Tobias Simon was a Miami civil rights

Civil rights

Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...

 lawyer, perhaps best known for his work in the 60's, defending the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and other activists. Mr. Simon, provided legal counsel regarding marches in Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

 and throughout the Deep South

Deep South

The Deep South is a descriptive category of the cultural and geographic subregions in the American South. Historically, it is differentiated from the "Upper South" as being the states which were most dependent on plantation type agriculture during the pre-Civil War period...

. Simon also was a leader of Florida opposition to the death penalty in the 1960s and 1970s and was particularly concerned about the discriminatory imposition of the death penalty on blacks.

Simon was a native of Montreal

Montreal

Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...

, a graduate of Harvard Law School

Harvard Law School

Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...

, began his law career in New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

, and moved to Miami. He died of cancer in February 1982, at the age of 52.

The Tobias Simon Pro Bono Service Award, created in 1982, is Florida’s highest statewide pro bono

Pro bono

Pro bono publico is a Latin phrase generally used to describe professional work undertaken voluntarily and without payment or at a reduced fee as a public service. It is common in the legal profession and is increasingly seen in marketing, technology, and strategy consulting firms...

award. It is presented annually by the chief justice to a private lawyer for voluntary, free legal services to the poor. It is intended to encourage extraordinary contributions by recognizing the Florida attorney who best exemplifies the highest ideals of the profession by making legal services available to people who otherwise could not afford them, and to focus public awareness on the substantial voluntary services rendered by Florida lawyers in this area. The Tobias Simon Pro Bono Service Award is believed to be the first of its kind in the country conferring recognition by the state's highest court. See web site of The Florida Bar.