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1. Ethics: I Know I Should Do Pro Bono, I Want to, But I Don’t Know Where to Start Moderator: Wallace B. Wason, Jr. Jones, Blechman, Woltz & Kelly, P.C. P.O. Box 12888 Newport News VA 23612-2888 Tel: 757-873-8018 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.jbwk.com/ Panelists: Karl A. Doss Virginia State Bar 1111 E. Main St. Suite 700 Richmond VA 23219 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.vsb.org John Edward Whitfield Blue Ridge Legal Services, Inc. P.O. Box 551 Harrisonburg VA 22803-0551 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.brls.org/

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1. Ethics: I Know I Should Do Pro

Bono, I Want to,

But I Don’t Know Where to Start

Moderator:

Wallace B. Wason, Jr.

Jones, Blechman, Woltz & Kelly, P.C.

P.O. Box 12888

Newport News VA 23612-2888

Tel: 757-873-8018

Email: [email protected]

Website: http://www.jbwk.com/

Panelists:

Karl A. Doss

Virginia State Bar

1111 E. Main St.

Suite 700

Richmond VA 23219

Email: [email protected]

Website: http://www.vsb.org

John Edward Whitfield

Blue Ridge Legal Services, Inc.

P.O. Box 551

Harrisonburg VA 22803-0551

Email: [email protected]

Website: http://www.brls.org/

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I Know I Should Do Pro Bono,

I Want to,

But I Don’t Know Where to Start

VTLA 2017 Annual Convention

Karl A. Doss, VSB Access to Legal Services Director

Wallace B. Wason, Jr., Jones, Blechman, Woltz & Kelly, PC

John E. Whitfield, Executive Director & General Counsel,

Blue Ridge Legal Services, Inc.

Early 20th Century America.Early 20th Century America.Early 20th Century America.Early 20th Century America.

“Without equal access to the law, the system not only robs the poor of their only protection, but it places it in the hands of their oppressors the most powerful and ruthless weapon ever created.”

- Reginald Heber Smith,

Justice and the Poor, 1919

Prepared by John E. Whitfield, Executive Director, BRLS

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MidMidMidMid----20202020thththth Century America.Century America.Century America.Century America.

“There can be no equal justice where the kind

of trial a man gets depends on the amount of

money he has.”

- The United States Supreme Court in

Griffin v. Illinois, 1956

Prepared by John E. Whitfield, Executive Director, BRLS

The Civil Rights Movement

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

-Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Prepared by John E. Whitfield, Executive Director, BRLS

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Correlation Between Representation and

Outcomes in Eviction Cases

Percentage of Tenants Retaining Possession

of their Homes in Eviction CasesSource: The Importance of Representation in Eviction Cases and Homelessness Prevention, Boston Bar Association Task Force on

the Civil Right to Counsel, March 2012.

Prepared by John E. Whitfield, Co-chair, Virginia Access to Justice Commission

Correlation Between Representation and Outcomes for Tenants in Landlord -Tenant Cases

Study #1: Court Study Group of the Junior League of Brooklyn, Report on a Study of the Brooklyn Landlord and Tenant Court 21 (1973).

Study #2: Steven Gunn, Note, Eviction Defense for Poor Tenants: Costly Compassion or Justice Served?, 13 YALE L. & POL’Y REV. 385, 411 (1995). Study #3: Chadha, Lisa Parsons. 1996.

Time to Move: The Denial of Tenants' Rights in Chicago Eviction Court, Chicago: Lawyers Committee for Better Housing, Inc.

Study #4: Rebecca Hall, Eviction Prevention as Homelessness Prevention: The Need for Access to Legal Representation for Low-Income Tenants (1991).

Study #5: Seron, Carroll, Greg Van Ryzin, Martin Frankel, and Jean Kovath. 2001. The Impact of Legal Counsel on Outcomes for Poor Tenants in New York City's Housing

Court: Results of a Randomized Experiment. Law and Society Review 35(2): 419-34.

