|
Overview
NCCU Law School established the Pro Bono Program in 1997 to encourage and provide opportunities for law students to get involved in public interest law and pro bono legal service (legal services without pay). As Pro Bono Program participants, law students volunteer on supervised projects for non-profit organizations, government agencies, and private attorneys representing clients on a free or reduced-fee basis. By participating in pro bono, students gain valuable experience and develop practical legal skills while helping real clients with real legal problems. Students are also able to explore a possible career in public interest law while helping to meet a vital community need.
The Pro Bono Program reflects a core mission of the Law School: "To attract students committed to public service and to meeting the needs of people and communities that are under-served or under-represented in the legal profession." The ultimate goal is for students to gain an appreciation of the lawyer's professional responsibility to render pro bono service and the rewards of public service, and to foster a commitment to public interest and pro bono both during law school and after graduation.
Information For Individuals Seeking Legal Assistance
The NCCU Law Pro Bono Program and NCCU law students DO NOT provide direct legal assistance or advice to the general public. If you are seeking help with a legal problem, please check the North Carolina Bar Association's Lawyer Referral Service, telephone 800-662-7660 (in the Raleigh area or out of state, 919-677-8574), http://www.ncbar.org (click on "public" and "Lawyer Referral Service").
Information For Attorneys and Organizations Requesting A Pro Bono Student
The Pro Bono Program seeks to be a resource for lawyers and public interest organizations in the community seeking assistance with pro bono cases. Only nonprofit or governmental organizations or attorneys or law firms working on pro bono matters may request assistance of a Pro Bono student.
Projects must be legal in nature and performed under the supervision of a licensed attorney. The Pro Bono office publicizes requests for assistance to law students through postings on an electronic bulletin board (the Pro Bono Program TWEN page) and e-mail alerts.
To contact the Pro Bono Program with a request, contact Pro Bono Coordinator or 919-530-7868.
Information for Law Students
Getting Involved In Pro Bono
Law students can participate in Pro Bono starting in the second semester of their first year. The Pro Bono Coordinator is available to help students identify a pro bono project that meets their interests and schedule and to facilitate their contact with the organization.
Students who complete 75 or more hours of pro bono service while in law school receive a certificate of recognition from the Law School and the North Carolina Bar Association. Second and third-year students may earn 1 credit hour for approved pro bono work by registering for the Pro Bono Clinic.
Pro Bono Projects: What kinds of projects are available?
To qualify as pro bono, work must be law-related, uncompensated, and must benefit the under-served, under-represented, or organizations with limited resources. Students may choose to volunteer with one of the public interest law organizations and agencies with which the Law School has an established relationship; with one of the law school's in-house pro bono projects (VITA and the NCCU Law Innocence Project); with a private attorney or law firm representing clients on a no-fee or reduced-fee basis; or students can identify and develop their own pro bono placement or project reflecting their own interests, values and concerns.
Pro bono projects vary in length and in time commitment. They can be semester-long or only a week or two in duration, and students can volunteer as little as 2-3 hours per week. The actual work done by students also varies widely. Students may do client intake and interviewing, review case files, perform legal research and write memoranda, prepare court documents, investigate facts, and attend hearings. All work is done under the supervision of licensed attorneys. Some pro bono placements have to be scheduled during the organization's work day, but some weekend and evening assignments are available (e.g., Teen Court, the Innocence Project, and VITA). Pro bono assignments may be performed on-site at the organization's office or off-site (for example, at the Law School library or in the field).
Participating Organizations and Agencies
The following are organizations with which NCCU Law School has an established relationship for placement of pro bono students:
- Legal Aid of North Carolina
- American Civil Liberties Union
- Carolina Dispute Settlement Services, Inc.
- Center for Child and Family Health Legal Project
- Child Advocacy Commission of Durham
- Guardian Ad Litem Program
- Teen Court Program
- NC Association of Black Lawyers Land Loss Prevention Project
- NC Fair Housing Center
- NC Justice and Community Development Center
- Center for Death Penalty Litigation
- Prisoner Legal Services, Inc.
- NC Appellate Defender's Office
- NC Attorney General's Office
- NC Coalition Against Domestic Violence
- Carolina Legal Assistance Mental Disability Law Project
NCCU Law Innocence Project
The NCCU Law School Innocence Project is a student-run, in-house pro bono project supporting the work of the North Carolina Center on Actual Innocence, a non-profit organization formed to assist North Carolina inmates with claims of wrongful conviction. Working in teams of two, students review and evaluate an inmate's case file. When an initial review indicates a claim may have merit, students may undertake further investigation, interviewing witnesses, recovering documents, and gathering evidence to establish the innocence claim. The Center accepts only those cases in which actual innocence may be proved; prisoner requests for assistance with legal or procedural errors at trial are not considered.
