The idea of equal justice under the law is one of America’s core tenets, or at least it’s claimed to be. But from pledges to political speeches — even Supreme Court decisions — equal justice under the law is one of the most regularly violated legal principles and often does not reflect the reality of the justice system for many.
Deborah Rhode, director of the Stanford Center on Ethics and the Ernest W. McFarland Professor of Law at Stanford University, reported that “an estimated four-fifths of the legal needs of the poor, and the needs of two- to three-fifths of middle-income individuals, remain unmet.” Compounding the issue, Rhode wrote that over the last two decades, national spending on legal aid has been cut by one-third and “legal services offices can handle less than a fifth of the needs of eligible clients.”
An additional irony behind this lies in the fact that there are currently 1.3 million active lawyers in the U.S. — more than any other country in the world.
People need legal help for all kinds of reasons. The legal system is complicated, and lawyers are expensive. As such, for many, legal representation is nearly impossible to access. And though people charged with a criminal offense are guaranteed by law to receive representation from a public defender, that’s not the case for civil matters.
Stepping in to help address the widening justice gap are lawyers who volunteer their time to assist underserved communities that cannot otherwise afford a lawyer. They do it “for the public good” or pro bono publico in Latin — shortened to pro bono. Pro bono work is often a critical lifeline for people who need help and by extension can help strengthen the broader community.
“There is no right to counsel in this country for civil matters,” said C.C. Kahr, executive director of The Pro Bono Project, an organization that serves the Greater New Orleans area from its headquarters at 935 Gravier Street. “Individuals need help navigating their divorce, adopting a child, declaring bankruptcy or communicating with creditors, writing a will, opening a succession on their family home or challenging their insurance claim.”
Kahr said the legal needs in New Orleans are wide ranging. Children need representation when they’ve been abused or neglected. Renters need assistance when threatened with eviction or to recover a security deposit. Families need a succession to have a clear title to property — often crucial for ensuring generational wealth.
Without legal aid organizations, many individuals cannot tackle the legal issues that are affecting their lives. Kahr said 40% of Louisiana’s citizens earn income levels below 200% of the federal poverty guidelines, and nearly 8 million people in the state are eligible for legal assistance.
Meeting this need takes a lot of organization and a lot of resources. The Pro Bono Project serves clients who might not otherwise have access to the legal help they need in Orleans, Jefferson, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Tammany and Washington parishes. This requires engaging and recruiting volunteer attorneys, paralegals, law students and private citizens to help provide pro bono services.
Some firms and law schools require legal practitioners to provide some pro bono work, but many volunteer their time because they believe in giving back.
“It’s hard not to feel good when you help a grandmother adopt her grandson or help an older woman open a succession on her family home so she can ultimately sell it in order to relocate to be with her daughter, to assist someone find a path out of crushing debt,” Kahr said.
Some private New Orleans firms encourage pro bono work as well. Stone Pigman, for example, doesn’t have a pro bono requirement, but supports its lawyers and staff on pro bono matters. Paul Masinter, a lawyer at Stone Pigman, said that since he joined in 1990, the firm has always supported pro bono work.
“My career as a lawyer has provided me with a rich and rewarding life; therefore, spending some time helping others on a pro bono basis is an easy way to give back,” he said.
Brooke Tigchelaar, another lawyer at Stone Pigman, said the firm encouraged her to get involved in pro bono work, and “the gratefulness of the recipients encourages it to continue.”
It’s hard not to feel good when you help a grandmother adopt her grandson or help an older woman open a succession on her family home so she can ultimately sell it in order to relocate to be with her daughter, to assist someone find a path out of crushing debt.
Masinter said you never know what you’re going to get when you volunteer for pro bono.
“In some instances, my pro bono work was as simple as helping an individual figure out how to fill out a court form; in other instances, it was helping an organization serve the entire community by better executing on its mission.” he said. “In all instances, I hope my work helped the individual or organization, even if only in a small way.”
Some lawyers do pro bono work because they say it brings them back to why they wanted to be a lawyer in the first place.
“I have almost always wanted to be an attorney that represented individuals who have been marginalized and oppressed in our society,” said Jim Craig, director of the Louisiana Office of Roderick & Solange MacArthur Justice Center. “I went to law school to be the kind of lawyer mentioned above, so before taking any job I’ve ever had as a lawyer, I have required the firm to commit to allowing me to provide pro bono services to those who could not afford an attorney.”
Pro bono work, however, doesn’t address the underlying inequities in the justice system. And even still, there are barriers that make pro bono work a challenge for practicing lawyers and firms.
Craig said the major obstacle is that, like everyone, attorneys need to earn a living. Options for potential reimbursement for pro bono work include grants, nonprofits, government agencies, or by private law firms.
Craig has worked at many different firms and settings since he was first licensed in 1985. He said one of the ways some firms help meet this challenge is to open files in pro bono cases in the same manner as fee-based cases. That’s what he did as pro bono coordinator at Phelps Dunbar, for example. This allowed attorneys and staff to bill hours to a pro bono file, counting it toward their annual minimal expectation of billable hours.
“We also approved payment of expenses, including experts, deposition costs, and the like, so that our bro bono clients had the same quality of representation as those who were paying fees for our services,” Craig said.
Brooke Tigchelaar at Stone Pigman said she believes that if more law firms or bar associations provided more “credit” toward billable hours or Continuing Legal Education (CLE) hours for time spent in the pro bono sector, more lawyers might be more willing to use their skills to help the less fortunate.
Craig also echoed these sentiments, saying that he believes that pro bono/volunteer requirements in higher education and by professional licensure authorities incentivize employers to allow their professionals to provide services to those who are otherwise unable to pay.
But it also comes down to a commitment to giving back to the community, and the support to make it happen.
“I have been privileged to work under senior lawyers who encouraged and applauded pro bono efforts,” Craig said. “Their example and leadership are necessary to permit younger lawyers to commit to pro bono cases.”