Study #6: Anthony J. Fusco, Jr. et al., Chicago’s Eviction Court: A Tenant’s Court of No Resort, 17 URB. L. ANN. 93, 114-16 (1979).

Study #7: Boston Bar Ass’n Task Force on Unrepresented Litigants, Report on Pro Se Litigation, 17 (1998), available at http://www.bostonbar.org/prs/reports/

Study #8: Mass. Law Reform Inst., Summary Process Survey, 14 (2005)

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Prepared by John E. Whitfield, Co-chair, Virginia Access to Justice Commission

Correlation Between Representation and Custody Outcomes

Source: The Women’s Law Ctr. of Md., Inc., Families in Transition: A Follow-up Study Exploring Family Law Issues in Maryland (2006), available at

http://www.wlcmd.org/pdf/FamiliesInTransition.pdf.

Prepared by John E. Whitfield, Co-chair, Virginia Access to Justice Commission

Correlation Between Representation and Unemployment Benefit Hearings Outcomes

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Employer Only is

Represented

Neither Party Represented

Both Parties Represented

Claimant Only is

Represented

Claimant gets benefits Claimant loses

Source: Herbert M. Kritzer, Legal Advocacy: Lawyers and Nonlawyers at Work 111-20 (1998)

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Prepared by John E. Whitfield,

Co-chair, Virginia Access to

Justice Commission

Correlation Between Representation and Favorable Outcomes in Other Types of Cases Frequently

Involving Low-Income Litigants

Social Security Appeals Unemployment Claims

Immigration Removal Domestic Violence

Represented

Unrepresented

Source: Russell Engler, Connecting Self-Representation to Civil Gideon: What Existing Data Reveal About When Counsel is

Most Needed, to be published in an upcoming edition of the Fordham Law Review. Virtually all of the outcome studies cited

in these materials were referenced in this very helpful work by Professor Engler, who is currently Professor of Law and

Director of Clinical Studies at New England College of Law.

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Contemporary AmericaContemporary AmericaContemporary AmericaContemporary America

“Poor people have access to the American courts in the same sense that the Christians had access to the lions when they were dragged into a Roman arena.”

- California Court of Appeals Justice Earl Johnson Jr.

Prepared by John E. Whitfield, Executive Director, BRLS

The Documented Unmet Civil Legal Needs of the Poor

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WHAT IS “PRO BONO”? – ETHICAL

RULES AND PROFESSIONAL

REGULATIONS

“The basic responsibility for providing legal services for those

unable to pay ultimately rests upon the individual lawyer, and

personal involvement in the problems of the disadvantaged can

be one of the most rewarding experiences in the life of a lawyer.

Every lawyer, regardless of professional prominence or

professional workload, should find time to participate in serving

the disadvantaged.” ABA Model Code of Professional

Responsibility, EC 2-25.

VSB Professional Guidelines - Rules of Professional Conduct

Preamble: A Lawyer’s Responsibilities

A lawyer is a representative of clients or a neutral third party, an officer of the

legal system and a public citizen having special responsibility for the quality of

justice.

. . .

As a public citizen, a lawyer should seek improvement of the law, the

administration of justice and the quality of service rendered by the legal

profession. As a member of a learned profession, a lawyer should cultivate

knowledge of the law beyond its use for clients, employ that knowledge in

reform of the law and work to strengthen legal education. A lawyer should be

mindful of deficiencies in the administration of justice and of the fact that

the poor, and sometimes persons who are not poor, cannot afford adequate

legal assistance, and should therefore devote professional time and civic

influence in their behalf. A lawyer should aid the legal profession in pursuing

these objectives and should help the bar regulate itself in the public interest.

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VSB Professional Guidelines - Rules of Professional Conduct

Preamble: A Lawyer’s Responsibilities (cont.)

Many of a lawyer's professional responsibilities are prescribed in the Rules of

Professional Conduct, as well as substantive and procedural law. However, a

lawyer is also guided by personal conscience and the approbation of

professional peers. A lawyer should strive to attain the highest level of skill, to

improve the law and the legal profession, and to exemplify the legal

profession's ideals of public service.

. . .

