SLA seeks an energetic and compassionate attorney to provide direct legal assistance for housing matters including counseling, advice, document preparation, negotiation, and representation in judicial litigation. The Staff Attorney will provide same day representation for tenants in court proceedings including failure to pay rent, tenant holding over, breach of lease, and related landlord/tenant matters. The Staff Attorney will generate and cultivate partnerships with other civil legal services providers and community resources and work proactively to build community education and understanding about legal rights related to housing stability.

To apply, please visit https://shorelegal.org/staff-attorney-for-housing-justice-fellowship/.

Attorneys will be available to meet one-on-one with Maryland residents to determine eligibility and prepare expungement petitions.

October 5th at Anne Arrundel County from 10 am to 2pm
October 27th at Lanham, MD 10 am to 1 pm
November 2nd at Landover, MD from 10 am to 2pm
December 27th at Annapolis, MD 21401

To learn more and register to volunteer as an attorney at an upcoming expungement clinic, please visit https://shorturl.at/AAkQG or email info@clspgc.org.

On October 1, 2024, the North Carolina State Bar Association petitioned the Supreme Court of North Carolina for an emergency rule permitting temporary pro bono practice by lawyers licensed in another state to help victims affected by Hurricane Helene. The Supreme Court of North Carolina has the inherent authority to supervise and regulate the legal profession and the conduct of lawyers in the state of North Carolina. The Supreme Court of North Carolina, recognizing the devastation in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene and the concomitant need for legal services, entered an Administrative Order approving an emergency temporary rule amendment allowing licensed lawyers in other states to immediately begin providing pro bono legal services to indigent citizens and survivors of the hurricane.

The temporary emergency rule, effective October 1, 2024, requires lawyers not licensed in North Carolina to abide by the following:

1. The lawyer’s practice of law in North Carolina is limited to pro bono assistance of indigent victims of Hurricane Helene and must be rendered under the supervision of a member employed by a nonprofit corporation qualified to render legal services.

2. The lawyer must register with the North Carolina State Bar by completing and filing a Registration for Temporary Pro Bono Practice of North Carolina Law Form found here. The form requires, among other information, a statement declaring the lawyer is in good standing in all state jurisdictions where they are licensed, that the lawyer agrees to abide by the North Carolina Rules of Professional Conduct, and will submit to the disciplinary jurisdiction of the Courts of North Carolina and the North Carolina State Bar.

3. Permission for a lawyer not licensed in the state of North Carolina to provide pro bono legal services to indigent victims of Hurricane Helene will automatically expire on January 24, 2025. Permission can be extended after this date upon request and approval.

To read the North Carolina State Bar Association’s Petition to the Supreme Court of North Carolina and the Hurricane Helene Pro Bono Order granting the petition click here. The Registration Form for lawyers not licensed in the state of North Carolina to request permission to provide pro bono legal services to indigent survivors of Hurricane Helene can be found here.

Please consider volunteering at our upcoming MVLS estate planning clinic. It will be at Mt. Pleasant Church and Ministries (6000 Radecke Ave, Baltimore, MD 21206) on October 16, 2024. Attorneys arrive at 3 for an orientation and the clinic will be from 4-7pm. We’ll draft and execute the will, power of attorney and advance medical directive. We hope to have each attorney get to help 2 clients in that time. Volunteers will be well supported with annotated templates, a recorded estate planning training and other written materials. There will also be MVLS staff attorneys available to answer any questions before and during the clinic. Feel free to reach out to Steven Messmer if you have any questions.

Senior Legal Services & the Baltimore Bar Foundation Present

Cabaret & Cabernet

Featuring member and friends of the Bench & Bar

Thursday, October 17, 2024

6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

We are pleased to invite you to an unforgettable evening of music, captivating performances, and wine as we recognize the achievements of our volunteers.

6:00 – 6:45 Registration & Cocktail Hour

6:45 – 7:00 Awards Presentation

7:00 – 8:00 Cabaret Performance

Tickets: $45 (Tickets will be $55 at the door)

Proceeds from the Cabaret & Cabernet directly support SLS programs, including Law Day for Seniors, which is attended by over 200 local seniors and their caregivers.

To learn more and register, please visit the link here.

