Pro Bono in Action: Chicago Business Litigation Boutique Partners with Local Legal Services Program to Help Students Stay in School

Often pro bono coordinators hear that small, business focused, law firm attorneys are hesitant to take pro bono cases because legal aid work is either outside of their comfort zone or too time consuming. A recent partnership between Chicago legal services program LAF and Novack and Macey, LLP (Novack and Macey) defies that stereotype and is changing the lives of local Chicago students in the process.

LAF has always been dedicated to assisting those who cannot afford legal counsel navigate the legal system.  The program also helps these individuals to understand and safeguard their rights as a step toward achieving economic self-sufficiency for themselves and their families.  One of the ways LAF achieves this mission is by handling school suspension, expulsion and certain special education cases for the residents of suburban Cook County, Illinois. 

Novack and Macey, a Chicago business litigation boutique, recently partnered with LAF to represent students whose families cannot afford a lawyer in school discipline and special education cases. It is clear that it is vitally important for these students to stay in school and receive appropriate services to meet their needs. Through their enrollment in school, not only do these students receive the education that is so necessary for them to thrive in society, they also receive much needed attention from caring adults that can benefit them in a myriad of ways.

Novack and Macey has agreed to accept 10 of these cases a year and currently represents two clients through the program. Firm attorneys have received specialized training for these assignments from LAF. 

This is not Novack and Macey’s first pro bono partnership with LAF. The two organizations previously partnered to represent other Chicago area clients living in poverty, including people who have received decisions denying their Social Security disability claims.

Novack and Macey Partner Steve Siegel, the firm’s pro bono coordinator, explained that the new special education and school discipline program “is a great way for our attorneys to make a difference in the lives of children who are facing potentially life-altering decisions by their schools but whose parents and guardians cannot afford to hire a lawyer to represent their child.” Partner Courtney Tedrowe and associate Alex Berg also helped launch the firm’s newest pro bono program.

This partnership is a great illustration of how law firms and lawyers of all backgrounds can truly make a difference through pro bono service. As Diana C. White, LAF’s Executive Director put it, “Novack and Macey is a wonderful partner with LAF in improving access to education for students who are struggling with disabilities and poverty. The attorneys are enthusiastic, committed and bring high-quality litigation skills to bear on the clients’ cases. We are delighted that they approached us and look forward to continuing this extremely beneficial relationship.”

What successful partnership has your program or law firm participated in? Share your stories with us in the comments below.

Let’s Take a Deep Breath of Fresh Air

Today’s guest blogger, Kathy Para, is President of the Florida Pro Bono Coordinators Association, Member of the Equal Justice Conference Host Committee and a Jacksonville Resident.

The ABA and the NLADA invite us to take a deep breath of fresh air in beautiful Jacksonville, Florida.  We all know too well the plight of the poor and the challenges they face daily.  We are on the front line doing our best to improve legal services by being more efficient, recruiting more volunteers, and utilizing current tools more efficiently.  At the same time, we’re all being asked to do more with less.  In these times the Equal Justice Conference (EJC) is a breath of fresh air.  The ABA and the NLADA have put together a line up of dozens of workshops and networking opportunities to educate and rejuvenate us and I am privileged to be one of many who are excited about welcoming you to Jacksonville, Florida for this great event!

During the conference, your local EJC Host Committee invites you to visit the Host Committee’s and Florida Pro Bono Coordinators Association’s “Welcome!” table in the vendor fair.  Here you will be able to pick up information about our statewide “One” Campaign to encourage pro bono service and “One” Campaign treats (limited supply so come early).   Your local EJC Host Committee, along with The Jacksonville Bar Association, invite you to the annual “Paws and Laws” party at the Jaguars stadium, Everbank Field, West Club. From 5:30 – 11:00. The event will include a reception and wine tasting, presentation by the NFL Jaguars, dinner, open bar, casino night, and live music.  Shuttles will transport you to and from the Hyatt. 

Now, as a Jacksonville resident, I’m especially pleased to welcome you to our fair city!  If you have not already, visit the Equal Justice Conference website, and on the left panel click on “Things to See and Do in Jacksonville”.   If your visit is going to be very short and you do not expect to get away from downtown, be sure to take a few minutes to walk out onto the Northbank Riverwalk just outside the Hyatt.  You will have a beautiful view of the river and will immediately get an idea of how important the river is to us.  The Northbank Riverwalk is walker/runner friendly and connects our artsy Riverside neighborhood with Metropolitan Park (a large urban park next to our sports complex and public television station).  At the Hyatt, you will also be very close to the center of downtown, Hemming Plaza, where our fantastic Museum of Contemporary Art and our Main Library are located.  