Lawyers play a vital role in the preservation of society. The fulfillment of this

role requires an understanding by lawyers of their relationship to our legal

system. The Rules of Professional Conduct, when properly applied, serve to

define that relationship.

Prepared by John E. Whitfield, Co-chair, Virginia Access to Justice Commission

But we have Legal Aid.

Why is there a problem?

Why is pro bono still necessary?

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Who Does Legal Aid Help?

In FY 2015-2016, Virginia’s legal aid programs closed a total of 28,574 cases for low-income Virginians with civil legal problems, benefitting 66,694 people.

• Family Law – 46%

• Housing – 22%

• Consumer/Finance – 14%

• Income Maintenance – 6%

• Other – 12%

Source: Legal Services Corporation of Virginia, Report to the Commonwealth and the General Assembly FY 2015-2016

Why can’t Legal Aid help everyone

who qualifies for their assistance?

Prepared by John E. Whitfield, Co-chair, Virginia Access to Justice Commission

Sources:

Number of active Virginia

Lawyers practicing in the state

(23,851), VSB Membership

Report, 8/3/15.

Number of Virginia Legal Aid

Attorneys (130), LSCV Grant

Applications, May 2014.

Virginia Population figure

(overall population, (8,326,289)

and poverty population

(940,871), US Census website,

2014 estimates.

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A Worsening Situation

In FY 2015-2016, Virginia’s legal aid programs closed a total of 28,574 cases for low-income Virginians with civil legal problems, benefitting 66,694 people.

• 28,504 cases closed, 66,764 people helped (2014-2015)

• 28,688 cases closed, 68,857 people helped (2013-2014)

• 31,132 cases closed, 74,936 people helped (2012-2013)

• 35,015 cases closed, 86,698 people helped (2011-2012)

• 38,204 cases closed, 87,548 people helped (2010-2011)

• 39,390 cases closed, 92,680 people helped (2009-2010)

Source: Legal Services Corporation of Virginia, Report to the Commonwealth and the General Assembly FY 2009-2010 through FY 2015-2016

A Worsening Situation

In just six years time, both the

number of cases closed and the

number of people helped are

down by 27-28%

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Modified from slide initially prepared by John E. Whitfield, Co-chair, Virginia Access to Justice Commission

Federal LSC Funding Levels 2009-2015

Source: Legal Services Corporation

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

450

Mill

ion

s

Annual LSC Appropriations

Annual LSC Appropriations

Declining IOLTA Revenue in Virginia 2007-2016

$0

$100,000

$200,000

$300,000

$400,000

$500,000

Mo

nth

ly R

ev

en

ue

Month

Source: Legal Services Corporation of Virginia (LSCV)

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Virginia Rules of Professional Conduct Virginia Rules of Professional Conduct Virginia Rules of Professional Conduct Virginia Rules of Professional Conduct

RULE 6.1 Voluntary Pro Bono RULE 6.1 Voluntary Pro Bono RULE 6.1 Voluntary Pro Bono RULE 6.1 Voluntary Pro Bono PublicoPublicoPublicoPublico ServiceServiceServiceService

(a) A lawyer should render at least two percent per year of the

lawyer’s professional time to pro bono publico legal services. Pro

bono publico services include poverty law, civil rights law, public

interest law, and volunteer activities designed to increase the

availability of pro bono legal services.

(b) A law firm or other group of lawyers may satisfy their

responsibility collectively under this Rule.

(c) Direct financial support of programs that provide direct

delivery of legal services to meet the needs described in (a)

above is an alternative method for fulfilling a lawyer’s

responsibility under this Rule.

Not Mandatory but….COMMENTCOMMENTCOMMENTCOMMENT

• [1] Every lawyer, regardless of professional prominence or professional

work load, has a personal responsibility to provide legal services to those

unable to pay, and personal involvement in the problems of the

disadvantaged can be one of the most rewarding experiences in the life of

a lawyer. The Council for the Virginia State Bar urges all Virginia lawyers to

contribute a minimum of two percent of their professional time annually

to pro bono services. Pro bono legal services consist of any professional

services for which the lawyer would ordinarily be compensated, including

dispute resolution as a mediator or third party neutral.

