With so many natural disasters and such uncertainty in the world today, there is no better time than now for lawyers to consider
pro bono service. The October issue of the New Jersey State Bar Association’s bi-monthly magazine provides practitioners with everything they need to pursue
pro bono work, whether simply to meet the requirements to get a
Madden exemption or to delve deeper into public service.
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Pro bono outreach takes many forms, and the articles in this edition offer a comprehensive review of
pro bono opportunities, including representation of children with special needs, immigration matters, how to help veterans, landlord-tenant cases, reentry matters, transactional
pro bono, domestic violence cases, and representation of human trafficking victims,” said Mary Frances Palisano, who served as special editor for the issue. “This edition also offers ways attorneys can get involved in
pro bono outreach, the types of programs available, and the importance and benefits of
pro bono work.”
To kick-off the issue, Joseph Murray provides a personal perspective on
pro bono outreach and community.
“After surviving the ordeal of taking the bar, came the author’s first and only job as an attorney, working at Hudson County Legal Services, now Northeast New Jersey Legal Services,” Murray wrote. “Truth be told, it was clear it was time to repay life’s good fortune when the realization hit that the author’s immigrant parents, who raised eight children, had been in the same boat as some of these clients, namely struggling financially. In effect, the sense of community had come full circle.”
The opening piece is followed by these contributions:
• Dawn Miller offers an article focusing on where and how to find
pro bono opportunities.
• Michelle T. Nuciglio outlines types of
pro bono projects seeking volunteers and the impact
pro bono work has on the lives of low-income people.
• Jeffrey S. Mandel shares his experience in areas of appellate and mediation
pro bono.
• Palisano, Debra A. Clifford, Kaitlyn E. Stone and Charlotte E. Howells look at ways to leverage
pro bono outreach at all stages of legal practice.
• Diane K. Smith explains the need for attorneys to volunteer for
pro bono projects and the critical difference it makes in closing the justice gap for indigent individuals.
• Jill Friedman, Erika Kerber, Mark Miller, Stacy Noonan, Mary Orsini and Susan Saidel provide guidance concerning legal challenges and resources for children with special needs.
• Jeffrey DeCristofaro focuses on fraud in immigration cases that can devastate the path to citizenship.
• Jessica Limbacher and Kaleia Edmundo explain the need for representation of veterans and offer examples of New Jersey
pro bono programs designed to assist veterans.
• Natalie J. Kraner and Catherine Weiss review how low-income tenants fall prey to abuse in eviction proceedings when unrepresented, and how representation increases the likelihood of success.
• William Lim and John G. Koufos focus their article on license restoration for reentry clients.
• Michele C. Lefkowitz addresses how
pro bono attorneys can help victims of domestic violence in final restraining order hearings.
• Jessica Kitson focuses on how
pro bono attorneys can help victims clear their criminal records so they can rebuild their lives.
• Carrey Wong, Michelle Movahed and Nick Insua discuss how
pro bono work assists refugee children and their path toward lawful immigration status.
• Victor A. Afanador and Jason S. Kanterman describe how ReNew, a federal re-entry program, can assist those reentering society after serving prison time.
• Nancy Eberhardt discusses the need for and importance of transactional
pro bono work.
Get October
New Jersey Lawyer here.
The December issue of
New Jersey Lawyer will focus on the topic of construction law.