If you are staying after the conference, and have some time before you depart, here are some easy suggestions:  Walk the Riverwalk going west and you will end up at the Riverside Arts Market.  It is held every Saturday and is located under the Fuller Warren Bridge.  You will enjoy great food vendors, live entertainment, and a chance to browse local art.  Take a water taxi (ask the Concierge to point you in the right direction for water taxi pick-up) across to the Southbank Riverwalk and go to the Museum of Science and History and River City Brewing Company for lunch or dinner.  Then, there are always our beautiful beaches (about a 30-minute drive from downtown), the Jacksonville Zoo, and the Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens.  We expect temperatures to be in the mid 80’s and on the river and at the beach there is always a breeze.  The ABA, NLADA, your Host Committee, the Florida Pro Bono Coordinators Association, and The Jacksonville Bar Association are happy to offer the Equal Justice Conference and to give us all a chance to take a deep breath of fresh air.

During his 2012 Law Day Remarks this morning, Chief Judge Lippman announced an impending requirement for “each and every applicant for admission to contribute 50 hours of participation in law-related and uncompensated pro bono service before they can practice in New York State.”

The requirement would not go into effect until 2013 and could be accomplished in a myriad of ways. As Judge Lippman stated, “it will not be solely the responsibility of law schools to provide pro bono opportunities, although there are law schools that already require some pro bono service to graduate, and most law schools today have an impressive array of clinical programs to offer their students.” Other suggested methods included working with legal service providers, internships and working with local bar associations to find pro bono opportunities. The Chief Judge also acknowledged that “while most applicants to the bar will want to complete their pro bono service during the law school years or over the summers, they will also have the option to do so after graduation, or even after taking the bar exam or after beginning a paid legal position in a law firm or elsewhere.”

The specifics of the requirement are forthcoming but what is currently evident is that applicants will be required to submit an affidavit describing the nature of their pro bono work, the organization and individual lawyer who provided supervision and the dates and hours of service.

In support of this new endeavor, the Chief Judge pointed out that each year nearly 10,000 prospective lawyers pass the New York bar and that requiring 50 hours of pro bono service from each of these individuals could create almost a half million hours of service to benefit those in need of legal help.

What do you think about this new and innovative requirement? Is it a step in the right direction? Leave your thoughts below in the comments.

Community Profiles: Erick Cordero Giorgana, Alaska Legal Services Corporation (Cont’d)

In Today’s post we complete our discussion with Erick Cordero Giorgana from the Alaska Pro Bono Program of Alaska Legal Services Corporation. Erick shares another project his program has used to address the needs of members of Alaska’s rural communities.

What other projects are you using to address the unique challenge of working in such a large rural service area?

Another project we have been using thus far to meet the need of rural communities is the Adopt a Region program. To address the needs of communities without local attorneys we approached a “large law firm” (10 or more for Alaska) in Anchorage about an idea where they would adopt a region of Alaska and provide pro bono representation to individuals living in that area. A few years ago we started an attorney of the day program in Anchorage, where a local law firm would donate an attorney for a day to give advice or screening to qualified individuals. I thought to myself “why couldn’t we do that for rural areas of Alaska?” I approached Patton Boggs and asked them if they would consider adopting a region, similar to what we do in anchorage with the attorney of the day. Hypothetically, clients would apply for services at the local ALSC office and if they qualified financially they would receive services. Patton Boggs agreed to take cases from almost any subject area and adopted the city of Nome andAlaska’s North Slope Borough, the northern most area of Alaska located in the Arctic. They were flexible enough so that anyone who applied from those regions they would consider on a case by case basis.

Partnerships such as this one are great because our local offices can focus on the local regions when they have the commitment from that law firm. Prior to this agreement with Patton Boggs we did not have an office in that area so that entire region was being serviced by our Fairbanks office. After the adoption we were able to handle more cases. It also got the law firm excited because they were a part of a pro bono program that was pretty unique. We are now opening an office in that area which should enhance the project in two ways. First, by having a local office more people will have an opportunity to be pre-screened and matched with a pro bono attorney. Second, we will have a local representation in the community that will provide us a better opportunity to advertise our services. Before the possibility of having an office in that area we partnered with local non profits and faith-based agencies to advertise that we had services available.

