The PBEye

*Knock Knock* Anyone Home?

Is your firm taking full advantage of your Law Firm Pro Bono Project Member Benefits? Why not invite the Law Firm Project for a visit!

The Law Firm Project provides a variety of expert consultative services to Member Law Firms.  One benefit of Membership is a House Call where Law Firm Project Director Tammy Taylor and Law Firm Project Assistant Director Reena Glazer visit your city or one nearby.  During the visits Project staff meet with pro bono committees, firm and office leaders, partners, and pro bono managers to discuss national trends in pro bono and to learn about innovative pro bono projects underway at their firms and in their communities.  Help us promote and publicize your good work by helping us stay informed.  Since 2007, we’ve had successful house call trips around the country, and as far away from the Beltway as the U.K. and Australia.

We are planning our travel schedule for 2013-2014 now!  If you are interested in a house call visit to your community, please contact us.  The details and agenda of the meeting can be tailored to meet your needs, and focus on issues of concern and interest to you and your firm.  Please note that it may not be possible to fill all requests this year.  If your travels bring you to Washington, D.C., let us know – we’d be delighted to meet with you at your convenience.  This benefit is provided free of charge to Member Law Firms.

Guest Blog: Work in Progress – Pro bono and the In-house Counsel Population?

I have had the opportunity to serve on the Multijurisdictional Practice Task Force (a joint initiative of PBI and CPBO) for a little over a year. When the purpose of the Task Force was being explained to me, its mission sounded like an easy sell: help change states’ practice rules to allow in-house counsel operating on limited licenses to do pro bono.

Most states have practice rules that allow in-house lawyers working locally but licensed in another jurisdiction to practice solely for their employers without going through the full bar process (“in-house counsel rules”), but many of those rules don’t provide a similar pro bono exception. My initial take was that this issue arose from a simple, if wide-spread, drafting omission unintentionally preventing skilled lawyers from helping those in need. Since it is commonly known that the need for pro bono services in most jurisdictions far outstrips supply, we would point out the oversight to the states, and presto, the pool of lawyers available to do pro bono in any given state gets bigger at almost no cost to the state’s government. As Lee Corso says on ESPN’s College Gameday, “not so fast, my friend.” Seems it’s a bit more complicated than that. Were I more astute, the fact that there was a task force on the issue should have dispelled my notions of simplicity.

As the Task Force discussed its activities in various states, I learned that people deeply committed to pro bono and the important work of helping those in legal need can have very different takes on how to tackle the issue. For those states that have included some pro bono exception in their in-house counsel rules, there are roughly two camps. The Task Force endorses the approach taken by Virginia, Colorado, and Illinois, which permit lawyers practicing on in-house counsel licenses to provide pro bono assistance in the state so long as their representation is consistent with the Rules of Professional Conduct. The other approach requires that all activity be conducted through established/accredited pro bono legal services providers, and/or that the in-house lawyers are fully supervised by locally licensed lawyers.

I was recently involved in an effort to amend the in-house counsel rules in Minnesota, the headquarters of my employer and home to a surprisingly large number of Fortune 500 companies. The proposal to amend the rule was drafted by members of the Minnesota State Board of Law Examiners and the Minnesota State Bar Association, and took the approach noted above requiring in-house lawyers to work with an approved legal services provider. The proposal was approved by the Minnesota Supreme Court, with an expansion to allow all lawyers in Minnesota admitted under the in-house counsel rules to engage in pro bono (Minnesota has two in-house counsel rules, one for practice lasting less than one year and one for ongoing practice, and the proposal had only requested changes to the ongoing practice rule).

In speaking with representatives of the Minnesota State Bar Association and the Minnesota State Board of Law Examiners, as well as some of the established legal services organizations in the state, I experienced first-hand their commitment to pro bono. This led me to reflect on the difference between the two approaches to in-house counsel pro bono I’ve described. After pondering a bit, I believe that their support for the more limited approach to in-house counsel pro bono stems from two primary concerns:  quality control and resource constraints. Given these organizations’ purposes and goals, this focus is both sensible and logical. Most legal services organizations suffer from an insufficient supply of lawyers to meet the needs of the populations they serve, and also have practical, experience-based insight into how best to direct their limited resources to maximize their impact. Similarly, because pro bono clients often have a number of disadvantages, it is critical to ensure that any legal services provided to that population meet the highest standards of practice and avoid any unintentional harm. By channeling the additional lawyers participating under the in-house counsel exception to accredited providers that have clear expertise in the pro bono services they offer, both of those concerns are addressed.

