James R. Boyle Award: Lorna Affronti finds calling as advocate for children

When Lorna Affronti began her career as a one-woman family law practice in 1998, she made a decision that has shaped her career, her life and the lives of many children: She became a member of both the Monroe County Assigned Counsel and Fourth Judicial Department’s Law Guardian panels, figuring it would be a good way to gain experience.

Affronti figured right. She also, in the process, discovered what she considers her calling.

“I found that I enjoyed working with children,” Affronti says, “They are the most important party in any family litigation and are the most invisible.”

Affronti has gone on to become a passionate voice for children, which has earned her the Legal Aid Society of Rochester’s 2017 James R. Boyle Award for outstanding achievement in the field of child advocacy. The award is named after the former long-time executive director of the Legal Aid Society, who became the first Monroe County Family Court law guardian in in 1962.

“Lorna is a dedicated advocate for children,” says Stephen Weisbeck, director of the Legal Aid Society’s Juvenile Justice Division. ”She has accepted assignments on a wide variety of custody and neglect cases. She does not back down from the more challenging JD and PINS cases and is a thorough and passionate advocate for every child client she serves.”

Affronti traveled quite a distance to become a champion for children in Monroe County. Her family emigrated from England when she was 5 and she grew up in Hilton, where her father, S. Geoffrey Stead, was a doctor.

“I knew I wanted to be a lawyer early in high school because I looked up to a female friend of the family who was practicing locally at the time,” says Affronti, who went to high school at Cardinal Mooney.

She attended undergraduate school at SUNY Binghamton, majoring in political science and economics, and then went on to University at Buffalo Law School, where she received her degree in 1997. Affronti was admitted to the bar the following year and began her solo practice.

Two years later, Affronti put her family law practice on hold to work on her own family. What started out as a six-month break turned into 10 years as a stay-at-home mom and part-time real estate attorney. At one point, Affronti and her husband — attorney Francis “Chris” Affronti, son of state Supreme Court Justice Francis A. Affronti — had four children under 5, including twins, in the house.

“Being a stay-at-home mom was and is amazing, “Affronti says. “I wouldn’t have changed it for anything; that is my true accomplishment, four incredible kids. Nevertheless, when my twins began full-time school, I did start building up my practice again.”

Affronti, who resumed practicing family law in 2010, says her work is both rewarding and, at times, “quite frustrating.” She cites the case of a 16-year-old boy she has represented since he was 9.

“I keep fighting for him, doing my job, getting him out of trouble only to have his home life not support him to the point that he might be better off placed outside of his home anyway,” Affronti says. “With the family and community support sometimes lacking, he and many others fall between the cracks. Sometimes it’s hard to remain objective as the relationship grows between the client and me. I think that’s a struggle all AFCs (Attorneys for Children) deal with.”

Throughout the highs and lows and in-betweens, Affronti finds Family Court to be a “great environment” to practice in.

“The judges, support staff and other attorneys are really supportive of each other,” she says. “The camaraderie is a saving grace.”

Richard Zitrin is a Rochester-area freelance writer.