It is important to point out that for programs who are not able to have a physical presence in rural communities, partnering with community members can be one of the best ways to get the word out about available services to individuals who really need the help but do not know how to get it. One of the great things for our program is that re-opening this office (ALSC once had a Barrow office, but it had to close due to budgetary constraints) will not create an increased financial burden. We were already receiving the referrals and now we will have a better streamlined process for handling them. The law firm’s attorneys will still assess issues on a case by case basis but there will be more access for clients. I’m excited to say that we now have 3 other law firms interested in adopting regions. The firms find it to be unique and they are excited to focus on one geographical area and really make an impact. One of the law firms is considering a similar partnership where they will limit the practice areas in which they will provide representation to really develop expertise in those areas as well. It becomes an even more mutually beneficial partnership where clients are receiving services they otherwise might not receive and firms are gaining valuable experience and training while truly making a concerted impact in a particular area and seeing the fruits of their labor.

What was the greatest lesson you learned about managing pro bono?

That a “no” just means “not now.” I think that attorneys are generous even though they can sometimes have a bad reputation outside of the legal field. Most attorneys are very giving and often say no for a lot of different reasons. If you can overcome those obstacles, a lot of people really do want to make a difference. One of the nicest things I have seen is a client receiving services and afterward sending that attorney a letter telling them how much they have changed their lives. It is really something to witness.

Community Profiles: Erick Cordero Giorgana, Alaska Legal Services Corporation

This week we had an opportunity to speak with Erick Cordero Giorgana, Director of Volunteer Services & Community Support at Alaska Legal Services Corporation. Erick spoke with us about the unique aspects of providing pro bono services in the remote and rural areas of Alaska.

Tell us a little about what led you to coordinate pro bono in Alaska?

My pro bono path is a little different because I am not a lawyer, but I was interested in nonprofit and charitable work. About 11 years ago, shortly after finishing college, I started out doing information technology work for a public relations firm, but I really wanted to work for a nonprofit, so I got a job at the Alaska Pro Bono Program where I worked as its Operations Manager. Not only was I handling the IT, board support and bookkeeping needs, I was also organizing legal clinics, referring pro bono cases, screening clients, recruiting volunteer attorneys, etc. Sadly, because of decreases in IOLTA funding a year later, the program was no longer able to keep an office open or staff a full-time position. I was fortunate to be able to transfer to our grantee at Alaska Legal Services Corporation (ALSC) and serve as their pro bono coordinator under the PAI program. I have been here since 2002 and I still enjoy the challenge it brings.

Describe the pro bono model at Alaska Legal Services Corporation and how it is unique due to the rural nature of your community?

The pro bono program, although a part of ALSC, operates under its own name, the Alaska Pro Bono Program. The clients come in through traditional intake at ALSC and then are referred to my office if it seems like a case that would lend well to pro bono. From there we find a volunteer attorney who is a good match. I only do independent intake for some chapter 7 cases or when I get a referral from the US District Court.  In the case of Chapter 7 Bankruptcy cases, only pro bono attorneys handle those cases either through our legal clinics program or through representation in court.

The Alaska Pro Bono Program is a statewide program. The program is housed at our Anchorage office but we serve clients across the state.Alaskais considered one of the most rural states in our country. Geographically it is 663,267 sq miles (1/5 the size of the Continental US), but our population is very spread out. Just over 700,000 people live in Alaska, and over 200,000 are in the Anchorage bowl area. There are some regions you cannot get to without a plane or boat and communities with no private attorneys and only government attorneys, if any. So we have special obstacles when it comes to providing pro bono services or reaching our clients.

What new projects are you using to address the unique challenge of working in such a large rural service area?

Our local ALSC offices divide the work by regions and our pro bono intake continues to come in from those offices. A lot of the cases are handled by in-house staff at ALSC but in the past we have advertised the availability of pro bono services in rural communities to ensure that potential clients know help is available. One of the tools we use to address the issue of reaching remote clients has come from the local judiciary. Local judges allow representation by phone which has provided an opportunity to work with some pro bono attorneys who would otherwise be unable to help.

