Pro bono attorneys
Pro Bono attorneys are those attorneys that provide services free of cost to people with low income. Pro Bono is a phrase which means for public good'. Thus, pro bono attorneys provide necessary services for the legal representation and welfare of public. In most of cases, clients that are accepted are those ones who cannot afford legal services provided by attorneys. Pro bono attorneys help individuals, groups etc by filing legal applications or petitions and in some cases, judge can also determine if loser of case pays to pro bono attorneys or not. Pro bono attorneys are very popular in United States. Attorneys in U.S are recommended under ABA or American Bar Associate ethical rules to contribute minimum of 50 hours service as pro bono attorneys. However, there are some states in which these recommended hours are low. For example, New York State Bar Association has recommended for pro bono services of 20 hours only in a year. Let us discuss some sources to understand more.
Some sources
Georgia Legal Services Program Inc is one source that can be approached for getting services of pro bono attorneys. It is located at 104 Marietta Street, Suite 250, Atlanta Georgia. Contact number of this attorney is 404-206-5175. Mission of this source is to help people with low income to get effective representation and access to justice. Pro bono attorneys and paralegals associated with his source reflect the values of equality and fairness. At present, there are 13 offices located across Georgia that can be contacted for getting services of pro bono attorneys. Priority areas in which services are offered efficiently are family and domestic violence, public benefits, housing, education, healthcare, consumer, employment etc.
These attorneys act as counsel for civil cases and also advice people. Pro bono attorneys attached with Georgia Legal Services Program also make representation in various administrative hearings and courts. Referrals to private attorneys are also made. Educational programs are also run by these attorneys. Apart from above, a person can also approach this source for getting other legal services. There are also some special projects on which these attorneys work. It includes state bar pro bono project, statewide domestic violence project, homeless legal assistance project, etc. It is important to understand here that free legal assistance is provided by pro bono attorneys to all those people that live outside the 5 county Atlanta Metro Area. Each office of this program is served by attorneys, paralegals and other staff members.
For getting legal assistance from pro bono attorneys, a person can easily approach his law firm or can call at the phone number given above. Only non-criminal cases are handled by pro bono attorneys, which include health care, housing, family, public benefits, etc. All legal work done for a person is free of cost. However, there are some associated fees that have to be borne by a person. For example, a person may be asked to pay cost of placing of legal notice in a daily newspaper. All information shared is kept confidential unless it has to be disclosed as per law or need. A person should contact these pro bono attorneys whenever he receives papers from court or police. All concerned documents and facts should be provided to pro bono attorneys so that they are able to take case in an effective manner. If any person is turned down for services by these attorneys, he has got all rights to file the complaint. There are some complaint procedures that have been evolved.
Fulbright and Jaworski is another law firm that can be contacted in United States for getting the services of pro bono attorneys. It is a full service international firm and provides services to government, businesses, not for profit organizations and individual clients. It should be noted here that Fulbright and Jaworski is one of largest law firms in U.S and is served by about 1000 attorneys. Integrated practice areas in which services are offered are more than 50. This law firm has also won Pro Bono Award offered by American Immigration Lawyers Association. Every year, this law firm donates hundreds and thousands of hours towards pro bono issues. In absolute terms, it can be said that legal services worth millions of dollars are provided free by the pro bono attorneys.
This law firm has come up with many types of legal service programs for the poor people. For encouraging pro bono attorneys and for ensuring lawyers participation, pro bono hours are considered in the annual bonus programs. Since this law firm has been built on highest standards, services offered by pro bono attorneys exceed the recommendation of American Bar Association. For providing pro bono services, this law firm works with various agencies that assign cases to it. Courts also assign cases to this law firm. There are many agencies associated with this law firm that can be approached for getting assistance. For example, a person can call Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas at 512-476-5500 for pro bono assistance. Similarly, Houston Bar Association can be called at 713-228-0732 for same assistance. There are many locations across the globe where this law firm can be approached. For example, in Dallas it can be approached at 2200 Ross Avenue, Suite 2800. Its contact number is 214-855-8000. In Dubai, it can be approached at Festival Tower, 24th Floor, Dubai Festival City. Its contact number is 971 4 293 2222.
American Bar Association is one of important organizations that can be approached for getting services of pro bono attorneys. It is located at 321 N Clark St, Chicago IL. Its contact number is 800-285-2221. Apart from above, there are many other state agencies that can be contacted for getting desired services. For example, in Alaska, a person can approach Alaska Legal Services Corporation. It is located at 1016 West 6th Avenue, Suite 200 Anchorage. Its contact number is 907-276-6282. Similarly, in Florida, a person can approach Florida Legal Services Inc at 2121 Delta Blvd, Tallahassee FL. Its contact number is 904-385-7900.
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