PBEye Blog - Page 63 of 65 - Pro Bono Institute

Walmart to Launch Signature Medical-Legal Partnership

May 5, 2011

A new player enters the world of in-house pro bono with a bang. The Walmart* legal department will launch a medical-legal partnership (MLP) project with Arkansas Children’s Hospital and Legal Aid of Arkansas this spring. A relatively unchartered arena in in-house pro bono, Walmart’s MLP will be a signature project for its legal department, and will include both onsite and virtual pro bono opportunities for Walmart lawyers and legal staff. Onsite, legal professionals become a part of the healthcare team. Doctors will refer patients to lawyers for legal assistance when appropriate. Just as a pediatrician refers a patient to a radiologist for

Guest Blog: Pro Bono and Your Partner Retreat

May 3, 2011

For a relatively new Pro Bono Director like me, the opportunity to present at the annual McCarter & English* partner retreat would ordinarily be an invaluable time to educate partners about our growing pro bono program. The only wrinkle: our 2011 retreat’s theme of “business development.” After a moment of panic (“I am a public interest lawyer, what in the heck do I know about business development?”), I realized that this theme would push me to educate the partnership about how a meaningful pro bono program can contribute to the bottom line — an important topic in these challenging economic

VIDEO: Pro Bono Potential in Virginia

May 2, 2011

In the most recent edition of The National Law Journal, PBI President and CEO Esther F. Lardent writes about multijurisdictional practice issues through the lens of two states that have made progressive decisions that impact in-house pro bono. Lardent’s column examines the rules in many states that “handcuff [attorneys] with restrictions that are unnecessary, insulting and unjustifiable in the face of the crisis in access to justice,” while making the case for more freedom for in-house attorneys to do pro bono work. As you may have read here on The PBEye, last month the Virginia Supreme Court removed restrictions on pro bono practice

Four Firms Collaborate with Appleseed on New Report

April 28, 2011

This week our friends at Appleseed released the report: Children at the Border: the Screening, Protection, and Repatriation of Unaccompanied Mexican Minors, which exposes noncompliance with the 2008 federal Trafficking Victim Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA). TVPRA, which was intended to prevent human trafficking and exploitation, has not been fully implemented or followed at the U.S.-Mexico border, where Mexican children unaccompanied by an adult are often shuttled back across the border without protection or proper care. As a result, thousands of children are needlessly exposed to human trafficking by drug cartels and criminal gangs, or repatriated to potentially abusive and dangerous

Getting Others Involved in Pro Bono

April 26, 2011

In-house pro bono is not just for lawyers. A recent benchmarking survey published by CPBO found that nearly 92 percent of responding legal departments involve non-lawyers in pro bono work. Aside from managing the administration of pro bono work and serving on pro bono committees, paralegals and other staff play an important role in serving in-house pro bono clients. Involving non-lawyers in pro bono activities increases the department’s capacity to provide legal services. Quite simply, more hands on deck means that more legal needs are met. Non-lawyers often possess unique skills useful in the provision of pro bono legal service. For example, some

Coming Soon! Talent Management for Law Firm Pro Bono

April 22, 2011

Just in time for our spring reading list, the Law Firm Pro Bono Project is set to release a new toolkit offering guidance and tips for using pro bono opportunities as part of any core competency and performance evaluation system. In the aftermath of the economic downturn, numerous large law firms have reevaluated their attorney management strategies. Many of the nation’s largest and most prominent firms have announced that they transitioned away from the “lockstep” model and turned to one focused on core competencies. Associates are now required to master certain delineated skills in order to advance in salary, billing

Virginia is for Pro Bono Lovers

April 19, 2011

The PBEye was delighted to see that, effective April 15, 2011, the Virginia Supreme Court approved an amendment to its rules, removing restrictions that limited certified in-house counsel’s ability to provide pro bono work to deserving and needy clients in Virginia. Now, certified in-house attorneys may provide pro bono service, subject only to the conditions that apply to all Virginia attorneys – the Virginia Rules of Professional Conduct. This change empowers the more than 800 certified in-house attorneys in Virginia to provide desperately needed assistance to low-income individuals and organizations. We hope this amendment will serve as an example for other

Do You Track Your In-House Pro Bono?

April 18, 2011

Should in-house legal departments track pro bono activities? The answer is a resounding YES! Even if your company does not track work by time spent, it is still a best practice among legal departments to measure pro bono work. When it comes to pro bono, there are several metrics you might consider tracking. Many departments track the percentage of lawyers and legal department staff that participate in pro bono in a year. This metric encourages teamwork and engagement and helps a department measure the growth of the pro bono program over time. The Corporate Pro Bono ChallengeSM – the only national

Top 10 Things to Consider For Your Pro Bono Partnership

April 15, 2011

We all learn at an early age how to work together . . . and pro bono is no different! A successful pro bono partnership between a law firm and a corporate legal department is an important evolution of both pro bono programs. Done properly and building on existing strengths, a partnership can generate more resources for pro bono and can foster a valuable relationship. Here is a top ten list of questions to consider before embarking on a pro bono partnership: 1. Is your firm or legal department ready for a partnership? Do you have a sustained and effective pro

Arkansas Decision Good, But Not Good Enough

April 12, 2011

Unnecessary Restrictions on In-House Pro Bono While in-house pro bono has grown considerably in the past few years, state restrictions on multijurisdictional practice are still a significant hurdle. CPBO, with PBI, ACC, and a taskforce of in-house counsel, is working to address this important issue and has drafted model language to help. The rules in most states allow in-house counsel who are admitted to practice and are in good standing in one or more jurisdictions, but are not licensed in the state in which they are working, to provide legal services to their in-state employer. However, many of these states are