Maryland Legal Aid in Partnership with UMBC and the Baltimore County Bar Association will host an expungement focused clinic on Thursday, October 17th from 4pm to 7pm at the Erickson School of Aging Studies at UMBC located at 5523 Research Park Drive, Suite 230, Catonsville, MD 21228. Free parking is available.

Your help is needed to assist clients with expunging their criminal records. No expungement experience necessary and obligation is limited to the day of the clinic.

Malpractice insurance and training are provided by Maryland Legal Aid. Training options will include both a prerecorded and live training session with details to follow. The pre-recorded training can be viewed at: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLuSnBF2Psxo3Xi7QTxmmhz3t6Jk-i30OY&si=tgJbLENUByVboxTG Volunteers are asked to attend one of the trainings prior to the event.

To learn more about this opportunity and to register, please visit the link here.

Representing clients who present with behavioral issues or mental illness can be challenging and complicated for clients and the attorneys who represent them. Josef Passley, PhD, a licensed psychotherapist, consultant, educator, author and owner of Passley Consulting & Psychological Services, LLC will help us as attorneys to identify parenting and co-parenting tasks and behaviors that may be influenced by mental illness, how they are linked to child outcomes, and how to integrate effectively impactful mental health information into matters of custody and child custody evaluations.

To learn more and register today, please visit https://mvlslaw.org/event/mental-health-family-law-webinar/.

Each year for National Celebration of Pro Bono, Shore Legal Access hosts a social gathering to honor our volunteer attorneys for their dedication to pro bono work. This year our annual Volunteer Attorney Appreciation will be held at Legal Assets in Easton on Thursday, October 24th from 5:00pm to 7:00pm. Join us for light appetizers, beverages, and mingling!

Partners and children welcome.
Award ceremony at 6:00pm.

Event will be held outdoors on the patio (rain date: Wednesday, October 30th).

Are you interested in sponsoring this event?
Donations can be made here: https://midshoreprobono-bloom.kindful.com/?campaign=1266208

To learn more about this event, please visit https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/y4npuqz/lp/b101bbab-df59-4ddd-8daf-2c1bdb382d41.

Your help is needed to assist clients with expunging their criminal records. No expungement experience necessary. Maryland Legal Aid will provide training.

Clinic: Saturday, October 26, 2024: Morning Shift from 10am to 12:30pm and Afternoon Shift from 12:30pm to 3pm. I have 25 slots available for each shift and volunteers are welcome to sign up for more than one.

Location: Turner Auditorium, Johns Hopkins Medical Campus. 720 Rutland Avenue Baltimore MD 21205

A prerecorded Training can be viewed at: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLuSnBF2Psxo3Xi7QTxmmhz3t6Jk-i30OY&si=sHJOFXThujhxgFgS and details for an optional Live training will be sent to registrants prior to the event.

To learn more about this opportunity and to register, please visit the link here.

Join CLS for our Annual Volunteer Appreciation Happy Hour from 6:30p.m. to 10:00 p.m. at The Hall-College Park, 4656 Hotel Drive, College Park, MD 20742. We will honor our volunteer attorneys and recognize the work of the Pro Bono leaders in our community.

To learn more about this event and to register, please email info@clspgc.org.

The Women’s Law Center of Maryland operates an Employment Law Hotline every Tuesday and Friday from 9:30 am to 1 pm, and on the first Thursday of every month, from 5 pm to 7:30 pm. We are seeking more volunteers on the hotline, hoping you will take 2-4 shifts a year. Volunteers need some experience in employment law, so you can screen the calls effectively. For attorneys new to employment law, you can view an online training on Employment Law 101 through the following link. The shift can be done from your office (or anywhere with a phone). You are eligible to receive referrals of cases that come in through the hotline, if desired.

If you would like to volunteer, call 410-321-8761 or download a volunteer application. For more information, call Lynette Whitfield at 410-321-8761 or email at lwhitfield@wlcmd.org.

House of Ruth is looking for experienced family law lawyers who have handled protective cases before to represent clients. House of Ruth will provide malpractice insurance.

If interested, please contact Deena Hausner at dhausner@hruthmd.org.