My experiences on the Task Force, and in my work as an in-house lawyer, however, have illustrated some challenges with this approach. One of the main ones is the type of work that legal services organizations provide to individuals in need. Most of the work is court-focused or involves direct representation or legal counseling on civil or criminal matters, and many in-house lawyers have neither the background nor interest in doing this type of legal work (it is often one of the reasons we end up drawn to in-house roles). As a result, these providers are frequently not able to leverage the broad array of skills that in-house lawyers can offer: negotiating leases or real estate deals for nonprofit organizations; completing 501(c)(3) incorporation or accompanying tax documents; advising nonprofits on compliance with regulatory requirements; or helping artists protect their intellectual property rights, to name a few. I am not arguing about the merit or value of one type of pro bono work over another, but I do believe that the conversation can be dominated by a focus on more traditional types of pro bono activity. Allowing in-house lawyers to provide pro bono assistance based on their developed skill sets helps to leverage those skills and address underserved pro bono needs. The local Rules of Professional Conduct offer strong protections for pro bono clients, and as Virginia, Illinois, and Colorado demonstrate, relying on such protections is and removing other restrictions is a viable means to expanding pro bono participation by the in-house community.

My hope is to contribute to further dialogue about this difference in approach to pro bono in in-house counsel rules. Understanding some of the factors that may underpin a contrary view can help both sides negotiate and reach a better result. And, setting aside the difference in approach to in-house pro bono, the result in Minnesota is a tremendous step forward in providing lawyers the opportunity to use their training to help others. At their core, I firmly believe that is all both sides want, and look forward to continuing this work.

–

Adam Hellman is a Senior Associate General Counsel in the UnitedHealth Group** Corporate Legal Department where he supports the Government Affairs function, and has oversight responsibilities for enterprise lobbying compliance and enterprise conflicts of interest disclosure and review. Prior to joining UnitedHealth Group, Hellman worked in the Washington, D.C., office of O’Melveny & Myers*.

* denotes a Signatory to the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge^®
**denotes a Signatory to the Corporate Pro Bono Challenge^SM

Pro Bono Isn’t Just For Litigators!

Transactional or business-related pro bono projects can offer meaningful long-term solutions for individuals, families, and communities in need.  In addition, involving non-litigators is one of the most effective ways to enhance pro bono performance and broaden institutional support for pro bono.  Law firms and legal departments that want to expand their pro bono programs by involving their business and transactional lawyers, however, often report difficulty in finding a steady, varied, and reliable stream of appropriate transactional pro bono matters.  It is one of the most common topics of requests for expert consultation that we receive, and we can help!

Recently, PBI hosted a webinar, “Marketplace of Ideas – Transactional Pro Bono Projects,” produced in conjunction with our partner West LegalEdcenter.  This program, which was the first in a series of webinars reprising and supplementing the most popular sessions from the 2013 PBI Annual Conference, featured brief presentations on a number of transactional (non-litigation/business-related) pro bono projects and provided an opportunity to learn about and be inspired by these replicable offerings and developments.

Presenters and topics addressed include:

• Jennifer Brown, Morrison & Foerster LLP ^*†

Loan Relief for Victims of Unscrupulous For-Profit Schools

• Bill Lienhard, Volunteers of Legal Service

Microenterprise Project

• Lou O’Neill, White & Case LLP ^*†

Debt for Nature Swaps

• Jung-ui Sul, Sidley Austin LLP ^*†

Africa-Asia Agricultural Enterprise Program

• Catherine Weiss, Lowenstein Sandler PC ^*†

Restoring Foreclosed Properties to the Market

We are grateful to the presenters for sharing their knowledge, expertise, and innovations.

You can access the webinar on-demand here at your convenience, along with the supplemental materials.  The program is free of charge to anyone associated with a Law Firm Pro Bono Project Member Firm; please contact Director of Strategic Communications David Lipscomb for the promotional code or for information on becoming a Member of the Law Firm Project.  In-house counsel and staff can obtain registration information from Corporate Pro Bono Project Assistant Eric Florenz. CLE credit is available in many states for this program.

