Emory Law School Website

Pro Bono Program

ONLINE FORM TO SUBMIT PRO BONO HOURS

PRO BONO OPPORTUNITIES

All members of the legal profession have a professional obligation to undertake pro bono work on behalf of indigents and underrepresented groups in our society.  In recognition of this obligation, Emory Law School encourages and recognizes law students for their pro bono work.

Students who complete pro bono activities as outlined below receive:

(a) a certificate of accomplishment
(b) a medal to wear at graduation
(c) recognition in the graduation program
(d) an invitation to an event celebrating pro bono work in the spring.

In addition a special award is given annually to the third year student who has most demonstrated commitment to public interest/pro bono over his or her law school career.

Hourly Thresholds for Recognition

All students who work a minimum of 25 pro bono hours during the academic year receive certificates and invitations to the annual celebration of pro bono work.

Graduating seniors who work a minimum of 75* hours over their three years at Emory receive medals and special recognition in the graduation program.

* This program is being implemented over three years.  The minimum hour requirement for the class of 2007 was 25 hours, for the class of 2008 it is 50 hours.  For the class of 2009 and classes thereafter, it will be 75 hours.

Details of the Program

1. Students report hours through a form posted on the public interest web site.  Reports must include the student's year in school, the name of the supervisor and the telephone or email of that attorney.  The form is automatically submitted to probono@law.emory.edu.  Hours should be submitted AS THEY ARE ACCRUED.  Clinic and field placement overage hours (see 6 below) should be claimed ONLY after the minimum number of hours for credit have been reported to the clinic or field placement directors.
2. Hours must be submitted by APRIL 1 each year to allow for recognition at the annual reception and at graduation.  Third year students who wish to be recognized MUST have completed all hours by this deadline.  First and second year students accruing additional hours between April 1 and graduation may carry over those hours to the next year.
3. Only pro bono hours accrued during the law school's academic year should be reported.  The first day of the academic year is the first day of the fall semester.  The last day of the academic year is the day of graduation exercises.  Hours accrued over the winter and spring breaks may be reported.  Hours worked over the summer WILL NOT count towards the 25 hour or 75 hour total.
4. To qualify as a pro bono activity for this purpose, work must be legally related.  It should involve rendering service to persons or organizations of limited means.  Qualified activities are broadly defined to include all those that require lawyering skills such as legal research and writing, interviewing, counseling, oral or written advocacy or representation of individuals in court or in administrative or other hearings.  Also included are public education activities such as preparing for and delivering lectures on legal topics or writing informational brochures or web information on legal topics for under-served communities.  Work must ALWAYS be supervised by an attorney and must be unpaid.
5. Pro bono work does NOT include non-legal public service (i.e. work that does not involve lawyering skills such as building houses or servicing in soup kitchens) however worthwhile.  Nor does it include volunteer work for a student organization-organizing bake sales, blood drives, conducting ticket sales, arranging speakers and the like.
6. Students who participate in the Barton Child Law and Policy Clinic, the Turner Clinic, the Barton Juvenile Defender Clinic, the Indigent Criminal Defense Clinic, the Capital Defender Workshop or Public Interest field placement that provide direct client services as pro bono any hours that they work over and above the minimum required for credit.  Field placements require a minimum of 120 hours in a semester: clinics require a minimum of 150 hours.  The following are the public interest field placements active this year and for which students may claim overage hours: ACLU, Atlanta Legal Aid, AVLF, Catholic Social Services, Cobb District Attorney (litigation and appellate divisions), Dekalb District Attorney, Dekalb Public Defender, Federal Defender, Fulton District Attorney, Fulton Landlord-Tenant Mediation Project, Georgia Center for Law in the Public Interest, Georgia Innocence Project, Georgia Lawyers for the Arts, Georgia Legal Services, Health Law Partnership, Pro Bono Partnership of Atlanta, Southern Center for Human Rights, Southern Environmental Law Center, Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper and the U.S. Attorney's Office.
   Students wishing to claim overage hours as pro bono hours MUST submit those hours to probono@law.emory.edu. Any hours claimed from the in-house clinics must be approved by the director of that clinic.
7. Pro bono work opportunities may be posted on the public interest web site.  Activities may also be sponsored by student organizations.
8. Hours are reported using the form posted on the public interest web site.  All hours are subject to verification.  As in all activities, students undertaking pro bono work are subject to the Emory University School of Law Professional Conduct Code.
9. Students having specific questions about the pro bono project should send their questions by email to the coordinator of this project, Professor Pratt at jpratt@law.emory.edu.