Pro bono can be very rewarding and powerful for lawyers. This week we hear from David Stern, executive director of Equal Justice Works on why instilling certain values in young lawyers is so important. YouTube Link
The summer always seems to come and go so fast doesn’t it? Labor Day is a few days away, and we at The PBEye have stopped to reflect on some of our experiences over the summer. First, we thank (and very much miss) our summer interns So Jin Kim, Juliet Mun, John Treat, and Alex Wodarczyk for their hard work over the past few months. We have high expectations for all four of them and wish them the best of luck in their studies and careers. We also are extremely grateful to two special guests who spent time with the
Yesterday marked the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom and Martin Luther King Jr.’s iconic “I Have a Dream” speech. Thousands of people participated in a week-long commemoration of the events of August 28, 1963, supporting King’s dream of racial harmony and the fight for justice and equality. Our vision of equality has broadened in scope to include all who face discrimination and economic hardship, such as people of color, women, immigrants, laborers, people with disabilities, and members of the LGBT community. Despite much progress that has been made since 1963, persistent problems remain, especially
The end of summer is quickly approaching and the PBEye has one last pro bono-themed reading suggestion for this season. In case you missed it, The National Law Journal featured an article by PBI President and CEO Esther F. Lardent about the intersection of current ethical rules and pro bono service. Do you think our ethics framework has kept pace with changes in law practice, access to justice, and pro bono service? Read how, in our view, regulations that impede access to justice and roadblocks caused by outdated and impractical ethical rules, such as limitations on multijurisdictional practice, restrictive student practice
More than 60 firms have already become Law Firm Pro Bono Project Members for 2013-2014. Submit your Membership Invoice before September 1 to receive a 10% discount. Registration is quick and easy! As a Member Firm, you will have access to resources to help ensure the health and vitality of your pro bono program, such as expert consulting services; discounted registration to the PBI Annual Conference; free publications, webinars, and podcasts; exclusive conference calls on hot topics in law firm pro bono; assistance from CPBO; and access to the Project’s Members-only section of the Resource Clearinghouse on the PBI website.
Has it been a year already? Last summer, PBI President and CEO Esther F. Lardent, CPBO Director Eve Runyon, and Walgreen Co.** General Counsel Thomas Sabatino presented at the annual meeting of Conference of Chief Justices (CCJ) and the Conference of State Court Administrators (COSCA) to the CCJ Professionalism and Competence of the Bar Committee and the CCJ/COSCA Access, Fairness and Public Trust Committee on the burdensome multijurisdictional practice (MJP) rules that restrict some in-house lawyers from providing pro bono services. At that meeting, the CCJ and COSCA adopted Resolution 11, which asks CCJ members to “consider promoting the expansion of
As widespread federal spending cuts known as sequestration continue to impact various government agencies, leading to, among other things, furloughs and closures, we can expect to see particularly dire consequences for our courts and the administration of justice. The PBEye recently reported that our criminal justice system is in jeopardy, and the sharp budget reductions for Federal Defender programs have even further threatened legal services for the poor. For example, sequestration has led to furloughs and layoffs of public defenders across the country, which reduces case loads and causes trial delays, diminishing the overall quality of legal representation. Cases that
What phone number do you give to your clients when providing pro bono assistance? And better yet, what email address? Providing pro bono clients effective representation certainly requires accessible and practical levels of communication, which raises the question: Do you use your work or personal contact information? The following graphs from CPBO’s 2012 Benchmarking Survey Report show the percentage of respondent legal departments that permit volunteers to use company letterhead, email accounts, and phone numbers when communicating with pro bono clients: When volunteers are not permitted to use company letterhead, email accounts, or phone numbers, 45% of the time the
We at The PBEye spend a lot of time thinking, talking, and writing about why lawyers, law firms, and legal departments should do pro bono work. As we previously reported, volunteering leads to longer and healthier lives according to a study by the Corporation for National and Community Service. A recent report by UnitedHealth Group** and the Optum Institute provides further evidence that volunteering is linked to better physical, mental, and emotional health, with 76% of people who volunteer saying that it has made them feel healthier. In addition to improving health, the study finds that those who volunteer have
Want to supplement your pro bono summer reading with an inspirational access to justice themed film? Check out the new documentary Gideon’s Army, which has been showing at film festivals across the country and premiered on HBO earlier this month. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court case Gideon v. Wainwright, which ruled that state courts are required to provide counsel to criminal defendants who cannot afford a lawyer (for more reflections on Gideon, browse the Yale Law Journal’s June issue). This inspirational and compelling documentary focuses on public defenders in the Deep South as they
