PBEye Blog - Page 25 of 68 - Pro Bono Institute

Food for Thought

January 5, 2017

After a food-filled holiday season, many of us begin the New Year with health-related resolutions. Want to learn more about pro bono efforts designed to fight hunger and increase access to nutritious food for those in need? While eating is on our minds, check out the Law Firm Pro Bono Project’s publication, Pro Bono Food for Thought: Improving Access to Nutrition. Pro bono efforts designed to support food access and security have the potential to transform a community. Examples include turning an abandoned lot into a productive urban farm and eliminating bureaucratic barriers obstructing food stamp distribution or access to school meal programs. Because

Free to Practice Pro Bono in Wisconsin!

January 3, 2017

Effective January 1, the more than 225 registered in-house counsel in Wisconsin may provide pro bono legal services without unnecessary restriction. Previously, in-house counsel licensed and in good standing in other jurisdictions and registered to work for their employer in Wisconsin were permitted to provide pro bono legal services only “to qualified clients of a legal service program.” See Wis. SCR 10.03(4)(f) (cmt.). The road to this change began several years ago when the Wisconsin ACC Chapter took up the issue. At the chapter’s urging, on October 7, 2015, the State Bar of Wisconsin filed a petition to amend the

Catching Kansas City

December 22, 2016

Earlier in December, the Law Firm Pro Bono Project was excited to travel to Kansas City, Missouri to participate in a groundbreaking and innovative luncheon with managing partners, chairmen, committee chairs, pro bono leaders, and other law firm leaders from six of the city’s largest law firms. We discussed the business case for law firm pro bono and heard from a special guest. Michael Levey of Quarles & Brady*† traveled from Milwaukee to share his law firm’s experience jumpstarting its pro bono program. He reinforced the message that law firms can be fierce competitors in the marketplace and collaborators to

CLOs on the Intersection of Pro Bono and CSR at the 2016 ACC Annual Meeting

December 22, 2016

A highlight of the in-house pro bono programming offered at the ACC Annual Meeting was a session featuring Susan Lees, executive vice president and general counsel for Allstate Insurance Company**, and Amy Weaver, executive vice president and general counsel for Salesforce**. The session, moderated by Eve Runyon, president and CEO of PBI, opened with Lees and Weaver discussing their experiences in starting and growing pro bono programs, as well as providing tips for how in-house departments could start, expand, or rejuvenate their pro bono programs. The speakers offered advice to the audience such as: partner with ACC chapters, law firms,

It’s Pro Bono Podcast Monday

December 19, 2016

Need some listening material for Winter break? Tune in to the Law Firm Pro Bono Project’s podcast, the Pro Bono Happy Hour, and learn about exciting and meaningful developments in the world of law firm pro bono and access to justice. Don’t miss our recent interview with Whitney Untiedt of Akerman†. Whitney talks to us about her career, the firm’s pro bono program, the pro bono culture in Florida, access to justice for “juvenile lifers,” poverty simulation exercises, and more. Subscribe to the Pro Bono Happy Hour in iTunes. Have you rated us on iTunes yet? Would you consider doing

Tapping Transitioning Baby-Boomers to Transform Pro Bono Work

December 15, 2016

Second Acts® is PBI’s innovative initiative to support transitioning and retired lawyers who are interested in second, volunteer careers in pro bono and public interest law. Despite the ongoing social justice gap for low-income and underserved populations, this seasoned and knowledgeable talent pool has been largely overlooked. In an effort to develop a bold, new model of legal retirement, we are working with our core constituencies, major law firms, in-house legal departments, and public interest organizations, to develop replicable projects that make strategic use of these experienced attorneys. Interested in sharing your law firm’s practices and your thoughts about how

It’s Pro Bono Podcast Monday

December 12, 2016

Need an antidote for the Monday blues? Tune in to the Law Firm Pro Bono Project’s podcast, the Pro Bono Happy Hour, and learn about exciting and meaningful developments in the world of law firm pro bono and access to justice. Don’t miss our recent interview with Michael Lucas of the Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation (AVLF). Michael talks to us about being a leader in the public interest community, providing the “best legal representation money can’t buy,” and trends in access to justice, including new, place-based initiatives designed to take pro bono services directly into the community. Subscribe to the

It’s Pro Bono Podcast Monday

December 5, 2016

Did you miss us over Thanksgiving break? Tune in to the Law Firm Pro Bono Project’s podcast, the Pro Bono Happy Hour, and learn about exciting and meaningful developments in the world of law firm pro bono and access to justice. Don’t miss our recent interview with Sarah Dohoney Byrne and Stephanie Gryder of Moore & Van Allen†. Sarah and Stephanie talk to us about the firm’s pro bono program, its Human Trafficking Pro Bono Project, the intersection of law firm pro bono and diversity/inclusion efforts, and more. Subscribe to the Pro Bono Happy Hour in iTunes. Have you rated

It’s Pro Bono Podcast Monday

November 21, 2016

Need some listening material for your Thanksgiving travels? Tune in to the Law Firm Pro Bono Project’s podcast, the Pro Bono Happy Hour, and learn about exciting and meaningful developments in the world of law firm pro bono and access to justice. Don’t miss our recent interview with Dawn Caldart of Quarles & Brady *†. Dawn talks to us about her career, the firm’s pro bono program, the pro bono culture in Milwaukee, the relationship of pro bono to lawyer professional development, and more. Subscribe to the Pro Bono Happy Hour in iTunes. Have you rated us on iTunes yet?

Pro Bono Values Project

November 17, 2016

“[I]t is the right thing to do. Everyone should have access to justice. A lot of people do not have access to justice because they cannot afford it. It is my spiritual view on humanity and my personal belief.” (Graduate Lawyer, Medium Law Firm.) We recently learned about an intriguing empirical study that examines the motivations of lawyers who participate in pro bono work. Over a four month period, the University of Queensland Pro Bono Centre at TC Beirne School of Law interviewed lawyers across Australia. The lawyers came from firms of various sizes, practice areas, and seniority levels. The