Justice:  The Pro Bono Component

The Arkansas Access to Justice Commission presented a CLE course at the recent Arkansas Bar Association Annual Meeting in Hot Springs.  The course covered the change in Rule 6.1 on Pro Bono Publico Service and showed attorneys the resources the Commission has made available to assist them in their pro bono practice. 

Arkansas Supreme Court Justice Annabelle Clinton Imber, a Commission member, outlined the changes to Rule 6.1.  She emphasized that the previous Rule encouraged pro bono service, but did not give attorneys a specific goal.  The new Rule states that attorneys are encouraged to perform at least 50 hours of pro bono service per year and should also make financial contributions to legal services providers.  The Rule was changed based upon the American Bar Association’s Model Rule 6.1.  Click here for A.R.P.C. 6.1 text and its comments. 

Commission Chair Dean Charles Goldner of the UALR Bowen School of Law discussed the types of clients that the Rule change was designed to assist.  Attorneys should devote their pro bono service to low-income clients who qualify for representation by legal services programs under federal poverty guidelines.  Dean Goldner also highlighted a study from the American Bar Association which shows a high correlation between career satisfaction and the provision of pro bono service.  He pointed out the “safe harbor” for conflicts available under Rule 6.5 when attorneys provide short-term limited legal services to a client, such as participation in People’s Law School or Law Aid Day call-in programs. 
Click here for federal poverty guidelines.
Click here for American Bar Association Study.
Click here for A.R.P.C. 6.5.

Vincent Morris, Associate Director of Justice and Technology Projects for the Arkansas Legal Services Partnership demonstrated the helpful tools the Partnership provides to member attorneys to assist them with handling unfamiliar cases.  Many of the legal problems that arise among low-income Arkansans may be issues that are outside a private attorney’s typical area of practice.  The forms, fact sheets, and form letters available help make the process easier and provide a member attorney with a certain comfort level when faced with new issues.  Click here for a list of membership resources.

There is a great need for pro bono attorneys.  More than half of the clients who call the state’s legal services providers must be turned away due to a lack of resources.  There are only 37 legal services attorneys for the entire state of Arkansas, but there are 555,000 low-income Arkansans who qualify for services.
This trend prevails throughout the United States, but can be addressed by private attorneys, as demonstrated in the American Bar Association’s study, Supporting Justice:  A Report on the Pro Bono Work of America’s Lawyers.
Click here for the facts on the civil legal aid system in Arkansas
Click here for the ABA Pro Bono Report.