• [10] To provide legal services beyond those available through the pro bono

efforts of individual lawyers, the legal profession and government have

established additional programs to provide such services. Lawyers who

are unable to fulfill their pro bono publico obligation through direct,

legal representation should support programs that provide legal services

for the purposes described in (a) through financial contributions in

proportion to their professional income.

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Voluntary Pro Bono Publico Service

(a)Rule 6.1 (a) says “…. Pro bono publico

services include poverty law, civil rights law,

public interest law, and volunteer activities

designed to increase the availability of pro

bono legal services.”

ConPngency Fee Cases ≠ Pro Bono

(Even on Unsuccessful Cases)

[6] Service in any of the categories described is

not pro bono publico if provided on a contingent

fee basis. Because service must be provided

without fee or expectation of fee, the intent of

the lawyer to render free or nominal fee legal

services is essential. Accordingly, services for

which fees go uncollected would not qualify.

Virginia Rule of Professional Conduct 6.1, comment 6

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The

Estimated

Pro Bono

Gap in

Virginia

0

100000

200000

300000

400000

500000

600000

700000

800000

900000

1000000

Potential pro bono hours if Rule 6.1's goal was met annually Estimated pro bono hours actually donated

VIRGINIA'S PRO BONO GAPTotal Potential Pro Bono Hours Annually under Rule 6.1

vs. Estimated Actual Pro Bono Hours

Estimated ad hoc pro bono hours donated

Pro bono hours reported as donated through Independent pro bono programs

Pro bono hours reported as donated through Legal Aid Pro Bono programs

The EstimatedPro BonoGap in Virginia

What Kind of Help Is Needed?

The picture can't be displayed.

http://www.vsb.org/docs/probono/topprobononeeds2014.pdf

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Michelle Stockberger

Pro Bono Developer

Blue Ridge Legal Services

540.433.1830

[email protected]

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Kathy G. Brigman

Director of Volunteers Services

Central VA Legal Aid Society

804.518.2131

[email protected]://www.justiceserver.org/

Mary C. Bauer

Executive Director

Legal Aid Justice Center

434.977.0553 X823

[email protected]://www.justice4all.org/get-involved/pro-bono/

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Tameeka M. Williams, Esq.

Director of Pro Bono & PAI

Legal Aid Society of Eastern VA

757.627-5423

[email protected]://apps.kempscaseworks.com/LASEVA-portal/Account/NewRegistration.aspx

Jennifer Fulmer

Pro Bono Managing Attorney

Legal Services of Northern VA

703.778.6800

[email protected]://apps.kempscaseworks.com/LSNV_PBI/Account/NewRegistration.aspx

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Contact the pro bono coordinator

at any of our three offices:

Fredericksburg: 540-371-1105 (Carolyn Ross);

Culpeper: 540-825-3131(Sarahi Johnson);

Tappahannock: 804-443-9393 (Kim Wilkins).

http://www.legalaidworks.org/pro-bono/

Cassandra Turner

Pro Bono Coordinator

Southwest VA Legal Aid Society

276.762.9354 X2207

[email protected]://www.swvalegalaid.org/volunteer-attorneys

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Debby Hudgins

Pro Bono Coordinator

Virginia Legal Aid Society

434.846.1326

[email protected]://vlas.org/get-involved/become-a-pro-bono-attorney/

Text of Virginia Proposed

Reporting Rule Changeb) Pro Bono Publico Legal Service Reporting Requirement. In order to make

available information about lawyers’ pro bono public legal service, each active

member of the Virginia State Bar shall provide the following annual

certification:

1. Pro Bono Hours. I have personally provided approximately ____hours of

pro bono public legal services during the previous 12 months beginning July 1

of the preceding year and ending June 30 of the current year.

2. Financial Contribution. I have personally contributed $______to support

programs that provide the direct delivery of legal services to meet the needs

described in Rule 6.1 (a) of the Virginia Rules of Professional Conduct, as an

alternative method for fulfilling my responsibility to render pro bono legal

services.

