Pro Bono Summit 2008 Summary
PRO BONO SUMMIT 2008 SUMMARY On October 24, 2008, the Dallas Bar Association Pro Bono Activities Committee, in cooperation with the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program, Catholic Charities, Central Dallas Ministries, Human Rights Initiative, Advocacy, Inc., and Texas C-Bar, held a Pro Bono Summit at the Belo Mansion. U.S. Fifth Circuit Court Judge Catharina Haynes, Justice Deborah Hankinson, and non-profit volunteer consultant LouAnne Smith were featured speakers. Judge Haynes told the assembled group about her idea for and subsequent organization of the Vickery Meadows Legal Clinic in a needy area of Dallas earlier this year. Justice Hankinson addressed the group regarding the Prime Partner banks for Texas IOLTA accounts. Ms. Smith spoke about the reasons why business professionals volunteer, how to keep volunteers engaged, and how to recognize them for their contributions. She also recognized that different volunteers are motivated in different ways, citing the 4 P s of motivational styles: (1) Praise, (2) Part of the Team, (3) Productivity, and (4) Power and Influence. Following Ms. Smith s inspirational address, the various tables, which were separated into affinity groups of large firms, small firms/solos, and corporations, brainstormed ideas for recruiting, retaining, and rewarding volunteers. The collective results of the small group discussions follow: Recruiting General: Get people together to talk about what is being done in various communities. Provide more in-depth case notes and explanations of legal issues. Host more functions promoting pro bono opportunities and stressing the educational value of pro bono work. Big Firms: Strong encouragement: Set mandatory pro bono hour requirements that count towards billables. Consequences - not meeting hours affects bonuses and performance reviews. Use partners to approach associates (especially senior partners): Encourage partners to send handwritten thank you notes to associates thanking them for doing pro bono work. - 2 -
Partners need to set the example for associates by doing pro bono work themselves. Have partners mentor associates on pro bono cases Make pro bono part of the firm culture by creating a firm welcome video with information on pro bono work. Get pro bono coordinators to talk to people about the variety of ways to volunteer. Many attorneys prefer to volunteer in their practice area. Offer a variety of ways to volunteer. Use peer pressure to persuade attorneys into staffing clinics, just get them there. Internal and external award programs with trophies. Stress the opportunity to gain experience, learn a new area of law, and experience a new culture and different perspective. Put a face to the problems, make it real; show the impact of pro bono service on both lawyers and clients lives. Make pro bono part of the program for summer associates, matching 2-3 year attorneys with summer associates. Create guidelines at the firm level regarding cases associates are allowed to handle. Corporations: Partner with and use resources of law firms. Want discrete projects. Have General Counsels reach out to law firm partners to get them involved. Get corporations to offer incentives. For example, have corporations take pro bono service into account in engagement decisions. No large time commitments, nothing late at night (some evening clinics run too late). Offer opportunities for transactional attorneys to handle transactional matters; wills are especially desirable. Litigators want something more substantial than a simple, uncontested divorce. Offer a variety of ways to volunteer. Enable volunteers to gain confidence in areas outside their primary practice area: Offer more training. - 3 -
Have attorneys shadow a pro bono attorney before taking a case. Find ways to inspire and motivate attorneys: Offer interesting cases and the opportunity to participate in impact litigation. Encourage attorneys to share their pro bono experiences with their legal departments. Count pro bono hours towards corporate volunteer activities. Solo Practitioners: Maintain the human touch. Raise awareness of training and mentor support. Build the practice through the opportunity to learn something new and get training in other areas. Allow the attorneys to screen cases so that they only take the ones they want to take. Provide support and mentoring as needed. Having a location, such as the Legal Aid office, to meet the client is helpful. Retention General: As to Clients: Encourage clients to send thank you cards to their pro bono attorneys. Clients who do not express their gratitude are discouraging. Encourage client honesty regarding the facts of their case. Set parameters of communication with client. Educate clients regarding their responsibilities as recipients of pro bono legal services, e.g., do not call unnecessarily, update contact information as needed, and manage their expectations about the scope of representation. Stress importance to clients of notifying attorney of new address if clients move while being represented by attorney. Send a blank comment card to clients and share comments with attorneys if positive. (Provide constructive criticism if negative.) Manage expectations at the beginning stress that pro bono experience is bigger than any particular client. Do not let one bad case discourage you. - 4 -
Spell out the time commitment on the front end. The provider needs to offer structural support informing attorneys of their assignment, etc. Encourage mentors to be flexible and responsive. The volunteer organization needs to be supportive of the volunteers and follow through on commitments. Send letters to managing partners showing appreciation for pro bono work done by associates. Recognize pro bono contributions in Headnotes or other trade publications. Advise attorneys on how to withdraw before case is filed in court, and on how to return a case to DVAP if dealing with difficult client. Corporations: Continued reinvigoration. Have corporations give incentives, count pro bono towards bonuses, and give small gifts. Official recognition from General Counsel. Big Firms: Enlist partners to encourage associates. Be flexible and accommodating at the DVAP level by sending firms the types of cases that they want to handle. Publish a top 10 firms for pro bono list in the Dallas Morning News and the Dallas Business Journal (this is concurrently for retention and recruiting as firms not on the list may vie to get on it). Utilize expertise of individual volunteers, and allow attorneys who want to develop new skills to do so and apply them. Rewards General: Lapel pins. Plaques and trophies. T-shirts for great pro bono lawyers. Annual award event. Monthly recognition for pro bono work. - 5 -
Client Feedback Questionnaire notify attorneys of positive comments made by clients. Corporations: Gifts from the corporation. Bonuses factoring in pro bono hours. A variety of different types of recognition. Big Firms: Newspaper list of top firms and top volunteers for pro bono. Top associates pro bono awards lunch or dinner, important to ensure that all attorneys who volunteered are recognized. Congratulatory e-mails sent by partners. Issue press releases to Debbie Denmon and other journalists for firm publicity (with prior client consent). D Magazine Super Lawyers issue add a category for top pro bono lawyers. - 6 -