A National Perspective
on Shaping Future
Leaders for Justice
Presented by: Melanie Kushnir
American Bar Association Center for Pro Bono
www.abaprobono.org
October 5, 2007
Columbus School of Law
The Catholic University of America
Washington D.C.
Major Initiatives Leading to
Expansion of Law School
Pro Bono
 1990 Pro Bono Students America
 1996 ABA Accreditation Law School Pro Bono Standard 302(e)
 1999 Learning to Serve: The Findings and Proposals of the






AALS Commission on Pro Bono and Public Service
Opportunities.
2005 ABA Pro Bono Accreditation Standard 302(b)(2)
2006 ABA Resolution 121B – Law School Support and
Promotion of Pro Bono
ABA/NLADA Annual Equal Justice Conference
2007 LSC Resolution in Support of Enhanced Private Attorney
Involvement
NALP Directory of Legal Employers
EJW The E-Guide to Public Service at America’s Law Schools
ABA Model Rule of
Professional Conduct 6.1
PRO BONO
1. Lawyers should provide 50 hours of pro bono work
annually.
2. A majority of that work should be direct representation of
the poor or organizations which serve the poor with no
expectation of remuneration.
3. Direct representation of other individuals and
organizations can also qualify, including representation at
a substantially reduced rate, for certain kinds of public
interest issues.
PRO BONO PUBLIC SERVICE
Providing law related public service (not direct
representation) also counts as pro bono.
Non-legal community service
such as building a home for
Habitat for Humanity,
volunteering time at a soup
kitchen, or painting a school,
while valuable and worthwhile
activities, are generally not
considered “pro bono” within
the meaning of Model Rule 6.1.
Models of Law School Volunteer Programs
www.abaprobono.org/lawschools
Graduation Requirement Programs:
 Pro Bono Graduation Requirement Program
 Public Service Graduation Requirement Program
 Community Service Graduation Requirement Program
Formal Voluntary Pro Bono Programs:
 Formal Voluntary Pro Bono Program Characterized by a Referral
System with a Coordinator
 Formal Voluntary Pro Bono Program Characterized by Administrative
Support for Student Group Projects
Independent Student Pro Bono Group Projects with no school-wide pro
bono program
Why is NOW a great
time to initiate or
expand a law school
pro bono program?
PRACTICE SETTING








% of lawyers in… 1980
Private Practice
68%
Government
9%
Private Industry
10%
Retired/Inactive
5%
Judiciary
4%
Education
1%
Legal Aid/Public
Defender
2%
Private Association
1%
1991 2000
73% 74%
8%
8%
9%
8%
5%
5%
3%
3%
1%
1%
1%
1%
1%
1%
Source: The Lawyer Statistical Report, American
Bar Foundation, 1985,1994, 2004 editions
Room for Improvement
 Only 1% of the sample reported that pro bono
issues received coverage in orientation programs or
professional responsibility courses.
 Only 3% of graduates observed visible faculty
support for pro bono service, or felt that their
schools provided adequate clinical opportunities for
public interest work.
 Only a third of graduates believed that the financial
resources devoted to pro bono activities were
adequate.
Pro Bono In Principle and In Practice: Public Service and The
Professions, Deborah Rhode, Vol. 15 No.9 (September 2005).
Benefits of a Law School Pro
Bono Program for Students
 Provide much needed legal services to persons of limited








means
Connect legal theory with practical issues faced by lowincome individuals
Develop and enhance legal practice skills
Build relationship with practicing attorneys
Gain exposure to practice areas
Obtain professional experience and enhance resume
Make legal education more interesting, relevant and
meaningful
Acquire leadership skills
Achieve personal fulfillment
Benefits of a Law School Pro
Bono Program for Law Schools
 Enhance law school’s ties, relationship, reputation and