3. Exempt Persons. . .

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Florida Experience With

Mandatory Pro Bono Reporting

https://virginia.freelegalanswers.org/

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National PageUsers select their state of residence here.

State HomepageA Virginian who’s never used the site would select “Get Started”

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Clients -Ask a question pageTo reach this page, clients complete:

• New client information page (name, email, county)

• New client information page OPTIONAL (requests demographic information)

• New client information page REQUIRED (age and income screening)

Attorneys -Pick a questionWhen a client posts a question, it is sent to the queue of questions and attorneys can select which question they’d like answer.

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Attorney RespondsAn attorney answers the question and decides if they will leave the queue open for additional questions or close the conversation.

Client –Question closedWhen an attorney closes a question, the client is notified that a question has been closed and is prompted to take a survey.

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What about Conflicts of Interest?

Will the client know who I am or vice versa?

� The only conflicts of interest that would preclude a lawyer from answering a question for an eligible user of Virginia.freelegalanswers.org are conflicts of interest that the lawyer actually knows of at the time that they receive or answer a client's question. This means that the possibility exists, and the clients agree that they understand, that a lawyer who answers a question, or another lawyer with whom they practice in a firm, may actually be representing other parties with an interest in the question.

� The client name, the name of the opposing parting and legal deadline/court date will be provided to the lawyer so that the lawyer can make sure not to answer the question if the lawyer knows that he would have a conflict of interest. If based on the information the client provides, whether client name or any details of the question, the lawyer actually knows of a conflict of interest precluding him from answering, the question will be referred to another volunteer lawyer.

� Users will not know the name of the lawyer who answers their questions (they will see “Volunteer Lawyer”).

� The lawyer should not take any further action to help the user except to respond to the request for advice and information that the user posted on the web site.

Data – 8/22/2016- 2/23/2017

Virginia.freelegalanswers.org launched on August 22, 2016

Total Users 598� Attorneys Registered 174� “Moderated” Attorneys 5� Clients Registered 214� “Moderated” Clients 152� Ineligible Clients 53

Questions Asked 173� Questions Accepted by Attorneys 171� Questions Closed 169

(NOTE – Attorneys and Clients are “moderated” if they fail to complete the registration process, i.e., confirm an e-mail address or click the “I agree” or submit buttons. The ABA is creating a feature that will advise moderated users that they need to complete the registration process. Clients are “ineligible” if their income and assets exceed the financial threshold of 250% of the federal poverty guidelines )

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More Data

• Most Frequently Asked Categories of Questions: Family/Divorce/Custody – 35%; Housing/Property Law –17%; Debts and Purchases – 7%; Constitutional/Civil Rights – 7%; Employment – 7%

• Percent of Use/Questions by Jurisdiction: Virginia Beach –25%; Loudoun County – 8%; Fairfax County – 6%; Norfolk –5%; Richmond City – 4%; Chesapeake – 3%; Prince William County – 3%; Chesterfield County – 3%

• Number of Attorneys Answering Questions: 36 Attorneys (3 attorneys have answered 10+ questions to date)

https://www.probono.net/va/oppsguide/

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VSB Access to Legal Services

Committee� Formed during 1992- 1993 bar year

� Mission is to foster support for free and reduced fee legal services with the goal of improving access to the legal system for all Virginians and for nonprofit charitable and civic groups that serve the public good.

� Promotes pro bono publico services by Virginia lawyers and encourages the integrated development of like contributions by law school faculty and students, lay mediators, court reporters, interpreters, tax accountants, paralegals and members of related professions

� 15 members

� 6 subcommittees: Pro Bono Training and CLE; Social Media; Legal Aid Funding; Legal Education Access; Awards; and (new) Unbundling Legal Services

For more information - http://www.vsb.org/site/pro_bono/resources-for-attorneys or 804.775-0522

VSB Pro Bono Initiatives

The Access to Legal Services Committee of the Virginia State Bar encourages participation in pro bono through:

� Meeting with access to justice stakeholders, including legal aid project directors and staff, nonprofit legal services organizations directors, law school administrators, leadership and membership of state, local, and specialty bar organizations to ascertain how VSB’s Access to Legal Services can assist them in addressing deficiencies in meeting the legal needs of the indigent.

