"[The] assertion that the pro bono commitment—at least that of major law firms—has slipped is not accurate.  The American Lawyer statistics [cited] are not on point, since the higher 1993 pro bono numbers were tied to a broader definition of pro bono than those used by that publication currently..."

The Department of Homeland Security detains thousands of individuals in South Texas each year.  Many are asylum seekers fleeing persecution, who have little hope of prevailing in Immigration Court if they are unable to secure pro bono legal representation.  The South Texas Pro Bono Asylum Representation Project (ProBAR), located in Harlingen, TX, was founded in 1989 to provide much-needed assistance to detained immigrants and refugees seeking relief such as asylum, cancellation of removal, and withholding of removal.

"The articles assembled for this publication underscore the dual nature of pro bono.  Its growing impact and visibility arise not simply because it is a vital, if supplemental, tool for the delivery of legal services to the poor, disadvantaged, and disenfranchised, but primarily because pro bono is a symbol and a critical indicator of our vision of a just society, what it means, in a fast-changing world, to be a lawyer, and of how lawyers view and value themselves...Without pro bono, there can be no justice.  Without justice, none of us—regardless of material success or professional prominence—can truly call ourselves good lawyers."