For a while we were receiving funding for the Flying Pro Bono Program. Attorneys from larger cities were flying to rural areas and providing community education and outreach programs or clinics. Unfortunately we lost the funding for that project so we are looking to start Skype clinics as a way of doing more with less. We are trying to find partners in our communities to make this new endeavor happen. In some communities, we have local private volunteer attorneys but none of them do bankruptcies which is the planned focus for these clinics initially. Most of the attorneys who could handle bankruptcy cases are in the Anchorage, Juneau and Fairbanks areas and they are pretty maxed out so we are looking for new pools of volunteers. Two of our local Anchorage volunteer attorneys have agreed to help with the project if we could find a way to provide the clinics at a distance and we are hoping that the Skype clinics could be a potential solution.

We are also looking for partners to provide space and web capabilities for the individuals located in the remote areas so that they will have access to Skype and a facility to hold the clinic or community education forum. We are hoping to partner with local companies and businesses or medical facilities to help with providing the videoconferencing to make this endeavor a success. Although the initial focus will be on providing this service for bankruptcy cases, once the project is up and running successfully we are hoping to extend it to other service areas as well.

Come back Monday to read the remainder of our interview with Erick Cordero Giorgana and learn of another interesting approach to reaching clients in rural communities

Social Media and the Equal Justice Conference

As promised, here are a few tips to help you optimize your social media experience during this year’s Equal Justice Conference in Jacksonville, Florida held May 16th – 19th. If you haven’t registered yet note that the deadline for online registration is TOMORROW! (register at www.equaljusticeconference.org)

Twitter

• Know the hashtag. The hashtag for the 2012 Equal Justice Conference is #ejcjax. Please use this hashtag in tweets and to follow the conversation.
• Make a list. Use Twitter to connect with other conference attendees by creating a Twitter list of those who will be attending the conference.
• Meet people. Send out a tweet that includes the conference hashtag announcing, for example, that you’ll be in the hotel lounge for the next half hour and welcome the company of others.
• Tweeting from a session? Arrive early to get a good seat and to ensure you’re plugged and logged in ahead of time. Send out a courtesy tweet at the start, identifying where you are and what you intend to do.
• Quality beats quantity. As a general rule, aim for fewer, well-written, more thoughtful tweets, rather than a torrent of sound bites.
• Scan other Tweets.  Refresh your search screen frequently to see what others are saying, retweet the best of these updates, and recommend your subscribers follow these fellow tweeters.

 Networking

• Check in! Whether you’re at a meetup or there’s a Facebook page associated with the event, check in. Others can’t find you if you don’t check in or give them a heads up via text, live tweets or something “live” to let them know you’re in attendance.
• Use your smartphone! Use apps to collect attendee information, scan business cards, download .vcf cards, etc. And be sure to include a note or two about the person with their contact information. Those notes will help refresh your memory after the conference.
• Use LinkedIn. Send out LinkedIn invitations to connect almost immediately, with a note like “it was great meeting you at the Equal Justice Conference” so they’ll be more likely to connect.
• On Google+? Create a specific circle for the event and add those connections to that circle.
• On Facebook? For some, you’ll want to send friend requests. Like those fanpages, including www.facebook.com/ABAProBono, while you’re at it.

 Blogging

• Connect through your blog. Write a post about the fact that you’ll be attending the conference and let your readers know that you’d like to connect while in town, even if they’re not attending the conference. Mention this on Facebook and Twitter, too.
• Checkout other attendees’ blogs. Keep an eye out for event recaps so you can comment.
• Guest blog. Don’t have a blog, but want to post your thoughts on your conference experience? Submit your post to the Center for Pro Bono’s Pro Bono Exchange (http://centerforprobono.wordpress.com/) via email to abaprobono@americanbar.org.

 

2012 Equal Justice Conference – Jacksonville, FL

With only four weeks until this year’s Equal Justice Conference (EJC) in Jacksonville, Florida we thought it only fitting to highlight some of the many benefits of attending. For those who are not already familiar with the conference, EJC is co-hosted by the ABA Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service and the National Legal Aid & Defender Association. This conference provides an opportunity for pro bono and legal services program staff, judges, corporate counsel, court administrators, private lawyers, paralegals, bar association leaders, and many others to come together to receive training and address current issues facing the public interest community. During this 4 day event EJC will offer:

Educational Enhancement

• With over 85 workshops on topics ranging from current access to justice trends to innovative uses of technology to reach clients in rural and remote areas, there are sure to be multiple opportunities to improve your practice and strengthen your local efforts at improving the plight of the disadvantaged. Multiple CLE opportunities will be available. (Speak with a representative during registration for more detailed information on CLE credit).
• In addition to the main conference workshops there are seven pre-conferences including those for law school pro bono professionals, new and experienced pro bono managers, new executive directors, and more.
• Use many of the ideas and models you will learn about to modify or enhance your practice once you return from the conference.

