Inside Counsel
May 1, 2013
“Like a tree, a successful corporate pro bono program starts small and compact, then grows, getting bigger and branching out with time. When then-general counsel Mary McDonald started Merck & Co. Inc.’s pro bono program in 1994, it was just a small core group of lawyers working on bankruptcies and family law.
The program has gone places, too. More than 175 volunteers—lawyers, paralegals and administrative associates—now participate in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, California and internationally. On March 15, the Pro Bono Institute presented Merck and its current general counsel, Bruce Kuhlik, with the 2013 Laurie D. Zelon Pro Bono Award for commitment to pro bono work.”