For more ideas and tips, be sure to check out the Law Firm Pro Bono Project’s publication “Transactional Pro Bono Opportunities for Law Firm and In-House Attorneys,” which is available (free for Law Firm Project Members) at our Resource Clearinghouse.

^* denotes a Signatory to the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge^®

^† denotes a Member of the Law Firm Pro Bono Project

Video: WDPB – Nicky Friedman, Allens

Most lawyers who dedicate a lot of their time to pro bono will tell you they do it because “it’s the right thing to do,” and we at The PBEye would have to agree.  Lawyers are gifted with a particular set of skills that are very useful to those in our communities and especially those who are disadvantaged and cannot afford legal aid.

This week we hear from Nicky Friedman, senior associate and national coordinator of pro bono and community programs at Allens, on why her firm believes it’s important to do pro bono.

What’s on the Pro Bono Menu?

One of the most popular features of the PBI Annual Conference is peer-to-peer learning.  Pro bono leaders from law firms, legal departments, and public interest organizations and legal services providers share tips, innovations, frustrations, and best practices.  Along with networking and participatory learning, we emphasize “takeaways” – specific, concrete, practical, and universally replicable techniques, ideas, and guidance that attendees can take home with them to implement. We’re already knee-deep in planning for the 2014 Conference, which will take place in Washington, D.C., on March 5-7.  But, before we get too far along, let’s take a moment to reflect on a few of the gems that were shared with attendees at the Conference a few weeks ago:

• Adding a representative from the marketing department to your pro bono committee can yield demonstrable results in the form of increased media attention, heightened internal and external visibility for the pro bono program, and more sophisticated communications platforms.

• How great is it for the chair of a law firm’s pro bono committee to also serve on the firm’s management committee?  The dual role enhances the prestige of pro bono at the firm while offering access to critical information and key players.

• Be creative and generous when providing in-kind donations and support to nonprofit legal services providers.  In addition to offering invitations to in-house CLE programs, consider providing training and other professional development opportunities to attorneys and staff at organizations that are unlikely to have the resources to provide those opportunities for their own employees.   (On a related note, the American College of Trial Lawyers has produced a mock trial teaching video that it is making available at no cost as a training vehicle for public interest lawyers.  Feel free to contact us, for more information.).

Emily Goldberg, pro bono director at McCarter & English, LLP^*†, shared her Menu of Pro Bono Fare, which she customizes for each firm office.  On the menu are:

- Appetizers (“A small helping of pro bono; approximately 25 hours or less.”);

- Soups & Salads (“A medium helping of pro bono; approximately 25 to 75 hours.”);

- Entrees (“A larger helping.  Cases can exceed 100 hours, though the time commitment depends on the nature of a particular matter.  Cases are typically handled in teams.”); and

- Desserts (“Doing pro bono offers many sweet ‘rewards.’”).

We applaud all of our attendees’ creativity, ingenuity, generosity, and good works.  What was your favorite takeaway from this year’s Conference?  Leave a comment and let us know!

^*denotes a Signatory to the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge^®
†denotes a Member of the Law Firm Pro Bono Project

Final Reminder: CPBO Partner Award Nomination Deadline

The PBEye reminds you that there’s only a few days left to submit your nomination for the 2013 CPBO Pro Bono Partner Award. Nominations are due May 3 and may be submitted via e-mail or hard copy to CPBO Director Eve Runyon.

The award, which will be presented at the 2013 PBI Annual Dinner, recognizes innovative team approaches to pro bono work involving in-house legal departments, law firms, and public interest groups. Recipients of the award must include at least one legal department and one or more law firms and/or public interest group partners.

Last year’s award was presented to the Ford Motor Company** Office of the General Counsel, in partnership with Dykema Gossett PLLC*†, Legal Aid and Defender Association, Inc., and Michigan Community Resources. Their innovative partnership served the legal needs of individuals, families, and local nonprofits. A full list of previous awardees can be found here.

For more information about the award, please contact Eve Runyon at (202) 729-6699.

