Pro Bono News

Pennsylvania Bar Associaton Seeks Nominations for 2008 Pro Bono Awards

Friday, January 04, 2008

  • Pennsylvania Bar Association
  • Source: Pennsylvania

The nomination period for the Annual Pro Bono Awards of the Pennsylvania Bar Association's Legal Service to the Public Committee is now open. This is the 21st year that the Committee has sought individual award nominees and these awards have come of age under the leadership of the Committee this past year as the PBA Board of Governors and House of Delegates have passed resolutions endorsing pro bono service and supporting the expansion of funding and services for civil legal aid.

This year also marks the fourth year for both the Judges Award and the Civil Legal Aid Attorney of the Year Award, given to a judge and a legal services attorney selected by the Committee in recognition of his or her exceptional contributions to improving civil legal aid in the Commonwealth.

The 2008 Pro Bono Awards will be presented at the PBA Annual Pro Bono Conference which will be held in Harrisburg in connection with the PBA Day on the Hill at the beginning of May. The award winners will also be acknowledged at the PBA Annual Meeting in early June in Hershey.

This is your chance to recognize and thank those attorneys and judges who have used their talents to help the needy in your county. While the obstacles to equal access to justice continue to mount, the willingness of attorneys to help meet the legal needs of the indigent in their communities is important to those in need of service.

As you select your nominees for the awards, please keep in mind the following criteria:

  • The lawyer or judge practices in Pennsylvania.

  • The lawyer, other than the Civil Legal Aid Attorney of the Year nominees, is not employed by an organization that has as its primary purpose the provision of free legal services to the poor.

  • The lawyer or judge has provided direct delivery of legal services or assisted in facilitating the delivery of such service in civil matters, with no expectation of receiving a fee, to a client or client group that does not have the resources to employ compensated counsel or has worked to facilitate such effort by other attorneys.

  • The lawyer or judge has made an outstanding contribution to the provision of legal services to the indigent without charge.

  • The lawyer or judge has made such contributions primarily through organized pro bono programs, lawyer referral service no-fee panels and legal services programs or has worked with such organizations to improve the delivery of legal services to the poor.

  • The lawyer's or judge's efforts have resulted in the increased access to legal services for low-income people.

This year's nomination form is located at the link below. The form can be completed electronically and you will receive instant confirmation that your nomination was received.

If there are any questions regarding the Pro Bono Awards, please contact PBA Pro Bono Coordinator David Keller Trevaskis (1-800-932-0311, ext. 2236; cell 717-571-7414; e-mail david.trevaskis@pabar.org)

The deadline for nominations is April 11, 2008.

Pro Bono Award Nomination Form