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Interview with Tiela Chalmers, CEO, Alameda County Bar Association and Legal Access Alameda
As PBI was preparing to go to press with the following interview and blog discussing disaster relief with an expert in such matters, the U.S. was hit with more natural disasters, including the Maui wildfires and its tragic impacts. We are saddened by these events, which underscore the need for pro bono volunteers to gear themselves to assist with disaster recovery efforts. For those interested in helping in Hawaii, there are a variety of opportunities available.
What are some common challenges law firms have trying to participate in pro bono regarding natural disasters from your perspective and experience?
TC:
From your perspective, how has the rise of the year-long season of wildfires in California given rise to pro bono work?
TC:
What were some unanticipated challenges that arose when creating your program Legal First Responders? What were some difficulties in implementing the program in its beginning stages?
TC:
How can Legal First Responders and its resources be expanded and applied to other states? Can it be easily replicated in other areas of the country or used to respond to international natural disasters?
TC:
With a shortage of lawyers for the increased number of cases post-covid, what are some steps Legal First Responders has taken to combat the problem?
TC:
Given your experience, what is the best way for law firms or corporate law departments to engage in pro bono work in natural disasters?
TC:
How has your approach to disaster prep changed over the past 10 years w/ understanding that rate of disasters has increased?
TC:
What are lessons you’ve learned over time that impact how legal service organizations, law firms and corporate legal departments conduct pro bono work related to natural disasters? What about the work still surprises you today?
TC:
On-demand sessions recorded at the PBI 2023 Annual Conference are now available online via West LegalEdcenter (WLEC). You must have or create a free WLEC profile to access this on-demand content.
Thirteen of the 15 programs offer CLE credit in many jurisdictions. Paid registrants of the 2023 Annual Conference may access these recordings at no cost through October 31, 2023, using a promotion code previously emailed to them. Others may access the programs for a fee.
The 15 recordings available are:
You may access additional on-demand programs from PBI via WLEC. For more information, contact PBI at pbi@probonoinst.org.
An icon of the pop art movement, there is no doubt that Andy Warhol has become a common household name. However, what may be less known in households is the recent Supreme Court case of the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts v. Goldsmith, involving a claim by professional photographer Lynn Goldsmith, that Warhol’s silkscreen images based on her photograph of the musician Prince infringed her copyright. The case made it to the Supreme Court and, in a seven to two decision, the Court ruled against the Warhol Foundation.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor delivered the Court’s opinion, stating that “Goldsmith’s original works, like those of other photographers, are entitled to copyright protection, even against famous artists.” The majority opinion goes on to say that because both Goldsmith’s original photograph and the Foundation’s use of the art were of a commercial nature, a fair use defense did not apply. With this ruling also comes the potential for more copyright infringement cases to arise alongside a requirement to analyze the purpose of an artwork. In her dissent, Justice Kagan writes that the Court’s decision has “troubling” consequences “for other artists” and “will stifle creativity of every sort” by inhibiting transformative uses of prior works. This case reminds us that although art and law may seem like completely disparate fields, they are intertwined.
The Supreme Court’s ruling presents a great opportunity to delve deeper into the relationship between art and law, and explore the important role that the law has on artists and their art. Though some artists may wish to create art and express themselves without any concerns for society’s laws, in reality, legal issues can stand in their way. For example, the case of Rogers v. Koons further illustrates that artists can find themselves on the wrong side of a copyright infringement claim if they fail to recognize the limits on their ability to use prior works as inspiration. In the case of photographer Art Rogers, his photo depicting a couple holding a line of puppies in a row influenced artist Jeff Koons’s exhibit on the banality of everyday items, including statues based on the image. After Koons made a significant profit, Rogers sued Koons for copyright infringement. In that case, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit decided the case in favor of the photographer, and Rogers ultimately reached a settlement with Koons.
FIND OUT some examples of how law firms and corporations have provided artists and artistic institutions with the pro bono legal counsel they need in our recent blog.
Did you know? Membership in the Law Firm Pro Bono Project® initiative comes with a wealth of benefits, including at least 15 hours of free consulting services that can assist you with pro bono policy reviews, program benchmarking, pro bono retreat design and implementation, and more! Firm level memberships are available for around 25¢/month/attorney.
