Garrard Beeney received the 2025 Abely Pro Bono Award, presented by Sanctuary for Families, Columbia Law School and Davis Polk & Wardwell. The award recognized Garrard’s commitment to advancing the rights and interests of gender violence survivors. Garrard serves on the Sanctuary for Families’ Board of Directors, has provided training and technical assistance to its Legal Center, and represented Sanctuary for Families’ clients. Notably, he led the effort to secure a resentencing for Nikki Addimando, a Sanctuary for Families client, who was serving a 19-year-to-life sentence for killing her abuser. Ms. Addimando was released from prison following a landmark ruling that Garrard obtained under New York’s Domestic Violence Survivors Justice Act.
The Abely Awards honor the memory of the late Maryellen Abely, a former Davis Polk associate who worked at Sanctuary for Families’ Legal Center, where she was an advocate for survivors of domestic violence.