Networking Opportunities

• This year’s conference expects over 600 attendees from across the country. It will surely prove to be an excellent opportunity to make connections and gain insight from colleagues in your field.
• Networking opportunities will be available for all registrants during the conference luncheon on Thursday.
• As an exciting bonus this year, there will be a special social event on Friday from 5:30pm – 11:00pm held in the West Club at EverBank Field, the NFL Jacksonville Jaguars Stadium.

An Opportunity to Get Plugged In

• Learn new techniques on how to optimize social media and technology to assist in reaching constituents, improving services and working with volunteers.
• Have a little fun with foursquare, Twitter and Facebook while at the conference. Check back tomorrow for our social media tip sheet with information on how best to utilize social media while at the conference.

Have you attended EJC in the past? Share your favorite EJC experience below in the comments.

Pro Bono Service as a Sanction in Discipline Cases

From the Legal Profession Blog, a member of The Law Professors Blog Network, we recently found this:

April 5, 2012

Sanction: Pro Bono

The Rhode Island Supreme Court has ordered an attorney to devote 75 hours of community or pro bono community service as a disciplinary sanction.

The attorney had represented the client in a medical malpractice matter. He did not reply to discovery requests made on behalf of the doctor. The case was dismissed as to that defendant and the attorney failed to so advise the client. After he failed to respond to the hospital’s discovery, he agreed to dismiss against that defendant (without his client’s knowledge or consent) and the litigation ended.

The court held that an order of community and/or pro bono service served the purposes of professional discipline. (Mike Frisch)

Should pro bono service be used as a sanction in the context of lawyer professional discipline? From this writer’s perspective, the answer is “no.”  I’ll leave to others the arguments pro and con from an ethics point of view. My belief is that requiring pro bono service as discipline undercuts the value of pro bono to the profession and to the clients served.

Every lawyer has a professional responsibility to use their legal skills to serve those in need. Remember that oath you took when you were admitted to practice?  Are you aware of the rules of professional conduct in your state regarding pro bono service? Imposing pro bono service as discipline implies that the offender is being asked to do something that is somehow beyond the scope of their professional responsibility. We certainly would not want lawyers to draw a conclusion that the only time they might ever have to do pro bono work is if ordered to as a lesser sanction to disbarment or suspension for an ethical violation.

Then there is the question about the pro bono clients who might “benefit” from the sanctioned lawyer’s pro bono service. An old saw that one sometimes hears is that having some lawyer is better than not having one at all. Is that always the case?  Why should pro bono clients be “sanctioned” by receiving something less than high quality representation?

As an advocate for quality, effective and meaningful pro bono legal services for the poor I want to ensure that pro bono lawyers are familiar with the pro bono organization and its causes, have training in the areas where help is needed, and are committed to providing zealous representation on their client’s behalf. Will the lawyer providing pro bono representation as a sanction for poor ethical performance be up to the task?  The pro bono client should not be put in the position to find out.

What are your thoughts? Please share them in the poll and in the Comments below.

~Steve Scudder

Community Profiles: Berkeley Law’s Student Initiated and Student Run Pro Bono Program (cont.)

In part two of this week’s Community Profile Sue Schechter, Field Placement Program Director and Lecturer–n-Residence at Berkeley Law, discusses how she would like to see law school public service change in the future:

Ideally, I would like to see law school public service support change in three ways: First, I believe law schools need to provide more support to law students who want to pursue public service/pro bono careers in the form of fellowships and focused career advising. Many students come to law school and are surprised to find it much harder to find public service jobs than law firm jobs. These students need support and guidance if they are to be successful finding and creating opportunities within the public interest field. Second, I believe that law schools need to provide support to students providing pro bono while in law school. As the ABA requires, each law school should provide meaningful opportunities to do pro bono and I think many schools are just at the beginning of trying to figure out what that means for their school’s mission and resources  Ideally, this means having adequate staff to administer quality pro bono programs.

Lastly, I believe we need to continue to enhance the dialogue between legal services/pro bono providers and the law schools. It is a conversation that does not happen nearly enough. The ABA/NLADA Equal Justice Conference provides the only opportunity for legal services/pro bono providers and law schools to sit in the same room at the same time. Law schools need an opportunity to ask legal services and pro bono programs what they need, what they want new lawyers to look like and how we can better train them to be prepared to fit the needs of the legal services community. This is important even for students who are going to law firms. Law schools need to have the knowledge and tools necessary to teach students how to easily plug into pro bono once they are out in their practice. New lawyers should not be left to figure it out when they get to the firm; by the time they arrive fitting into the firm’s pro bono program should be the least of their concerns. Given their law school pro bono work many law students are eager and ready to make real and meaningful contributions to their firm’s pro bono practices.

