State Bar President, Susan Feeney, has enlisted two leaders of New Jersey pro bono efforts to head an initiative to improve and expand the delivery of much needed pro bono legal services in New Jersey.

As co-chairs of the task force, which met on September 13th, Susan appointed Karen Sacks, Executive Director of Volunteer Lawyers for Justice, and Emily Goldberg, Pro Bono Director at McCarter & English. Through surveys, meetings with stakeholders and researching efforts in other states, the task force will see what is working, what isn't and ultimately explore ways to make the entire, often disjointed, system work better. The final goal is to provide a set of recommendations to be presented to the Board of Trustees of the New Jersey State Bar Association in approximately one year's time.

"While it may be difficult to think about pro bono work in a struggling economy, please remember funding for legal services is at its lowest in years, yet the need for pro bono services is great," Susan said in her inaugural address to the Bar in June. "We have an obligation to fill this gap."

"The task force will spend the next year surveying the legal service provider landscape in New Jersey, working with the judiciary and various county and specialty bar associations to gather information about where the needs are, who is fulfilling them and where the funding is coming from," Susan said.

The membership of the task force reflects the seriousness and comprehensiveness of the effort. The 20 members come from: the state court system; providers, such as Legal Services of New Jersey, VLJ, Pro Bono Partnership and Partners for Women and Justice; large, small and medium firms; solo practitioners; corporate legal departments; and the state's three law schools. The State Bar's Pro Bono Committee will provide assistance.

At the September 13th meeting at the New Jersey Law Center in New Brunswick, the task force began organizing itself into committees that will gather information on current services and focus on six questions:

• How can coordination and collaboration be fostered among the stakeholders: firms of all sizes, solos, corporations, retirees, public interest organizations, law schools and the courts?
• What are the best ways to improve the flow of pro bono information? Internet portals to communicate pro bono opportunities, improved training, mentoring and more publicity for outstanding pro bono contributions are to be explored.
• How to facilitate access to justice for the indigent when full representation is unavailable: clinics and improved services for pro se litigants are examples.
• What are the best ways to increase funding for pro bono initiatives?
• What are the primary areas of unmet legal needs?
• Should the rules and policies impacting pro bono efforts statewide, such as emeritus status, judicial practice and Madden exemptions, be clarified or adjusted? When it comes to Madden, the task force will concentrate on how the rule and Madden exemptions affect the overall legal services landscape without focusing on the issue of whether mandatory pro bono is advisable.

According to Karen and Emily, the task force presents a tremendous opportunity to involve stakeholders throughout the state in the process of figuring out how to improve pro bono efforts.

Subcommittees for each of the areas to be explored will include non task force members with an interest in those subject areas. Susan, a partner at McCarter & English, was a founder of VLJ and served as its chair from 2001 to 2004. She mentioned in her inaugural address that her commitment to pro bono was instilled in her as a young lawyer, 30 years ago, and that she helped create Legal Services Foundation of Essex County.

"In short, this pro bono project I have planned continues what has been, for me, a long commitment to pro bono service," she said.

"Volunteer and pro bono work has given me the benefit of developing business contacts and friendships that have been invaluable in my career," she said. "I expect you will have the same experience, and I hope to inspire you all to join the NJSBA in this pro bono initiative."