The deadline to enroll has been extended to September 14, 2023, for membership through 2024 or 2025, and you’ll receive a 10% discount for a one-year membership or a 20% discount for a two-year membership. Join today!
Each year, the signatories to the PBI Law Firm Pro Bono Project Challenge® and Corporate Pro Bono Challenge® initiatives provide important pro bono services to underserved, disadvantaged, and other individuals or groups unable to secure the legal assistance needed to address critical problems. The PBI Signatory Showcase spotlights some of the exceptional work signatories have done to serve those in need.
PBI 2023 ANNUAL DINNER
Monday, October 16, 2023
6:00 p.m. | Reception
7:00 p.m. | Dinner and Awards Presentation
Gotham Hall
1356 Broadway (at 36th Street) | New York
AWARDS TO BE PRESENTED
2023 John H. Pickering Award
honoring a law firm for its outstanding commitment to pro bono legal services
2023 CPBO Pro Bono Partner Award
honoring innovative pro bono collaborations of in-house legal departments with law firms and public interest organizations
in partnership with
Welcome.US
and
Welcome Legal Alliance
______________________________
in partnership with
Baker McKenzie
_____________________________________________________
For more information or to inquire about sponsorship opportunities, please contact:
Danny Reed, Director of Development
dreed@probonoinst.org | 202.729.6691
Since the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, Accenture has partnered with Welcome.US and the Welcome Legal Alliance (WLA) to serve Afghan refugees who relocated to the U.S. Accenture’s legal department has applied its expertise, energy, and enthusiasm to the work of Welcome.US and has pioneered new models to scale pro bono representation for Afghan refugees.
Since the beginning of Accenture’s partnership with the Welcome Legal Alliance, more than 240 Accenture pro bono volunteers — including nearly 100 attorneys and an additional 66 legal professionals — have contributed over 1,100 pro bono hours in service of more than 660 Welcome Legal Alliance clients.
Following the withdrawal, over 80,000 Afghan refugees relocated to the U.S., with 90 percent of this population entering the U.S. under humanitarian parole, a two-year temporary status. After arriving in the U.S., the Afghan refugees needed to apply for affirmative asylum to remain in the country. This led to a massive influx of asylum applications entering the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) department.
The need to quickly assist so many Afghan refugees with asylum presented an opportunity to reimagine the legal support framework and make pro bono opportunities more accessible to in-house legal teams at a time when demand outstripped pro bono capacity at major law firms.
In response, the Welcome.US coalition to support newcomers seeking refuge was formed, including the creation of the Welcome.us CEO Council, co-led by Julie Sweet, Chair and CEO of Accenture and Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google. The Council works to galvanize the private sector and its employees to help newcomers resettle in the U.S.
Accenture’s partnership with Welcome.US has supported several new models to scale pro bono legal aid for Afghan refugees. WLA and the Accenture team helped over 600 Afghan applicants through the asylum process.
The Justice in Action project, a collaboration of more than 60 legal departments and Baker McKenzie*† , builds community across industries, geographies, and cultures through pro bono. Justice in Action addresses compelling social justice challenges around the globe through impactful research projects on behalf of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that serve vulnerable populations. The program has revolutionized how pro bono is executed through an original, collaborative virtual “sprint” format, that allows teams of volunteers from Baker McKenzie and legal departments to effectively conduct the legal research and analysis needed to create a number of capacity-building tools that have assisted vulnerable populations and others who need to understand the law.
Since May 2021, 3,391 participants have joined this initiative. Around 90 percent of participants are lawyers, 10 percent are legal staff, 2,430 are from in-house legal departments, and 961 are Baker McKenzie employees.
This partnership has engaged teams of problem-solvers on some of the world’s most compelling social justice challenges relating to racism, mental health, justice crossing borders, and child welfare.
PBI 2024 ANNUAL CONFERENCE
March 6 – 8, 2024 | Renaissance Downtown Hotel | Washington, D.C.
* denotes a Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge® signatory
** denotes a Corporate Pro Bono Challenge® signatory
† denotes a Law Firm Pro Bono Project® member