I love working in law schools because so many law students come to law school wanting to make a real difference, although they may not be sure what that means in the law school and legal profession context. While they are at law school, they can be a ‘captive’ audience. You have a three year window to work with them, train them and help them find their path. They are eager, hungry and really intelligent. Being able to be a part of their journey, particularly as it relates to providing assistance to those most in need, is really incredible, it is really a gift and an honor.

Community Profile: Berkeley Law’s Student Initiated and Student Run Pro Bono Program

This week we had an opportunity to speak with Sue Schechter, Field Placement Program Director and Lecturer-n-Residence at Berkeley Law. Sue figured out early on in her legal career that she wanted to spend her career helping law students pursue public interest and public service careers. Through her current experience she is learning ever day and bringing her energy and perspective to both the law student pro bono movement and to the Berkeley Law pro bono program. Read part one of this two-part post about the program.

Could you explain how the pro bono model at Berkeley Law works and what your role is within the program?

We like to say that “while some schools have a pro bono requirement, Berkeley Law has a pro bono culture.” Several years ago, the Law School hired its first full time Skills Program Director, David Oppenheimer, who had the vision to understand that our pro bono program had a natural fit with our law school skills program and led the charge to figure out what that meant and how we could enhance the students’ work. The Field Placement Program, which I direct, is part of that skills program. Although my primary role is as director of field placement, I support the student-run pro bono initiatives by working with the students and co-teaching a course for the leaders.

When David came to Berkeley, we realized that about 80% of our first year students were doing pro bono under the auspices of Student-Initiated Legal Services Projects (SLPS), student groups run by 2L and 3L students. We have been very cognizant of the fact that these are student initiated and student run projects. We see our role as supporting the students, creating leaders and providing structures that enable the students to run their organizations more efficiently and more professionally. Unlike some law school pro bono programs, we do not have a pro bono coordinator who facilitates projects or opportunities for the students. The students determine what they want to work on, who they want to partner with and what they want their individual pro bono experience to look like. The more ownership the students have the more they commit to and invest in the outcome of their work.  We stand by their side lending support when asked and making suggestions which we hope are helpful.

The support that we provide as staff is achieved through several components: First, we hold a separate orientation for first year law students introducing them to the 17 different SLPS projects so they are aware of the pro bono opportunities available to them from the onset of their legal education and to provide an overview of the professional responsibility and cultural competency issues they need to be aware of. Second, we teach a course to our second and third year student leaders on leadership and pro bono. The goal is to have students participate in this class so that we have ongoing contact with the leaders of the organizations.

The third component of our pro bono program is to have ongoing meetings with our SLPS leaders. Each of the pro bono student organizations within SLPS are self-elected, self-run organizations and we provide support by staying in constant contact with the leadership. Through the fourth component of the program, we have a SLPS fellow where a graduating student has the opportunity to continue working with SLPS by providing the day-to-day support of the program, the course, and of pro bono at the school. The final component of our program includes participating in a public interest graduation where we acknowledge our SLPS student leaders and our supervising attorney mentors. We also award a supervising attorney who has gone above and beyond in their mentoring of the students with their pro bono projects throughout the year.

In the fall of 2012, we will be offering the course for the third time.  The course focuses on introducing students to the concepts of leadership, helping them identify their leadership strengths and challenges, and to provide a forum to work on the organizational structures and priorities of their pro bono projects.  The culmination of the course is a self-identified project that students work alone or in groups to make their SLPS project better – a manual, a new training, a new curriculum, or something useful for the organization.  Each year, we look at the fall course and strive to improve and deepen the students’ experiences. 

While I am very excited about and proud of the Berkeley Law pro bono model, I do want to recognize Tom Schoenherr of the Fordham Law Public Interest Resource Center (PIRC)and other schools who have been doing a student-initiated model a lot longer than we have.

Sue is happy to share Berkeley Law’s Providing Pro Bono Legal Services:  Entrepreneurial Leadership course syllabus or other information about their Program.  Sue can be reached by email at sschechter-at-law.berkeley.edu. Come back Friday to see part two of our interview with Sue.