|
Early November 2007
|
VOLUME 2
ISSUE 25
|
|
|
|
Pro Bono Institute
Corporate Pro Bono
at Georgetown University
Law Center
600 New Jersey Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20001
(202) 662-9699
(202) 662-9683 F
wire@probonoinst.org
www.probonoinst.org
www.cpbo.org
|  |
|
|
Please Complete the Pro Bono Institute's Attorney's Fees Survey Now
The Pro Bono Institute Law Firm Project frequently receives requests from firms regarding trends in the treatment of attorneys’ fees awards in cases taken on a pro bono basis. In order to address these issues in an informed manner, The Law Firm Pro Bono Project requests assistance from law firms in collecting detailed and accurate information. The Law Firm Pro Bono Project recently sent a brief (ten-question) electronic survey on attorneys’ fees awards in pro bono matters. Responses to the survey will be confidential and will not be disclosed in a disaggregated form which identifies individuals or individual law firms. Additional comments or information provided, along with written policies adopted by a firm regarding attorneys’ fees awards, are welcome (please send to survey@probonoinst.org or the address/fax number below). Your cooperation is greatly appreciated as it will allow the Pro Bono Institute to provide enhanced support to large firm pro bono programs.
[FULL STORY]
|
Veterans Update: Pro Bono Teams Expand Capacity to Connect Veterans with Legal Assistance
One of the most significant barriers preventing veterans with disabilities from obtaining critical pro bono legal assistance in the complex Board of Veterans Appeals process is the lack of a comprehensive system to screen thousands of cases and route clients to willing pro bono attorneys. According to Esther Lardent, President and CEO of the Pro Bono Institute, “The impetus for this initiative to engage significant pro bono legal assistance for veterans came from the law firms and in-house corporate legal departments themselves. In response to the disturbing findings regarding treatment of veterans and the experience of friends and colleagues in the military, they called us to find out how they could best volunteer their services to help service members and veterans get the help they needed and deserved.”
In 2006, the total backlog at VA regional offices was approximately 600,000 claims, according to Gordon P. Erspamer, litigation partner at Morrison & Forester, LLP. In 2008, it is expected to swell to 980,000 with more than 40,000 appeals pending at the Board of Veterans’ Appeals.
[FULL STORY]
|
Hunton Leader Walks the Walk
Reprinted with permission from the August issue of For the Public Good, the Hunton & Williams LLP pro bono newsletter
With more than 1,000 individuals seeking the services of Catholic Charities Legal Services, Inc (CCLS) each month, there is certainly work to be done. Individuals come to CCLS from all over South Florida as political and religious refugees looking for security, immigrants seeking to unite with family and friends, and battered spouses and children needing shelter. What they face, though, is a complex, confusing system that offers them an uncertain future.
Hunton & Williams Managing Partner Wally Martinez spent a week this month with CCLS. He had a chance to sit in on intake sessions with various CCLS clients, attend Immigration Court to watch asylum proceedings; and work in the bull pen with CCLS interns and attorneys preparing for cases.
[FULL STORY]
|
New Study Examines Factors Leading to Associates' Satisfaction and Morale
Pro bono activity at law firms and in-house legal departments is increasingly shown to have a positive nexus with the level of job satisfaction and morale of attorneys. An important new study by Hildebrandt International surveyed thousands of associates at large law firms across the U.S., and examines the factors that affect law firm associate satisfaction and morale. At the 2008 Pro Bono Institute Annual Seminar and Forum on In-House Corporate Pro Bono, we plan to offer a session that will feature the results of the study, Understanding Associates: New Perspectives on Associate Satisfaction & Morale. For more information about the 2008 Seminar/Forum, please visit the Pro Bono Institute website.
[FULL STORY]
|
New ChallengeSM Signatories: Abbott, Armstrong World Industries, Inc., Aon Corporation, Johnson & Johnson, Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, and Pep Boys
New Corporate Pro Bono Advisory Board Members Selected
Please welcome the four newest Corporate ChallengeSM Signatories: Wyeth, LexisNexis Group, Affiliated Computer Services, Inc., and Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company. The legal departments of these companies have become the latest corporate legal departments to sign onto the Corporate ChallengeSM, which is designed to empower corporate legal departments to identify, benchmark, and communicate their commitment to pro bono service.
The Pro Bono Institute and the Association of Corporate Counsel are delighted to announce that several prominent general counsel have agreed to join the Corporate Pro Bono Advisory Board. Corporate Pro Bono, a joint effort of PBI and the Association of Corporate Counsel is designed to enhance and support pro bono service for in-house legal departments.
[FULL STORY]
|
First In-House Legal Aid Rotation Receives Media Attention
The United Parcel Service in-house attorney serving a four-month rotation with Atlanta Legal Aid – first highlighted in an earlier edition of the Pro Bono Wire – has garnered additional press. Read the full story to see an article published in Corporate Counsel magazine on UPS' groundbreaking pro bono effort.
[FULL STORY]
|
DC Bar Senior Lawyer Public Interest Project Reception
On Thursday, November 1, Esther F. Lardent, President and CEO of the Pro Bono Institute at Georgetown University Law Center, spoke at the DC Bar Senior Lawyer Public Interest Project Reception, held at the offices of McDermott, Will, & Emery. The event was for experienced lawyers in career transition and offered a range of perspectives and examples of “senior” attorneys who have undertaken significant public service projects.
The Senior Lawyer Public Interest Project, which is designed to encourage and facilitate experienced senior lawyers to contribute their time and expertise either to nonprofit legal service providers in D.C. or to provide pro bono legal services directly to clients in need, is a public service initiative of the D.C. Bar Pro Bono Program.
[FULL STORY]
|
Corporate Pro Bono Spotlight
Support and recognition for corporate pro bono efforts continue. A Senior Counsel at The Coca-Cola Company was recently presented with the 2007 Corporate Attorney of the Year Award by the Pro Bono Partnership of Atlanta. In an interview with Law.com, she discusses the benefits and ease of doing pro bono work, how it supplements her enjoyment of her job, and the support she receives from Coca-Cola. Read the full story for more about Dara Redler and her experience doing pro bono.
[FULL STORY]
|
|
|
Published by
Copyright © 2007 Pro Bono Institute. All rights reserved.
The information in this newsletter has been prepared by the Pro Bono Institute (PBI) for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Neither transmission nor receipt of the information in this newsletter shall create an attorney-client relationship between PBI and the recipient. PBI, and its staff, do not provide legal advice, consultation, or representation. In addition, PBI does not provide the names of pro bono counsel or referrals to pro bono attorneys. Persons who need a lawyer should contact their local bar association, legal services program, legal aid society, or public defender.
|
|
|
|
| |