� Increasing pro bono participation and engagement by members of the private bar by developing and conducting free webinars and seminars covering topics related to pro bono work. In exchange for free CLEs, participants certify that they will accept pro bono work referrals or make donation to legal aid or non-profit legal services organizations.

� Collaborating with legal aid programs , non-profit legal services organizations, and state/local/specialty bar associations to develop strategies to mobilize volunteer lawyers to provide legal assistance in response to urgent access to justice challenges, i.e., Virginia SIJS Project.

� Using social media, the VSB website, and print and online publications to increase awareness of access to justice issues, galvanize support for pro bono, recognize exemplary pro bono efforts, and promote pro bono service and training opportunities.

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About the Virginia SIJ Project

� In October 2014, the VSB Access to Legal Services Committee, Legal Aid Justice Center, Ayuda, and Poach Law Firm collaborated to conduct a free webinar, “Pro Bono and Special Immigrant Juveniles: Best Practices for Family Court Practitioners”. Over 150 lawyers from across Virginia attended the webinar and many of them agreed to accept referrals from the newly created Virginia SIJ Project, which increases pro bono capacity to represent immigrant juveniles seeking Special Immigrant Juvenile Status.

� The project matches family court lawyers practicing in J&DR courts with immigration lawyers practicing in Northern Virginia to provide continuity of representation of undocumented youth in the family court and immigration court proceedings.

� Each case that the SIJ Project is able to place with a pro bono attorney will help an immigrant minor at imminent risk of deportation and start them on the path towards lawful permanent residence and eventually obtaining U.S. citizenship.

� For more information, please contact:

Tanishka Cruz, Staff Attorney,

Legal Aid Justice Center,

6066 Leesburg Pike, Suite 520,

Falls Church, VA 22041,

Phone: (703) 778-3450,

Fax: (703) 778-3454,

e-mail – [email protected]

Greater Richmond Bar Foundation

� The Greater Richmond Bar Foundation (GRBF). GRBF’s mission is to expand public access to the justice system in central Virginia by facilitating the delivery of pro bono legal services and service projects. Through its programs, GRBF helps the Central Virginia region with its priority needs for pro bono services and helps connect lawyers with pro bono clients. (804) 780-2600

• Pro Bono Clearinghouse – a referral service linking volunteer attorneys with nonprofit organizations in need of legal representation on a variety of transactional matters.

• Pro Bono Promise – law firms and law departments are invited to join Pro Bono Promise with a pledge to commit a percentage of time to the provision of pro bono legal services to the disadvantaged and/or to include financial support to legal services organizations annually.

• JusticeServer – an all-inclusive case management and referral system that enables private attorneys to accept and work on pro bono cases from their own computers. Attorneys are able to create a confidential profile, view pro bono opportunities available in designated practice areas/jurisdictions, and find the resources to assist with handling the legal matter.

• Other Volunteer Opportunities – GRBF also provides a menu of volunteer opportunities available in the greater Richmond area.

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Other Volunteer Opportunities• Virginia Trial Lawyers Association – The VTLA has a Pro Bono Committee that puts on

programs like this one and other activities to encourage pro bono involvement by

VTLA members. https://www.vtla.com/index.cfm?pg=Committees

• American Bar Association - The ABA’s Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public

Service includes a directory of pro bono service providers in Virginia.

http://www.americanbar.org/groups/probono_public_service.html

• Virginia Bar Association – The VBA serves the public through a number of legal

advocacy and volunteer service opportunities including the Veterans Initiative and

