

From Habitat for Humanity projects in Bangalore, India, to disaster relief aid through donated WestlawRewards Points in Haiti, employees at Thomson Reuters participate in hundreds of philanthropic projects every year around the globe.

Through a dedication to recycling in our manufacturing facility, and Green Teams set out to plant trees and restore the environment around the globe – Thomson Reuters’ employees have committed to protecting and preserving the environment and improving our environmental stewardship.

We are proud to present these stories, and look forward to reporting back on all of the great things our employees will continue to do in 2011.

Thomson Reuters’ support of the American Red Cross was recognized in June at the Red Cross annual meeting, when Craig accepted an award on behalf of the company for ongoing sponsorship and contributions.

One example of this sponsorship is the Heroes Breakfast, an annual ceremony in which the American Red Cross recognizes those who have made an extraordinary decision to put their own needs aside in order to help others. Thomson Reuters sponsored the Law Enforcement Award at the 2011 Heroes Breakfast, which was awarded to St. Paul police officers Jermaine Davis, Todd Ludvick, Jason Giampolo and Justin Tiffany.

Davis, Ludvick, Giampolo and Tiffany were on duty at the 2010 State Fair when a truck accident caused a power line to go down, injuring two people. The power line fell into the lap of a traffic attendant, and made contact with another man standing with his family behind the attendant. Both men suffered injuries from the electricity, but were ultimately alright, due to fast action by the police officers, who pulled away the attendant and helped the family to safety.

In addition to our corporate sponsorship of the American Red Cross, Thomson Reuters employees are saving lives through their support of the Red Cross’s work. Since 2001, the American Red Cross has collected 5,731 units of blood during blood drives hosted on the Thomson Reuters Eagan campus. Since every blood donation can impact up to three lives, Thomson Reuters employees have helped over 17,000 patients in need of blood products.

To learn more about the American Red Cross please visit their website.

I’ve had the pleasure of working with Senator Klobuchar for many years, beginning during my tenure as Mayor of Minneapolis – Senator Klobuchar was serving as the Hennepin County District Attorney at the same time.

Senator Klobuchar met with members of Thomson Reuters’ Government Affairs team, including our General Counsel Deirdre Stanley and SVP & Global Head of Government & Regulatory Affairs Ambassador Paula Dobriansky to discuss current legislative issues that matter to a business like ours. Senator Klobuchar is the only member of the U.S. Senate who sits on both the Judiciary and Commerce committees – two committees that directly impact Thomson Reuters.

You can see by this photo that we are using telepresence technology to hold this meeting. If you’ve never experienced a meeting via telepresence, I highly recommend it. Very innovative technology!

Photo by Adam Lockhart

Senator Klobuchar then participated in a Q&A session with a group of 100 Thomson Reuters employees. Her up-close-and-personal-view of the Supreme Court Justice conferee process was of particular interest to the many legal professionals in the room.

Photo by Adam Lockhart

Photo by Jeannette Appold

It’s important for our elected officials to understand our business and our employees, and based on today’s visit, our employees want to know our elected officials, too.

One more thing … give Senator Klobuchar’s Taconite Tater Tot Hot Dish a try.

“I was just stunned,” says Andrea O’Shea, a senior publishing specialist from Legal Editorial Operations in the US Law Firms business. Andrea and her family were recently surprised at their home outside of St. Paul, Minn., with balloons, flowers and $100,000 from the Publishers Clearing House sweepstakes team. 

Andrea’s husband, Doug, entered the sweepstakes multiple times online, yet they never thought they’d actually win anything. But the timing of their surprise couldn’t have been better.   

“My husband has been out of work for the last two years, and unemployment checks have run out, so I’ve been the sole breadwinner,” she says. “Having something so fantastic happen when you’re at your wits’ end … I can’t even explain the pressure it relieved. It’s been such a blessing.” 

Andrea, Doug and their two children, Mark (10) and Brenn (13), are already making plans for how to use some of their winnings, which include paying off bills, investing, contributing to college savings accounts and paying for a family vacation. However, the money itself hasn’t been the most rewarding part of the experience. 

“The outpouring of support has been amazing” says Andrea. “We’ve received nothing but good wishes. The money is almost like a bonus – the main blessing is having the people you know and love so happy for you.” 

You can watch a video of Andrea and her family receiving their giant check here. And as for the future of that giant check? The O’Sheas are planning on having it framed.

When Greg Groenjes, a manager in Manufacturing, Distribution & Engineering in Eagan, Minn., went out to see a movie with his wife one chilly evening in February, he anticipated that the only action scenes playing out would be on the screen.  But by the night’s end, Greg was a real-life crime fighting hero.

After viewing a movie at a theatre in Inver Grove Heights, Minn., Greg and his wife came across a hammer-wielding man who was destroying car windshields in the theatre’s parking lot. Greg confronted the man and tried to get him to stop, and was shortly thereafter joined by two other movie theatre patrons.

Greg and the two other men surrounded the culprit until a police officer arrived at the scene. But instead of cooperating with the police officer, the assailant threw his hammer at him and began to charge.

The officer was able to tackle the man to the ground, but the assailant began grabbing at the officer’s equipment belt and face. The officer, now unable to subdue and handcuff the assailant on his own, called out for help. At his call Greg and the two other patrons rushed to the officer’s assistance.

“I knew the cop was in trouble so I just went for it and grabbed the assailant’s legs’” says Greg. “After the three of us had him pinned the officer was able to handcuff him and put him in the squad car.”

 Greg and the other men who assisted were awarded a Certificate of Recognition from the city of Inver Grove Heights for their heroism and quick thinking.  In the end, Greg admits that trying to stop the man wasn’t a hard decision.

 “I didn’t even stop to think whether I should or shouldn’t help, it was instinctive,” says Greg. “Although this could have escalated to a much more dangerous situation, putting myself at risk, stopping the man and helping the officer was the right thing to do.”

Sharon Sayles Belton, vice president, Community Relations and Government Affairs, Thomson Reuters, Legal was quoted in the article saying, “the goal of the project is to combine the strengths of both organizations “to help the legal system perform better world-wide.”

You can learn more about Books For Africa’s Jack Mason Law & Democracy Initiative online.