PBEye Blog - Page 60 of 65 - Pro Bono Institute

Challenge Firm Partner: Pro Bono “Meaningful and Fulfilling”

August 18, 2011

Arnold & Porter LLP*, along with Archer & Greiner, the Brennan Center, and the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, is leading a pro bono project to challenge a newly enacted zoning law in Bridgewater, N.J., which was designed to block the development of a proposed mosque in the town. Arnold & Porter Partner Peter J. Zimroth spoke to 200 Muslim supporters of the Al Falah Center, and The New York Law Journal recently published his remarks. Zimroth speaks of an “evident injustice being done” to block the mosque’s construction, when there are 18 houses of worship in the

Global Spotlight: Elephant Energy

August 17, 2011

Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that.” Light, and pro bono service, we’d like to add. This week, The PBEye spied a pro bono empowered initiative, Elephant Energy, that quite literally drives out darkness from rural villages across Namibia by distributing sustainable energy technologies. Namibia lacks the resources to meet the energy needs of its rural population. Daily livelihood activities are rendered unsafe, inefficient, or even impossible without electricity. For example, between 1.3 and 1.6 million women and children die worldwide each year as a result of air pollution caused by smoke inhalation from cooking

SPENT

August 4, 2011

Poverty in the United States is often seen as a matter of choice and personal responsibility – we work hard, and they don’t. In reality, the difference between “us” and “them” can often be as random as a layoff, divorce, death in the family, medical emergency, or natural disaster. Nevertheless, the belief that “I’ll never be in that position” runs deep and this mindset, along with issues associated with class culture, and diversity, can pose a range of challenges for even the most well-meaning and sensitive law firm pro bono programs and participating lawyers. Poverty simulation exercises are one fantastic

Post-Flood Pro Bono in Pakistan

August 3, 2011

One year after last summer’s devastating and deadly floods, many of Pakistan’s 1,096,000 internally displaced people, along with Pakistan’s 702,000 Afghan refugees, remain hungry, homeless, and vulnerable to an array of grave rights violations. The PBEye is relieved to report that pro bono is beginning to make an appearance in Pakistan. According to The Pakistan Observer, the Islamabad-based NGO Struggle for Change (SACH) is harnessing pro bono power to protect victims of torture and other traumatic human rights violations. SACH supplies survivors with shelter, medical treatment, psychological support, and free legal services. Extensive recent media coverage of events in Pakistan and Afghanistan

Colbert Report Investigates Voting Rights

July 28, 2011

The Colbert Report Mon – Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c Voter ID Laws www.colbertnation.com Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor & Satire Blog Video Archive As the country gears up for the 2012 presidential election, an episode on last week’s Colbert Report took aim at state efforts to safeguard against alleged “voter fraud.” Many states, including Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Wisconsin have passed or are considering legislation that would require voters to produce government-issued photo IDs at the polls. These bills create new hurdles to the ballot box that are especially high for low-income, minority, college-age, and elderly voters,

Global Spotlight: Vitamin Angels

July 28, 2011

Surely by now you’ve read our article, Pro Bono Food for Thought: Improving Access to Nutrition, in this month’s edition of The Wire, so you’re well aware of the important role pro bono plays in improving access to food and nutrition across America. As it turns out, nutrition is an equally vital enterprise for firms and legal departments seeking to do global pro bono as well. Nine hundred and twenty-five million – or one out of every seven people in the world – went hungry last year, and one in three people in developing countries suffers vitamin and mineral deficiencies. According to UNICEF, children are exceptionally vulnerable:

Collaborating to Serve Consumer Debtors

July 26, 2011

In response to the economic downturn, a group of legal departments and a law firm are collaborating to support a New Jersey Volunteer Lawyers for Justice project dedicated to tackling issues facing consumer debtors. Lawyers from Prudential, AT&T**, Merck** and McCarter & English LLP* banded together to form Newark Legal Aid and Resource Clinic for Consumers (NLARCC), which provides legal assistance to an ever-increasing number of self-represented consumer debtors. Together, the group of lawyers has significantly increased capacity to address the uptick in consumer legal issues. The N.J. court system has been inundated with consumer-related cases, and the work of volunteer

Ashe Awardee Fights for Justice

July 15, 2011

Yet again, pro bono is found where one would least expect it. The PBEye was pleased to hear that ESPN gave the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage to Dewey Rader Bozella at its annual ESPY Awards earlier this week. Bozella, 51, was imprisoned for 26 years following a wrongful conviction in the gruesome murder of a 92-year-old woman in 1977. Our own Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge® Signatory WilmerHale was the firm behind Bozella’s 2009 release. But this pro bono miracle came only after many trials and tribulations for this innocent man. Bozella had a rough childhood, from witnessing his

VIDEO: Legal Services and You

July 14, 2011

As pro bono has grown and evolved over the years, partnerships among the various stakeholders regarding access to justice issues have become increasingly popular. Collaborations between law firms, corporate legal departments and legal services organizations have become more common as a way to pool resources and expertise for pro bono legal work. Now we are seeing even more involvement from government as various jurisdictions look to maximize often scarce resources for the administration of justice. The PBEye recently had a chance to speak with our friend Jim Sandman, president of the Legal Services Corporation, a federally established nonprofit designed to