ProsforKids. http://www.vba.org/?page=how_we_help

• Legal Information Network for Cancer (LINC) - LINC is a non-profit, community-based

organization that provides information, education and referral services for legal,

financial, and community resources to cancer patients, survivors, and their families

confronted with the overwhelming issues that arise from the diagnosis and treatment

of cancer. http://www.cancerlinc.org/

• Fairfax Law Foundation – Northern Virginia Pro Bono Center assists individual

residents of Fairfax County, as well as Northern Virginia nonprofits

http://www.fairfaxlawfoundation.org/general/custom.asp?page=9

• ProBono.net/va – This website offers a Pro Bono Opportunities Guide.

http://www.probono.net/va/

Law School Pro Bono Programs

� University of Richmond’s Carrico Center: http://law.richmond.edu/academics/skills/pro-bono/programs.html

� University of Virginia School of Law: http://www.law.virginia.edu/html/publicserv/probono.htm

� William & Mary Law:http://law.wm.edu/careerservices/currentstudents/probonoandpublicservice/index.php

� Washington and Lee Law: http://law.wlu.edu/students/service

� George Mason Law VBA Pro Bono Society: http://www.law.gmu.edu/students/orgs/vba

� Regent Law Public Service: http://www.regent.edu/acad/schlaw/careeralumni/publicservice.cfm#community

� Appalachian School of Law: http://www.asl.edu/JD-Program/Community-Service.html

� Liberty University Law: http://www.liberty.edu/law/experiential-learning/

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Rule 1.1 – Competence

A lawyer shall provide competent representation to a client. Competent representation

requires the legal knowledge, skill, thoroughness and preparation reasonably necessary for

the representation.

Comment

[2] A lawyer need not necessarily have special training or prior experience to handle legal

problems of a type with which the lawyer is unfamiliar. A newly admitted lawyer can be as

competent as a practitioner with long experience. Some important legal skills, such as the

analysis of precedent, the evaluation of evidence and legal drafting, are required in all legal

problems. Perhaps the most fundamental legal skill consists of determining what kind of legal

problems a situation may involve, a skill that necessarily transcends any particular specialized

knowledge. A lawyer can provide adequate representation in a wholly novel field through

necessary study. Competent representation can also be provided through the association of a

lawyer of established competence in the field in question.

[4] A lawyer may accept representation where the requisite level of competence can be

achieved by reasonable preparation. This applies as well to a lawyer who is appointed as

counsel for an unrepresented person. See also Rule 6.2.

http://www.vsb.org/site/pro_bono/resources-for-attorneys

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http://www.vsb.org/site/pro_bono/pro_bono_webinar_recordings

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https://www.probono.net/va/civillaw/

http://law.richmond.edu/public-service/pro-bono/programs.html

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http://www.valegalaid.org/

http://www.americanbar.org/groups/probono_public_service.html

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Some Other Pro Bono Resources

� Immigration ? – Hogar Immigrant Services(http://www.hogarimmigrantservices.org/ ), Just Neighbors(http://www.justneighbors.org/ ), CAIR Coalition (http://www.caircoalition.org),

� Human Trafficking? (Girls and Women) – Tahirih Justice Center(http://www.tahirih.org/ )

� HIV/LGBTQ? – Whitman-Walker Health (http://www.whitman-walker.org/legal/)

� Restoration of Driving Privileges? – Drive to Work(http://www.drivetowork.org/index.cfm )

� Tax Relief? – Community Tax Law Project (http://www.ctlp.org/)

� Faith-Based? – Good Samaritan Advocates(http://www.goodsamaritanadvocates.org/ )

� Young or Newly Admitted Lawyer? – VSB Young Lawyers Conference(http://www.vsb.org/site/conferences/ylc/pro-bono) or VBA Young Lawyers Division (http://www.vba.org/?page=yld)

� Senior Lawyer? - VSB Senior Lawyers Conference (http://www.vsb.org/site/conferences/slc/about-us )

� Many state, local and specialty bar associations sponsor pro bono projects.

For More Information

• http://www.vsb.org/site/pro_bono/resources-

for-attorneys

• https://www.facebook.com/Virginia-State-

Bar-Access-to-Legal-Services-

715445355256426/timeline/

• https://www.facebook.com/Blue-Ridge-Legal-

Services-Inc-138544198288/