HCBF is seeking volunteer attorneys to assist with their weekly legal advice clinic held each Tuesday from noon-1pm via telephone. Call HCBF, 410-836-0123, for available time slots. Areas of law include family, employment, criminal, estates and wills, and civil.

DRM, a private, non-profit law firm, is a leader in disability rights and the Congressionally-mandated Protection and Advocacy organization for individuals with disabilities in Maryland. We provide free legal services and advocacy to persons with disabilities in Maryland. DRM envisions a world where people with disabilities are fully included in the workplace, neighborhoods and all aspects of community life. Our mission is to work with people with disabilities to participate fully in all aspects of community life, and champion their rights to self-determination, dignity, equality, opportunity, and freedom from discrimination and harm.

To learn more about how you can volunteer, visit https://disabilityrightsmd.org/.

Talk with a volunteer lawyer for up to 20 minutes about your civil, non-family legal problem for free! Issues that may be addressed include:

• Debt and bankruptcy
• Landlord/Tenant questions
• Real estate
• Employment and wage claim issues
• Contracts, warranties and/or consumer disputes
• Wills, estate planning, probate, living wills

“Ask a Lawyer in the Library” is held every Wednesday of the month from 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. and on the third Wednesday from 4:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

To learn more about this event and to register, please visit the link here.

SLS is seeking volunteer lawyers to advise clients on a variety of consumer debt and bankruptcy issues. During this time of financial uncertainty, many seniors are unable to make ends meet. They need your legal advice about issues like: having a judgment entered against them, defending against harassing collections efforts, negotiating a settlement with their creditors, considering bankruptcy, and more.

Interested lawyers can contact Jacqueline A. Jones at 410-396-5605 and/or jjones@baltimorebar.org.

CHANA, a program of the Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore, provides crisis intervention, education and consultation, and advocates for community awareness, safety and healing. With your help, we envision an aware and responsive community where all individuals are empowered to live with security and self-determination.

CHANA is looking for volunteers to provide consultations and representation to domestic violence, sexual abuse and elder abuse clients in the areas of family, tax, employment, bankruptcy, guardianship law. Lawyers with experience working with victims and survivors of trauma preferred.

If interested, please contact Alicia Bickoff at abickoff@associated.org.

DVS Legal Services is looking for volunteers to represent victims of domestic violence in protective order hearings. DVS will provide insurance for the cases and some mentoring. Experience with these types of cases is preferred.

If interested, please contact Amy Palumbo at apalumbo@dvslegalservices.com

Recognizing that young people convicted of serious crimes are capable of changing and safely rejoining society, the Maryland General Assembly in April 2021 enacted the Juvenile Restoration Act (JRA). Effective October 1, 2021, this act allows people who have served at least 20 years of a sentence for a crime committed when they were under the age of 18 to file a motion asking the court to reduce their sentence. In light of the number of people who will need legal assistance, the Office of the Public Defender (OPD) is recruiting and training private attorneys who are willing to represent one or more people pro bono in their effort to obtain their freedom.

To learn more, please visit the link here or you can can sign up by emailing Brian Saccenti at brian.saccenti@maryland.gov.

Shore Legal Access (formerly Mid-Shore Pro Bono) is currently accepting calls for civil legal assistance, especially older people in need of end of life planning documents, including a medical health directive, will, and power of attorney. We need volunteer lawyers to provide remote legal assistance including counseling calls and document preparation.

To volunteer, please e-mail Meredith Lathbury Girard, Esq., Managing Attorney at: mgirard@midshoreprobono.org.

Volunteers are needed in multiple subject areas, including family law, landlord-tenant, debt collection, peace and protective orders, expungement, and foreclosure. You can assist unrepresented individuals by providing online live chat legal help from the comfort of your office or home! Training on MCLA’s online live chat legal services will take place via webinar.

Please complete the pro bono interest survey here: https://mdcla.org/probono/.

TurnAround, Inc. is looking for experienced family law and civil lawyers who can assist with protective orders, divorce/custody, landlord/tenant and employment matters. TurnAround provides comprehensive services to survivors of sexual violence, domestic violence and human trafficking. TurnAround is unable to provide malpractice insurance.

If interested, please contact please contact Amanda Rodriguez at arodriguez@turnaroundinc.org.

