The Washington Lawyers' Committee holds an annual breakfast briefing in October to present its agenda for the upcoming year to the DC legal community.

For over 20 years, John L. Burke, Jr. served with distinction as the Committee's General Counsel and as a volunteer attorney on a series of significant Committee cases. Shortly after his untimely death in 2004, the Committee's Pro Bono Breakfast was renamed in his honor and a fund bearing his name was established. To date, the John Burke Memorial Fund has received over $100,000 in gifts. The proceeds of this fund are used to support the cause of pro bono service to which John contributed so greatly.