Five lawyers honored with 2026 Pro Bono Awards

Bruce Harrison Bates, Katie Doherty, Jazmyn Ferguson Adams, Donald R. Rhodes, and Bradley J. Yeretsky are The Missouri Bar’s 2026 Pro Bono Award recipients, recognizing their commitment to serving their communities and dedication to ensuring equal access to legal services for all. 

Bates

Bates graduated from the University of Missouri School of Law and clerked for Hon. Edith Messina in the Jackson County Circuit Court. He then worked in Jefferson City for the Missouri Department of Social Services, the Department of Revenue, and the Public Service Commission. He later practiced with Mid-Missouri Legal Services and has been in solo practice since 2010.

He said he feels fortunate to represent people who need a guardianship and/or conservatorship. He also represents children in cases of paternity, custody, or divorce involving alleged abuse or neglect.

“I am always so happy and fulfilled when I can help out someone who is in need of getting into a better situation,” Bates said. “There have been times in my life when I needed someone there for me and I want to be there for others. I know I am just part of the process, but it gives me meaning and a purpose, hoping that I have been of help to someone.”

He advised fellow lawyers to remember how fortunate they are to be able to practice law and that the welfare of clients and society is the most important thing.

“Never take for granted what a great thing it is to be able to use our talents as attorneys to make people’s lives better,” Bates said.

Doherty

Doherty graduated from the Saint Louis University School of Law and is a senior associate in the litigation department of Armstrong Teasdale in St. Louis. She helps those in need prepare pro se asylum applications, pro se divorce and child custody filings, and she assists the Legal Services of Eastern Missouri’s Neighborhood Advocacy and Small Business programs. She is a member of the Legal Services of Eastern Missouri Young Friends Board, the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis Board of Governors, and the Women Lawyers’ Association of Greater St. Louis Board of Directors.

She said assisting underrepresented groups reminds her how proud she is to be a lawyer and how obligated they are to be a voice for the defenseless and oppressed.

“Knowing that I used to be a low-income mother in need of assistance colors my gratitude and appreciation for what being a lawyer has given me,” Doherty said. “I feel a deep and compelling need to give back to the community I was once a part of because I know this life I now have is not promised to me. It is such an honor and privilege to practice law and it’s not something I take for granted, considering how difficult it was for me to get here.”

Doherty said she hopes fellow lawyers realize the tremendous amount of influence they have and that it humbles them enough to give back to those who have neither.

Ferguson Adams

Ferguson Adams is an associate at Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP. She graduated from the University of Notre Dame Law School. She volunteers with Volunteer Lawyers and Accountants for the Arts, Concordance Academy, and St. Louis Survivors Legal Support.

Ferguson Adams said receiving the award is a “tremendous honor and a meaningful reminder” of the values her parents instilled in her early on: the importance of community and using what you have to help others.

“I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to use the legal skills and education I have been fortunate enough to obtain to serve others in ways that can make a lasting difference — whether that means helping someone pursue their passion, rebuild their life, or get back on track toward realizing their full potential,” Ferguson Adams said.

She said pro bono service is about more than providing legal assistance, it is about helping people access opportunities, overcome barriers, and move closer to the futures they envision for themselves. Ferguson Adams said she was blessed to be able to make that kind of impact and that receiving the award only deepens her commitment to continuing that work.

Rhodes

Rhodes graduated from the University of Mississippi School of Law and began practicing in Dexter. He later established Donald Rhodes, Attorney at Law, in Bloomfield. His practice includes civil litigation, criminal defense, probate, guardianship, landlord-tenant matters, and family law.

Rhodes has provided extensive pro bono representation to low-income Missourians, often stepping in during emergencies to protect vulnerable clients, stabilize families, and ensure access to the courts. He helps with guardianship appointments, probate assistance, criminal defense for indigent individuals, and critical family law interventions

“At 89 years old, I am grateful to still be doing the work I love — helping the people of southeast Missouri,” Rhodes said. “Access to justice should never depend on a person’s ability to pay. Every Missourian deserves an advocate, and I have simply tried to be that advocate whenever I was needed.”

Yeretsky

Yeretsky is a partner at Stinson LLP. Through his partnership with the ACLU of Missouri, he has advocated for the civil liberties of all Missourians.

As a young associate, he said, Stinson LLP provided him with an opportunity to represent a pro bono client charged with involuntary manslaughter, which inspired engagement in the pro bono community from that point forward, including the opportunity to be a chair of Stinson’s Pro Bono Program for more than a decade.

“The most rewarding part of being a lawyer, specifically a litigator, is helping clients, whether individuals, companies, or organizations, tell their story in a way that is compelling and effective,” Yeretsky said.

He said being recognized for pro bono work is a “profound honor” and that it reflects the firm’s commitment to making sure Missourians can tell their stories through the justice system.

He encouraged fellow lawyers to “identify a space or a cause you are passionate about and then set out to find how you can use your skills and experience to make a difference.”

Click here to learn more about annual awards presented by The Missouri Bar, the Missouri Bar Foundation, and other entities. Read about other 2026 award winners here.