* denotes a Signatory to the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge^®
† denotes a Member of the Law Firm Pro Bono Project
**denotes a Signatory to the Corporate Pro Bono Challenge^SM

Upcoming Webinar: The Ethics of Unbundled Legal Services

On May 15 at 1:00 p.m. EDT, PBI is hosting the webinar “The Ethics of Unbundled Legal Services: Limited-Scope Representation and Pro Bono.” This program is the second in our series of Best of the 2013 PBI Annual Conference webinars reprising and supplementing the most popular sessions from the Conference.  Our speakers will consider various ethical rules related to unbundling of legal services, also known as limited-scope representation and what some have called “a proven method for addressing the needs of justice in our 21st Century courts.”

The following panelists will explore how legal institutions comply with the applicable ethics rules while providing such services:

• Hon. Fern A. Fisher, Deputy Chief Administrative Judge of New York City Courts, Director of NYS Access to Justice Program
• L. Joseph Genereux, Partner, Dorsey & Whitney LLP*†
• Sheila A. Hubbard,  Executive Director, Volunteer Lawyers Project of the Boston Bar Association

Please join us to earn ethics CLE credit and learn about best practices related to addressing and complying with the ethical issues and rules implicated by limited-scope representation.  Examples of limited-scope representation include: consultation, such as giving advice and direction; document preparation; and limited representation in court.

Registration is required to access this program, either live or on-demand as a recording. Corporate participants should contact CPBO Project Assistant Eric Florenz to register or to submit questions in advance of the program.

Registration is free for Law Firm Pro Bono Project Members. Law firm participants should contact Director of Strategic Communications David Lipscomb for registration information or to submit questions.

^*denotes a Signatory to the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge^®
†denotes a Member of the Law Firm Pro Bono Project

Mother Nature Needs Pro Bono Lawyers

In the days between Earth Day and Arbor Day, our thoughts turn to spring, nature, and environmental sustainability.  The increased attention given to environmental and climate change issues over the past few years has brought about local, national, and international concern for the health of our planet.  In their annual reports, newsletters and on their websites, a number of companies and law firms emphasize their adoption and implementation of green business practices.  Recycling programs, energy-efficient lighting, and the use of e-mail and technology instead of paper are just a few ways in which law firms and legal departments, and indeed all of us, reduce our negative environmental impact.  Increasingly, organizations are introducing strategic and integrated approaches to managing the environmental impact of their business, in areas such as energy, waste, travel and procurement, in an effort to better manage their environmental footprints.

While these efforts are admirable and important, lawyers can go above and beyond in utilizing their legal training, skills, and expertise to propel environmental progress.  There is an environmental opportunity to suit the interests and talents of every pro bono lawyer.  Moreover, the range of environmental pro bono opportunities is broad and deep, with options for both small and large-scale projects and those that would appeal to litigators and non-litigators alike, while bypassing both traditional and positional conflicts.

By thinking creatively, pro bono lawyers can advance the health of our planet in a variety of ways, both locally and globally, and work to fulfill our responsibility to be stewards of the planet.  Through pro bono engagements and partnerships with environmental organizations, pro bono lawyers can have a significant and meaningful impact, and be at the forefront of current and ongoing environmental legal efforts.  In the words of EarthJustice, “the earth needs a good lawyer.”

Have you been involved in any eco pro bono work? Please leave a comment below and share your experience.  To learn more about environmental pro bono opportunities and strategic partnerships with public interest environmental law firms and advocacy organizations, check out the Law Firm Pro Bono Project’s publication “Saving the Planet, One Pro Bono Matter at a Time,” which is available in our Resource Clearinghouse.

Pro Bono Assistance for Young Immigrants

When President Obama announced the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in June 2012, undocumented immigrants were given the opportunity to step out of the shadows and finally pursue their dreams of becoming doctors, engineers, and teachers in the U.S. The program gives a two-year, renewable reprieve from deportation to undocumented immigrants who meet a variety of eligibility requirements, including those who came to the U.S. before age 16 and are in school, high school graduates, or military veterans. Potential participants also need to be under the age of 31 and have lived in the U.S. for five years. An estimated 1.7 million people are eligible for the program and as of January 154,404 have been granted deferred action.

The large demand for legal advice for those seeking a reprieve has led lawyers around the country to gather and provide pro bono assistance to the qualifying immigrants. In Illinois, the National Immigration Justice Center (NIJC) holds weekly clinics to meet the needs of the estimated 75,000 youth between the ages of 16 to 30 in Illinois eligible for the DACA program. Attorneys from Exelon Corporation** partnered with Dentons*† (formerly SNR Denton) to help staff these clinics. The legal department at United Airlines and the Chicago chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel also volunteer at these clinics. They work directly with clients to fill out the 20-page application for deferred action and help them find document evidence to prove their eligibility.

