As Florida Rural Legal Services, Inc. honors National Pro Bono Week, our team spotlights the dozens of private attorneys who have met the demands because legal pro bono work makes an incredible difference.
"We're able to connect private attorneys with our clients to provide free legal services that have a huge impact on our community," said Britt Berg, pro bono manager with FRLS.
Pro bono service can help bridge the access-to-justice gap.
According to the Legal Services Corporation’s 2022 Justice Gap Study, low-income Americans do not get any or enough legal help for 92% of their substantial civil legal problems. The legal system is extremely complex and difficult to navigate. For those unable to afford an attorney, access to the court system and the justice it can provide are limited.
FRLS' ProBono Attorneys :
Lakeland:
Thomas Saunders; Pierce Guard Jr.; Abel Putnam; Michael Rider; Scott Reed; Charles Stohlman; Chrystal Thornton; Grant Lyons; Keith Miller; Krista Mahalak; Heather Bryan; Amy Phillips; Maria Gallo; Kimberly Soto; Serena M. Kurtz; Kristie Hatcher – Bolin; C. Parke Sutherland; Susan Best; Cynthia Berry; Harrison Standley; Amanda Horton; Joseph Scott Reed; John G. Wood Jr.; Samuel Crosby;Harrison Standley
Fort Myers:
Richard Johnston Jr.; Lowell Schoenfeld; John Lonergan; Robert Young; Mary Snell; Steven C. Spence; Greg Nussbickel; Kati S. Calvo; David Steckler; Donald Isaac; Amy McGarry; Kim Howard; Lori Clifford; Guy Flowers; Joe Trunkett; Theresa Daniels; Claudia V. DeJesus; Scott Kuhn; Kathryn Pugh; Jeffrey Rice; Daniel Dalesandro; Lance McKinney; Phillip Howard; David Lampley; Carlos Kelly; Beth-Anne Thye Sexton; Kayla Richmond; Isabel Barroso; Truman Costello; Kelly Fayer; Lisa Musial
Fort Pierce:
Jessica Valkenburg; Alice Graves; Jason Berger; Jeff Battista; Kim Cunzo; Erin Kirkwood; Arthur Brandt; George Hough Jr.; Melissa Clasen; Peter Gianino; Louis Thermilus; Nasreen Wilkes; John Anastasio; Susan M. Chestnutt; Lisa T. Barnes; Alison Leffew; Margaret Anderson
West Palm Beach
Carl J. Domino; Julianne Frank; Tarek Kiem; David Slater; Catherine Eaton; David Savitt; Benjamin Fechter; Dayna Maeder; Thomas Montgomery; Tania Ochoa; Chioma Deere; Anila Rasul; Eric Buetens
Many studies show how critical legal representation is to the success of a case. The American Bar Association found that when unaccompanied children are unrepresented at removal hearings, only 15% of the cases win legal relief. But if they have an attorney, over 73% can remain in this country.
Pro bono comes from the Latin phrase: pro bono publico, which means, “for the public good.”
The American Bar Association’s Model Rule 6.1 states that every lawyer “has a professional responsibility to provide legal services to those unable to pay. A lawyer should aspire to render at least (50) hours of pro bono publico legal services per year.”
FRLS' Pro Bono Unit has expressed the importance of this work that frequently affords attorneys an opportunity to practice in an area of law that isn’t their usual focus. For example, when partnering with a legal aid clinic, a firm receives a list of cases that need attorneys. A corporate litigator might work on a benefits case; an IP attorney might help someone with immigration status. Attorneys have the opportunity to brush up on law that they might not have considered since law school. Most find it rewarding, and sometimes even fun.
You can join the fight to better justice by signing on as a pro bono attorney with FRLS.