The NCCU Law Innocence Project does not provide direct legal assistance or advice to individuals. Those seeking assistance with a claim of wrongful conviction should write to the NC Innocence Center directly:
North Carolina Center on Actual Innocence
P.O. Box 52446
Shannon Plaza Station
Durham, NC 27717-2446
http://www.law.duke.edu/innocencecenter/
VITA - Volunteer Income Tax Assistance
Each year from February to April, law student volunteers provide free assistance with completing income tax returns on Saturday mornings at the Law School. Dates for volunteer training are posted in late January.
Pro Bono Clinic: Pro Bono for Academic Credit
Open to second and third year students, the Pro Bono Clinic is a 1 credit pass/fail course. Students commit to work a minimum of 45 hours during the semester at an approved pro bono placement. Students can choose one of the placements offered through the Pro Bono Office or initiate their own project with the assistance and approval of the Pro Bono Coordinator.
Street Law: NCCU Law Serving the Durham Public Schools
The NCCU Street Law Program is a cooperative program with the Durham public schools in which law students teach a unit on law as part of a middle or high school social studies class, in cooperation with the regular teacher. Second and third year law students earn academic credit for co-teaching a 10-week unit, usually two days per week, in one of the participating schools.
One goal of Street Law is to educate middle and high school students about their legal rights and responsibilities and enable them to participate more effectively in society. Benefits to law students include a deepened understanding of the areas of law they teach and the opportunity to develop communication skills important to the practice of law. Street Law is offered as a one-credit, pass/fail course open to students who have completed the first year of law school.
Public school teachers interested in participating in the NCCU Street Law program are invited to contact the Pro Bono Coordinator, Page Potter at 919-530-7868 or
Public Interest Law Career Resources
The Pro Bono/Public Interest Program serves as a resource (together with the Career Services Office) for information on careers in public interest law, sponsoring programs such as the Public Interest Law Careers Roundtable.
Equal Justice Works (National Association for Public Interest Law)
Equal Justice Works (formerly the National Association for Public Interest Law) was founded in 1986 by law students dedicated to surmounting barriers to equal justice that affect millions of low-income individuals and families. Today, Equal Justice Works leads the country in organizing, training and supporting public service-minded law students, and in creating summer and postgraduate public interest jobs.
NCCU law students have the opportunity to attend Equal Justice Works' annual Public Interest Law Conference and Career Fair, held annually in October in Washington, DC. Visit the Equal Justice Works website, http://www.equaljusticeworks.org, for valuable information on finding a job in the public interest law sector, fellowships, and financing a public interest law career.
www.equaljusticeworks.com
IOLTA Summer Public Service Internship Grants
IOLTA (Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts) is a non-profit organization created by the North Carolina State Bar. IOLTA works with lawyers and banks across the state to coordinate the income generated from participating lawyers' pooled trust accounts, and use it to provide grants to providers of legal services to indigents and other programs that further the administration of justice.
IOLTA funds a Public Service Law Summer Internship for first and second-year law students working a minimum of 10 weeks for a public interest law organization in North Carolina that has been approved by IOLTA. In 2003, five stipends in the amount of $3,000 each were awarded to NCCU Law students. Applications for IOLTA summer grants are due in February. Information about applying for an IOLTA summer stipend and the list of approved public interest law organizations are available from the Career Services office.
NC LEAF - Loan Repayment Assistance for Public Interest Lawyers
NC LEAF, the North Carolina Legal Education Assistance Foundation, was formed in 1986 as the nation's first statewide loan repayment assistance program for lawyers working in public service careers. Participating lawyers have accepted positions in which they aid the traditionally underserved populations of North Carolina. They do so at salaries which are often a fraction of those of their counterparts who work at private firms, yet they face the same levels of educational debt.
NC LEAF enables law school graduates to work in lower-paid public interest law positions and still repay their educational loans. Law school graduates eligible for NC LEAF contribute a percentage of their income toward debt repayment and NC LEAF pays the remainder, up to $6,000 per year. Money provided during the first three years of employment is an interest-free loan that must be repaid over time if a participant leaves public interest employment, however if he/she remains in eligible employment through the end of the third year the loans extended under the program begin to be forgiven. Participants may continue to receive forgivable loans for up to 10 years after graduation from law school, so long as they remain in eligible employment. For more information and eligibility guidelines, visit the NC LEAF website, http://www.ncleaf.org.
Pro Bono Coordinator Contact Information
Page Potter
Pro Bono Coordinator
919-530-7868 (phone)
919-530-7981 (fax)
ppotter@nccu.edu |
