Category: Law Firm Pro Bono

Summer at PBI

Summer is flying by and The PBEye would like to thank our Sheehan Scholars and interns for their hard work over the past few months. This summer, we welcomed our eighth class of Sheehan Scholars: Madeline Jenks (Harvard Law School) and Erin Killeen (Georgetown University Law Center). Bob Sheehan, who oversees the pro bono program at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom*†, former Executive Partner (1994-2009) and Co-Chair of the Law Firm Pro Bono Project Advisory Committee (2001-2015), and his family provided the financial support to launch this program in 2010, which has been named in his honor in recognition of his extraordinary

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It’s Pro Bono Podcast Monday

Don’t miss the latest episode of the Law Firm Pro Bono Project’s podcast, the Pro Bono Happy Hour, featuring Theodore Howard of Wiley Rein*†. Ted talks to us about serving as the firm’s first full-time Pro Bono Partner, his pro bono work on behalf of inmates and prison reform efforts, the firm’s pro bono program, and more. Subscribe to the Pro Bono Happy Hour on Apple Podcasts and be sure to leave a review! We’d appreciate the feedback and it would help us expand the conversation about access to justice. The podcast is also available on YouTube. Links to all

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The Essence of Pro Bono

PBI’s Law Firm Pro Bono Project released its annual Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge Report®, which examines the pro bono activities of Challenge signatories. We’ve previously shared highlights and written about attorney pro bono participation rates and law firm charitable giving. Another takeaway from 2016 is the percentage of total pro bono time devoted to those of limited means and the organizations that serve them. The Challenge asks firms to devote “a majority” of their pro bono time  “to persons of limited means or to charitable, religious, civic, community, governmental, and educational organizations in matters which are designed primarily to

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Happy Pro Bono Podcast Monday!

Don’t miss the latest episode of the Law Firm Pro Bono Project’s podcast, the Pro Bono Happy Hour, featuring Katie Cronin of Stinson Leonard Street*†. Katie talks to us about her career, the firm’s pro bono program, the access to justice culture in Kansas City, and how pro bono work “feeds her soul.” Want to learn more about the firm’s pro bono program? Search our archives for the episode featuring Theresa Hughes, Katie’s colleague and pro bono role model. Subscribe to the Pro Bono Happy Hour on Apple Podcasts and be sure to leave a review! We’d appreciate the feedback

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Instagram for Justice

Did you know social media can be good business? It can! A study by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation found that neutral feelings towards a company can be shifted to positive by increasing the promotion of CSR using social media.  By expanding their social media presence to include emerging applications like Instagram, law firms and their pro bono programs can not only increase engagement but connect visually with clients, partners, the community, and others while promoting pro bono and access to justice. Previously, we have discussed the impact of cultivating a law firms’ social media presence to promote their

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It’s Pro Bono Podcast Monday

Don’t miss the latest episode of the Law Firm Pro Bono Project’s podcast, the Pro Bono Happy Hour, featuring Courtney Darts of the Pro Bono Partnership. Courtney talks to us about pro bono initiatives to support nonprofit organizations, transactional pro bono opportunities that strengthen communities, advice for aspiring public interest lawyers, and more. Subscribe to the Pro Bono Happy Hour on Apple Podcasts and be sure to leave a review! We’d appreciate the feedback and it would help us expand the conversation about access to justice. The podcast is also available on YouTube. Links to all of our episodes can

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Partners Versus Associates

We’ve previously shared highlights from the 2016 Report on the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge®, such as information about law firm charitable giving. Challenge signatories visibly acknowledge their institutional, firm-wide commitment to provide pro bono legal services. They agree that they “will use [their] best efforts to ensure that a majority of both partners and associates in the firm participate annually in pro bono activities.” Participation rates in 2016 remained steady for both partners and associates: 65.5% of partners and 84.4% of associates participated in pro bono, with an overall attorney participation rate of 74.9%. Many law firms struggle with

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It’s Pro Bono Podcast Monday

Celebrate our “diamond” program with us! Don’t miss the 75th episode of the Law Firm Pro Bono Project’s podcast, the Pro Bono Happy Hour, featuring Susan Hoffman of Crowell & Moring*. Susie talks to us about her career, the firm’s pro bono program and foundation, the “loaned lawyer” program, and more. Subscribe to the Pro Bono Happy Hour on Apple Podcasts and be sure to leave a review! We’d appreciate the feedback and it would help us expand the conversation about access to justice. The podcast is also available on YouTube. Links to all of our episodes can be found here.

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It’s Pro Bono Podcast Monday

As we start this patriotic holiday week, do you need a break from thinking about the state of our union? How about focusing instead on the state of pro bono? Don’t miss the latest episode of the Law Firm Pro Bono Project’s podcast, the Pro Bono Happy Hour, Pro Bono: Beyond the Numbers, during which we discuss the recently published 2016 Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge® Report, the current pro bono landscape, concrete and doable tips for improvement and growth, and more. Subscribe to the Pro Bono Happy Hour on Apple Podcasts and be sure to leave a review! We’d

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Mischief Managed!

We couldn’t help but notice that the “Harry Potter” series turned 20 this week. Wow! Time flies. You don’t have to be a child or a wizard to appreciate the spell cast by J.K. Rowling. Pro bono-supporting muggles could learn a lot from her and the magical world that she created. One of our favorite takeaways is from a speech she gave in 2008 at Harvard University: “We do not need magic to transform the world.  We carry all the power we need inside ourselves already. We have the power to imagine better.” Like all struggles, the march toward access

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