Joanna Plichta Boisen

She/Her

Chief Pro Bono & Social Impact Officer

I help underrepresented communities and clients get access to the best attorneys money can't buy.

Joanna Plichta Boisen is Davis Wright Tremaine's first Chief Pro Bono and Social Impact Officer. A nationally recognized leader in the field, Joanna directs the firm's acclaimed, nationwide pro bono practice. She also maintains an active pro bono docket focused on Holocaust survivor reparation appeals, domestic violence advocacy, and advising income-eligible nonprofits.

In addition to her C-suite leadership, Joanna serves as outside counsel to in-house legal departments seeking to build impact-driven pro bono programs and develop corporate social impact strategies.

Before joining DWT, Joanna was a partner and chair of the tax-exempt organizations group at one of Seattle's premier law firms, where she founded and led an award-winning, nationally recognized pro bono program. She made history there as the firm's first pro bono counsel and later as its first pro bono partner, serving that firm for 14 years before leaving to join Davis Wright Tremaine as its first pro bono counsel in 2019.

Admitted to Practice

Washington, 2006
U.S. Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit
U.S. District Court, Western District of Washington, 2006

Education

J.D., Seattle University, 2006
- Executive Editor, Seattle Journal for Social Justice
- CALI Award for Excellence in Family Law, 2005; Child, Family and State, 2004
- Women’s Law Caucus, Inaugural Kellye Testy Scholarship Award, 2006
B.A., University of Washington, 2002
- Honors Program

Languages

Polish

Memberships & Affiliations

- Author, Washington State Bar Association Legal Ethics Deskbook (Ethics Issues in Pro Bono Representation)
- 9th Circuit Lawyer Representative, United States District Court for the Western District of Washington
- Board of Directors, Legal Foundation of Washington
- Co-Chair, Law Firm Antiracism Alliance Banking Working Group
- Co-Chair, Association of Pro Bono Counsel Voting Rights Task Force
- Board of Directors, Immediate Past President, Campaign for Equal Justice
- Board of Directors, Immediate Past President, Federal Bar Association Western District of Washington
- Board of Directors, Law Alumni Board for Seattle University Law School: Past President, 2015-2017; Board Member, 2011-2014
- Supervising Attorney, Domestic Violence Advocacy Project, King County Bar Association
- Washington Women Lawyers
- Polish Home Association
- Mother Attorneys Mentoring Association
- QLAW

Professional Recognition

- Washington State Bar Association APEX Award for Pro Bono + Public Service, 2020
- Pro Bono Attorney of the Year, Federal Bar Association, 2016
- Woman of Courage Award, University of Washington, 2016
- Outstanding Young Lawyer of the Year Award, King County Bar Association, 2015
- Local Leader Award, Washington State Bar Association, 2015
- Seattle Met's Light a Fire, "Extraordinary Pro Bono Contribution Award," 2014
- Puget Sound Business Journal "40 Under 40," 2013
- Pro Bono Hot List, The National Law Journal, 2013
- Thomas Neville Pro Bono Award, Young Lawyers Division, Washington State Bar Association, 2011
- Outstanding Recent Alumna, Seattle University School of Law, 2010
- "Washington Rising Stars," Thomson Reuters, 2010-2020
- Pro Bono Litigator of the Year Award, Foster Pepper PLLC, 2008
- Outstanding Alumni 2006, The Lawyer Magazine
- Motion for Revision Volunteer of the Year Award, King County Bar Association, 2007

Background

- Pro Bono Partner, 2015-2019; Pro Bono Counsel, 2006-2013; Public Service Director, 2005; Summer Associate, 2005 – Foster Pepper PLLC, Seattle
- Seattle University School of Law Fellowship, Access to Justice Institute, 2003-2005