Law in service of others: The legacy of Frederick M. Nicholas

When I was seven years old, my grandfather, Frederick M. Nicholas, would often tell me, "Go to law school -- it will teach you how to think." At the time, it felt like a distant milestone, meant for a much older version of myself. I didn't yet grasp the full meaning of his advice, but it stayed with me. Over time, those words became the guiding force that shaped my path into the law.

To me, my grandfather was a titan. He led an extraordinary life: a decorated U.S. Army Captain in World War II, an accomplished attorney, a civic leader and a champion for civil rights. He played a pivotal role in shaping some of Los Angeles' most iconic public projects, including the Museum of Contemporary Art and the Walt Disney Concert Hall. But his most enduring legacy was founding Public Counsel, now the largest pro bono law firm in the nation.

The meaning behind his words began to unfold as I grew older. In high school, inspired by his example, I started a program connecting students with a clinic for homeless veterans. In college, I explored roles in local, state, and federal government, convinced that policy could drive change. Yet I found my deepest fulfillment in working directly with people who needed help -- listening to their personal issues and using my training to help them resolve a seemingly intractable issue.

Photo courtesy of Cole Nicholas

While volunteering at UC Berkeley's Student Advocate's Office, I saw firsthand how the law could be a tool for restoring hope. That was the first time I truly understood what my grandfather meant: learning the law is one of the most effective ways to serve others.

His life embodied that belief. Born in 1920 and raised in Los Angeles, he served with distinction in the U.S. Army for nearly five years, across North Africa, Sicily, Italy, and the Philippines, earning a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart. In 1941, at 21 years of age, he was stationed as a military police officer at the Tanforan Racetrack, which had been transformed by the Federal government into a Japanese American relocation camp. Appalled by the injustice, he took personal risks to smuggle food, supplies and belongings to the internees. Decades later, he returned to that same site to dedicate a memorial to those wrongfully held there.

Photo courtesy of Cole Nicholas

After the war, he worked as a journalist for the United Press in Hawaii covering the dock workers strikes before earning his law degree from USC in 1952. He went on to create a successful commercial real estate firm and legal practice.

In 1970, inspired by consumer activist Ralph Nader -- who scolded lawyers to give back to society -- he opened Public Counsel in a modest one-room office. Personally funding its creation and serving as its first president, he laid the foundation for what has become the largest pro bono law firm in the country. Today, Public Counsel serves more than 12,000 clients each year and advances justice through impact litigation and policy advocacy, tackling urgent issues from immigration and veterans' rights to economic justice and education.

His influence also reached far beyond the legal sphere. Known as "Mr. Downtown Culture," he played instrumental roles in bringing the Museum of Contemporary Art, the Geffen Contemporary and the Walt Disney Concert Hall to life. He applied the same discipline, diplomacy, and persistence that defined his legal work to building the city's cultural infrastructure, often working quietly behind the scenes to unite diverse stakeholders and make ambitious projects a reality. He also contributed to major national developments, including Washington, D.C.'s Ronald Reagan Building.

Over his career, he served on the boards of numerous civic and cultural organizations, including the ACLU and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and was recognized with numerous honors -- among them, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.

I grew up hearing stories about his work and was fortunate to witness it firsthand while volunteering at Public Counsel, first as an undergraduate and later as a law student. The clarity of his example crystallized when I clerked for Counsel's bankruptcy Self-Help Clinic. Even without a law degree, I could help people take meaningful steps toward relief simply by reviewing their forms and explaining the process. Those moments echoed the lesson my grandfather had lived: systematic thinking and compassion together can open doors for those who feel shut out.

In my current role as an associate attorney, I'm privileged to serve on Public Counsel's Leadership Council, continuing his mission of service in a new era.

Through every step, my grandfather's lesson has held true: law school taught me how to think, but his life taught me what to think about -- and who to serve. His legacy lives on not only in the institutions he built, but in the values he passed down. For me, that means using the law as a tool for compassion, justice and community -- just as he did.