Volunteer lawyers from Latham & Watkins LLP*† have focused their efforts on meeting with young undocumented immigrants in San Diego and determining their eligibility for the DACA program. These meetings have been invaluable for Latham lawyers, as they have underscored the importance of equal access to justice to all members of society, including those living in the shadows.

Law students have also recognized the necessity of providing quality pro bono legal services to young, undocumented immigrants. Professors and students at the University of Texas School of Law created a partnership between the Law School’s Pro Bono Program and the Immigration Clinic in order to hold legal clinics for undocumented immigrants. The clinics, held in the Austin area, assist qualifying attendees in completing and filing applications for the program. The astounding success of these clinics has led the law school to partner with organizations in the Rio Grande Valley to serve young immigrants in the border region.

While immigration law is a new venture for many attorneys, they have quickly risen to the occasion and are well aware of what is at stake for many of the young men and women they are helping. As Ben Weinberg, pro bono partner at Dentons who volunteers with NIJC, stated:  “These are people who are underground, coming out and saying we feel so strongly about working and being productive members of society that we’re going to shine a light on ourselves to the federal government that has the power to send them far away.”

Immigration will continue to be a hot button issue as Congress works to find a cohesive solution to assist all undocumented immigrants. To learn about immigration-related pro bono opportunities and developments, contact Tammy Taylor or Eve Runyon.

* denotes a Signatory to the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge^®
† denotes a Member of the Law Firm Pro Bono Project
** denotes a Signatory to the Corporate Pro Bono Challenge^SM

More than Just Flowers: A Virtuous Circle

As we prepare to celebrate Administrative Professionals Day next week (also known as Secretaries Day or Support Staff Week), and the yearly ritual of monitoring who sends and receives the office’s most beautiful floral arrangement, let’s take a moment to pause and appreciate the valuable contributions of all of our colleagues and co-workers.  As our friend Nic Patrick wrote recently on DLA Piper’s^*† Pro Bono Blog:

In a professional services firm our people are everything. We must attract and retain the very best employees.  In order to achieve this we must ensure we give our staff learning and development opportunities, we must ensure their work is interesting and challenging and provides an opportunity for people to extend themselves.  Pro bono plays an important role, since many pro bono matters provide staff with these kinds of opportunities.  The availability of pro bono opportunities is a key benefit that any firm can provide to its people.  We know that our people enjoy the pro bono work that they do, and we know that happy employees are more productive.  It’s a virtuous circle.

Law firms and legal departments are made up of a lot of people – most of whom are not lawyers.  Involving paralegals; administrative assistants; librarians; compliance, risk, and project management specialists; marketing and communications staff; policy, science, human resources, and information technology experts; and other non-lawyer staff in your pro bono efforts is one way to effectively increase your pro bono practice and serve more clients.  In order for non-lawyers to successfully contribute to your pro bono efforts: (1) the culture of your firm or organization must support non-lawyer participation; (2) non-lawyers must be informed and made aware of relevant pro bono opportunities; (3) you should cater to non-lawyer abilities and interests; and (4) non-lawyers must be adequately trained and supervised, so that they can have a meaningful experience.  As our friend Lisa Borden observed on Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, PC’s^† One Good Turn blog, “[g]etting people engaged in pro bono helps create a sense of community in a law firm – it only makes sense to find ways to engage staff as well as lawyers in that effort.”

Don’t just take our word for it.  Check out this inspiring video clip in which our friend Cheryl Naja describes a pro bono project for eligible cancer patients that was the brainchild of non-lawyers at Alston & Bird LLP^*†, who are also heavily involved, along with firm lawyers, in its ongoing implementation:

How are you engaging your non-lawyer staff and leveraging their skills in support of pro bono projects?  Are you incorporating a pro bono element into the celebration of your administrative professionals next week?  Leave a comment and share your creative ideas below.  To learn more about involving non-lawyers in pro bono, check out the Law Firm Pro Bono Project’s publication “Broadening the Bench: Involving Non-Lawyer Staff in Law Firm Pro Bono,” which is available in our Resource Clearinghouse.

^*denotes a Signatory to the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge^®
†denotes a Member of the Law Firm Pro Bono Project