Pursuing Justice: The Pro Bono Files

There is a looming crisis in Philadelphia, where the poverty rate is high, the housing stock is old, and gentrification is transforming traditionally Black neighborhoods. The ability to pass on generational wealth is at risk, as families who thought they legally inherited their homes encounter “tangled titles” and other legal complications. Learn how Habitat for Humanity Philadelphia and the pro bono hub Philly VIP are teaming up to clear titles and provide estate planning for the residents of the Sharswood neighborhood.

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Explore our Pro Bono programs and resources

Learn about our Pro Bono Memberships and Scholarships for qualified organizations and individuals

Please note: CLE is not offered for listening to this podcast, and the views and opinions expressed within represent those of the speakers and not necessarily those of PLI.

Finding accurate, locally specific information about the rights of homeless youth can be challenging. To address that problem, Baker & McKenzie leads pro bono teams that create Homeless Youth Handbooks for each state. Learn how Legal Services of Eastern Missouri and the in-house legal team from Enterprise Mobility joined up with Baker & McKenzie to put good information in the hands of young Missourians who need it.

PLI is proud to offer programs, Pro Bono Memberships, and scholarships to support the essential public service work of the legal profession. 

In this year-end episode, host Alicia Aiken sits down with producer Daniel Painitz to chat about Pursuing Justice’s coverage of hot topics in the news, issues of interest to in-house counsel, ethical storytelling, helping veterans and artists — and much more. 

PLI is proud to support the essential public service work of the legal profession:

• Explore our Pro Bono programs and resources              

• Learn about our Pro Bono Memberships and Scholarships for qualified organizations and individuals

In the legal space, Pro Bono typically means working for free — volunteering your time and legal skills. What if there’s another way to serve the public good? In this episode, meet Daissy Dominguez and Samoane Williams and learn about the Justice Entrepreneurs Project, which creates law firms designed to meet working families’ legal needs with predictable, transparent fees.

Related Links:

To find incubators that train lawyers to start firms aimed at meeting the needs of low and middle income families, check out the ABA Lawyer Incubator Directory:

https://www.americanbar.org/groups/delivery_legal_services/initiatives_awards/program_main/program_directory/

To get a better understanding of how the U.S. measures “poverty”, you can go to HHS’s Explanation of the Federal Poverty Guidelines:

https://aspe.hhs.gov/topics/poverty-economic-mobility/poverty-guidelines

Information about the number of cases filed by self-represented litigants camse from the Administration Office of Illinois Courts 2020 Annual Report:

https://ilcourtsaudio.blob.core.windows.net/antilles-resources/resources/ce15804b-b4a7-4503-8ba9-4c609b160616/2020%20Annual%20Report%20Administrative%20Summary.pdf

 

PLI is proud to support the essential public service work of the legal profession. Learn more:

• Explore our Pro Bono programs and resources
• Learn about our Pro Bono Memberships and Scholarships for qualified organizations and individuals

Join host Alicia Aiken for a field trip to a pro bono clinic run by Katten and Legal Aid Chicago at the Jose De Diego School in Chicago. Listen in as attorneys tackle tricky questions on the spot and hear how the clinic helps dozens of clients with family law, evictions, expungements, and more.

Special thanks to Jonathan Baum, Allison Clark, Matt Doran, Adrian Jonak, Zach Schmitz, and Brett Wilson of Katten; Thomas Burnett, Niki Hua, and Alena Prcela of Northwestern Law School; and Melissa Bartolomei, Melissa Picciola, Tara Carone, and Jordan Sundt of Legal Aid Chicago.

PLI is proud to offer programs, Pro Bono Memberships, and scholarships to support the essential public service work of the legal profession. 

“When they hear that you're a veteran, it’s an immediate connection. They know that I can understand what they’re talking about … because I lived through it too.” – Monica De Martin

The veteran population is aging rapidly, and many senior vets need legal assistance with end-of-life planning, including wills. Monica De Martin, Director ‒ Counsel, Internal Investigations at Société Générale and a veteran of the Australian Royal Navy, and Peter Kempner, Legal Director and Senior Law Project Director with Volunteers of Legal Service (VOLS), talk about how pro bono assistance benefits these vets — and creates meaningful experiences for volunteers.

PLI is proud to offer programs, Pro Bono Memberships, and scholarships to support the essential public service work of the legal profession. 

 

When hurricanes, floods, fires — and sometimes all of the above — strike, how can lawyers help individuals and communities respond and recover? In this encore episode, Alicia Aiken talks to seasoned disaster relief attorneys about how pro bono can make a difference in disasters, and how lawyers can prepare to pitch in.   

Related CLE content: Connect with our on-demand pro bono disaster relief resources to help prepare you to assist disaster survivors in critical need.

PLI is proud to support the essential public service work of the legal profession:

• Explore our Pro Bono programs and resources
• Learn about our Pro Bono Memberships and Scholarships for qualified organizations and individuals

Please note: CLE is not offered for listening to this podcast, and the views and opinions expressed within represent those of the speakers and not necessarily those of PLI.

The vast majority of artists working today are not  well known or  well paid. And those artists with fewer resources  are often those with the greatest need for legal counsel, from protecting their intellectual property to drawing up contracts and more. In this episode, Amy Lehman, of Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts, and Jordan Miner Romanoff, of BNY Mellon, discuss the many ways in which pro bono lawyers can help support artists — and the arts. 

PLI is proud to offer programs, Pro Bono Memberships, and scholarships to support the essential public service work of the legal profession. 

Trauma-informed lawyering isn’t just helpful for victims of violence. In this episode, Nefertiti J. Alexander, a litigation partner and expert on trauma-informed practice, shares how this approach can strengthen your relationship with all kinds of clients, both pro bono and commercial, by helping you understand how they engage with the world.

Related Links:

Trauma-Informed Legal Advocacy Project

Trauma-Informed Lawyering: Strategies and Best Practices - Practising Law Institute

Vicarious Trauma and Resilience: Creating Space to Care for Yourself and Your Clients - Practising Law Institute

Working with Domestic Violence Survivors - Practising Law Institute

Interviewing Pro Bono Clients - Practising Law Institute

Strategic Listening for Lawyers 2022 - Practising Law Institute

 

PLI is proud to offer programs, Pro Bono Memberships, and scholarships to support the essential public service work of the legal profession. 

Pro bono stories can be compelling, informative, and persuasive, but they can also carry risks for clients. In this episode, Maricarmen Garza of the Tahirih Justice Center and Erin Kinsella of the Practising Law Institute speak with host Alicia Aiken about how the principles of ethical storytelling and client confidentiality can help protect probono clients and also shape better narratives. 

Related Links:

Voice of Witness – a nonprofit focused on collecting oral histories: https://voiceofwitness.org/ethical-storytelling-principles/

Ethical Storytelling – nonprofit and comms experts: https://ethicalstorytelling.com/

Peace Corps – ethical storytelling workbook and video: https://www.peacecorps.gov/returned-volunteers/share-your-experience/

 

PLI is proud to offer programs, pro bono memberships, and scholarships to support the essential public service work of the legal profession.