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This year, the ABA’s 10th annual Pro Bono Week focuses on disaster resiliency. In an effort to bring more awareness to the Disaster Legal Services program, we talked with Andrew VanSingel, a tax attorney, who volunteers his time as a Special Advisor to the Disaster Legal Services (DLS) team. Prior to his time as Special Advisor, Mr. VanSingel served as the program’s coordinator.
The American Bar Association is urging action on the separation of children from their parents when arriving at the southern border. And if you're a law student, several organizations are asking for your help.
For abused and neglected children in transition, sometimes their strongest advocate isn’t a lawyer. Sometimes it’s a law student willing to spend time with them and listen to their needs. Each year, students at the University of Virginia School of Law do pro bono work with Piedmont Court Appointed Special Advocates.
When you hear the phrase “pro bono,” what comes to mind? Work you want to do, but just don’t have time for because of your other commitments or because you want some time free from “thinking like a lawyer?” Don’t let your pro bono efforts stall just because you can’t
Our communities as a whole are substantially improved when we provide representation and voices to our underserved segments of society, particularly non-profit organizations. With respect to intellectual property law, I think it is important to foster entrepreneurship and invention through pro bono work.
The National Organization of Veterans’ Advocates (NOVA) is a not-for-profit educational membership organization incorporated in the District of Columbia in 1993. NOVA represents more than 500 attorneys and agents assisting tens of thousands of our nation's military veterans, their widows, and their families seeking to obtain their earned
Felix Smith came into the Veteran’s Service Office location of the Marquette Volunteer Legal Clinics (MVLC) in Milwaukee, Wis., to receive legal advice regarding a contract he signed for improvements in his home. Smith was able to attend the Veteran’s Service Office location because of his service as a pilot in World
On Sept. 9, my clinic partner and I volunteered to conduct intake for veterans at the Ann Arbor VA hospital. It was the first time the Veterans Legal Clinic at Michigan Law was doing something of this sort, so we really did not know what to expect. Nonetheless,
At the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University, student advisors are developing practical legal skills through a live-client clinic providing pro bono legal services to veterans, servicemembers, and their families. The Mason Veterans and Servicemembers Legal Clinic (M-VETS) represents clients in both civil matters,
When I graduated from law school and moved with my family to another state, I had very little hope of finding a community that could relate to both the challenges of military life and the demands new attorneys face. Needless to say, I was overjoyed to discover that the newly
The American Bar Association’s Model Rules of Professional Conduct state that “every lawyer has a professional responsibility to provide legal services to those unable to pay” and suggest that lawyers should aspire to perform at least (50) hours of pro bono services per year. Therefore, most law schools encourage their
In 2012, the New York Court of Appeals adopted the "Pro Bono Rule," requiring those who seek admission to the state bar to complete 50 hours of pro bono service. A few years into this new rule, opinions vary on whether it's is a good thing. Law students are exceptionally
Recently, New York became the first state to mandate completion of pro bono work as a condition for bar admission. Under the new rule, New York bar applicants must perform 50 hours of pro bono work before they can be admitted to practice. Applicants can perform their pro bono service
Before the Bar is the blog of the ABA Law Student Division. It brings together a diversity of opinions, experiences, and voices from those associated with the law anywhere in the world and is targeted to law students, current, past and future.
Unless stated, the opinions shared by our writers do not reflect the official position of the American Bar Association.
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