stature within the local community
Enhance and strengthen relationships with alumni
Assist law school in recruitment efforts
Enables school to demonstrate its commitment to public
service and needs of low-income person in the
community.
Foster institution’s education mission
Enhance law school’s ties to local legal community,
including bar associations, judiciary, etc.
Increase opportunities for faculty research and
scholarship
Pro Bono
Emeritus
Rules
CLE
Credit for
Pro Bono
State
Reporting
Policies
900 +
Pro Bono
Programs
Increased
Organized
Pro Bono
Diversity and
Specialty
Bar
Associations
138
Signatories
To Law Firm
Pro Bono
Challenge
Systematic
Pro Bono By
Law Firms,
Gov’t and
Corp Legal
National
Pro Bono
Awards
Findings from the 2005 ABA
Data Collection Report
 66% of lawyers provide pro bono services to
people of limited means and/or to organizations
serving the poor
 They provide approximately
39 hours of pro
bono service annually to persons of limited
means or organizations serving the poor
 Lawyers provide an additional
38 hours
annually of free pro bono service toward
securing or protecting civil rights and improving
the legal system.
PRO BONO
IS
EVERYWHERE!
ABA Pro Bono Accreditation
Standard 302(b)(2)
“A law school shall offer
substantial opportunities for
. . . student participation in
pro bono activities . . .”
Interpretation 302-10 of the ABA
Pro Bono Accreditation Standard
Pro bono opportunities should at a minimum
involve the rendering of meaningful law-related
service to persons of limited means or to
organizations that serve such persons.
Standard 302(b)(2) does not preclude the
inclusion of credit-granting activities within a law
school’s overall program of pro bono
opportunities so long as law-related non-credit
bearing initiatives are also part of that program.
Pro Bono Quiz!
 A law student interviews families living in
FEMA trailers in Louisiana on issues such
as health insurance, school attendance by
school-age children, unemployment
levels, plans and options for other housing
as part of an extensive survey to match
these residents with social and legal
service providers. Pro Bono?
Pro Bono Quiz!
 A student attends a law school with a Public
Service Graduation Requirement that requires
students to perform law-related public service
but is flexible in the form of the service allowing
pro bono placements, internships, externships,
and a poverty law course to count toward
fulfillment of the school’s requirement. The
student chooses to take the poverty law course
and graduates law school without having
participated in a traditional non-credit bearing
pro bono opportunity. Pro Bono? Public
Service?
Pro Bono Quiz!
 Student volunteers for 10 weeks over
summer at a legal services office and is
not paid by the program (nor are clients
paying for services) but receives a
$4,000 stipend from a non-profit
organization to cover expenses. A
$1,000 education voucher? A $250
award from the law school public interest
organization?
A Baker’s Dozen Tips for
Building An Effective Law
School Pro Bono Program
TIP # 1
Establish a Formal Policy that
Includes a Definition of
Pro Bono
A Baker’s Dozen Tips for
Building An Effective Law
School Pro Bono Program
TIP # 2
Provide Institutional Support
A Baker’s Dozen Tips for
Building An Effective Law
School Pro Bono Program
TIP # 3
Assure Adequate Staffing
and Support
A Baker’s Dozen Tips for
Building An Effective Law
School Pro Bono Program
TIP # 4
Establish a Location
and Identity
A Baker’s Dozen Tips for
Building An Effective Law
School Pro Bono Program
TIP # 5
Develop a Range of
Recruitment Strategies
A Baker’s Dozen Tips for
Building An Effective Law
School Pro Bono Program
TIP # 6
Broad Range of Placements
A Baker’s Dozen Tips for
Building An Effective Law
School Pro Bono Program
TIP # 7
Build Structures for
Appropriate Supervision and
Quality Control
A Baker’s Dozen Tips for
Building An Effective Law
School Pro Bono Program
TIP # 8
Track Pro Bono
A Baker’s Dozen Tips for
Building An Effective Law
School Pro Bono Program
TIP # 9
Build Pro Bono into the
Law School Curriculum
A Baker’s Dozen Tips for
Building An Effective Law
School Pro Bono Program
TIP # 10
Involve Students in
Program Development and
Administration
A Baker’s Dozen Tips for
Building An Effective Law
School Pro Bono Program
TIP # 11
Collaborate with Legal
Community, Legal Service
Providers and
Community-at-Large
A Baker’s Dozen Tips for
Building An Effective Law
School Pro Bono Program
TIP # 12
Conduct Outreach to and
Collaborate with Alumni
A Baker’s Dozen Tips for
Building An Effective Law
School Pro Bono Program
TIP # 13
Recognize Students and
Faculty
www.abaprobono.org