Community Law Center provides legal services to communities and nonprofit organizations throughout Maryland to promote stronger nonprofits and more vibrant neighborhoods. Our Pro Bono Program matches volunteer lawyers with nonprofits seeking assistance on legal matters.

For more information and to register for our pro bono program, please visit the following link.

Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service
MVLS offers mentorship, malpractice insurance, and trainings. Take on a full representation case, provide help through a legal clinic, or accept a reduced fee family law case through Judicare. Learn new areas of law, meet leaders in the field, and gain valuable courtroom experience while making a difference. MVLS clients need the legal help you can provide to win their struggles against instability and poverty.

Find out more and sign up today at https://mvlslaw.org/volunteer/volunteer-sign-up/.

Help low income Marylanders with the Montgomery County Bar Foundation. To access information pertaining to the Pro Bono Program: https://www.barmont.org/general/custom.asp?page=116. You can direct any questions to Deborah Mantilla Craven, Pro Bono Program Coordinator, at Debbie@mcbfprobono.org or 301.762.5831.

To learn more about pro bono service in eviction prevention in Baltimore City and Baltimore County, contact PBRC’s Tenant Volunteer of the Day Program at:

Pro Bono Resource Center of Maryland
Katherine S. Davis, Esq.
Director – Courtroom Advocacy Project (CAP)
443.703.3049
kdavis@probonomd.org

MVLS Volunteer Attorney Obligations

• Attorney must execute the Judicare contract.
• Absent exceptional circumstances, attorney must represent client through the life of the case, even after a Judicare case has exceeded the maximum reimbursement of hours.
• Representation includes entering appearance in the client’s legal action.
• Attorney may not charge the Client legal fees for legal work provided. 
• Attorney is not obligated to pay any filing fees or other court costs on behalf of the client.  Attorney must seek to have fees waived by the court.
• Attorney should submit reimbursement for litigation expenses to PBRC, and any remaining expenses should be paid by the client.
• Litigation Expenses. Requests for litigation reimbursement need to be submitted to the Pro Bono Resource Center.  To get more information or the required forms, visit www.probonomd.org/litigation-fund-policy.

Attorney Payment

• Complete instructions are included in the Judicare contract.
  • An attorney is paid $100 per hour up to a maximum of 30 hours ($3,000) per case for legal services provided.
    • Judicare funds can only be used for legal services.  It does not include other staff work, fees, travel time, etc.
  • Invoices
    • Invoices should be submitted quarterly during representation.  Invoices must specify name of client, case number, and a description of legal services provided with the dates and time of service in 10 minute increments.
    • Request for payment must include:
      • Detailed invoice
      • Case Update or Closure form
        • If case is closed –Any final legal documents (court order, etc.)
    • Payments are generally provided within 30 days of submission.
      • The final $500 in fees will be held until the case is closed.

Questions?

Margaret Henn, Director of Program Management, 443-451-4067 or mhenn@mvlslaw.org
Makeisha Gibson, Senior Paralegal, 443-451-4072 or mgibson@mvlslaw.org

Do you have more than three years of family law experience?

Are you an attorney who would like to handle a Judicare case (contested custody) in Baltimore County at a reduced fee? Download a volunteer application.

For more information: www.wlcmd.org/how-we-help/judicare-project

Do you have more than three years of family law experience?

Are you an attorney who would like to handle a Judicare (family law) case at a reduced fee? Download a volunteer registration form.

For more information: https://midshoreprobono.org/volunteering-for-mspb/lawyers/

Do you have more than three years of family law experience?

Are you an attorney who would like to handle a Judicare case (family law) in Montgomery County at a reduced fee? Download a volunteer application.

For more information: www.barmont.org/page/116

Do you have more than three years of family law experience?

Are you an attorney who would like to handle a Judicare case (family law) in Allegany County at a reduced fee? Please call Allegany Law at 301-722-3390.

For more information: www.alleganylaw.com/volunteer/

Do you have more than three years of family law experience?

Are you an attorney who would like to handle a Judicare case (family law) in Prince George’s County at a reduced fee? Fill out a volunteer application.

For more information: www.clspgc.org/get-involved/volunteer/