Dashawn R. Cason awarded for community service

In honor of his dedication to helping the community, Dashawn R. Cason will receive this year’s Missouri Bar Young Lawyers’ Section Tom Cochran Community Service Award.

The Tom Cochran Community Service Award recognizes a member of The Missouri Bar whose community service and professionalism have enhanced their Missouri community. The award is named after Thomas D. Cochran, whose commitment and contributions to the practice of law and his community has inspired generations of lawyers.

A graduate of the Saint Louis University School of Law, Cason currently serves as president of the Junior Board of the Foster & Adoptive Care Coalition of Missouri. He has helped fundraise several hundred thousand dollars that directly supports the coalition’s programs.

“For me, doing this work and seeing the impact on the children that we are working on behalf of – their smiles, renewed hope, and realization that they are cared about and worthy – is powerful,” he said.

Cason is a governmental and litigation associate at Heyl Royster law firm, having previously worked as an assistant city counselor for the City of St. Louis Civil Law Department. Along with serving on The Missouri Bar Young Lawyers’ Section Council for two terms, Cason is also vice director of civic engagement of the American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division. Starting with the 2024-2025 bar year, he will be the division’s director of legal pathway and law student outreach.

As a first-generation college and law school graduate, first-generation lawyer, and foster child, Cason said he finds his commitment to community service rooted in his personal experiences.

Receiving this award not only affirms his hard work, he added, but also “warms my heart.”

Cason praised the lawyers who helped him develop and hone his leadership skills through community service. He said new lawyers should seek service opportunities that are meaningful to them and connect with other leaders who will encourage and facilitate your community service work.

“Being a new lawyer is a dynamic process in itself, so it is vital that the new lawyer consider how much bandwidth they have to contribute to service work,” he added. “After that, it is important that any legal organization you are a part of supports the work you are doing.”

Through community service, Cason said he hopes to inspire other lawyers and members of the public to help those in need.

“For me, my passion grows each time I am able to take time to respond to a stranger on the street who asks, ‘Are you a lawyer,’ and to see them light up at that is humbling,” he said. “To encounter a young Black man who has aspirations to participate in society in a meaningful way but had not seen anyone similarly situated to him until meeting me fuels my passion.”

Cason will receive his award on Sept. 18 in St. Louis during the Annual Meeting of The Missouri Bar and Judicial Conference.

Click here to learn more about annual awards presented by The Missouri Bar, the Missouri Bar Foundation, and other entities. Read about other 2024 award winners here.