The PBEye
October 29, 2013

Coming live from Hollywood this week! CPBO is in Los Angeles at the ACC Annual Meeting.

After spending Sunday evening meeting in-house counsel who stopped by the booth in the Exhibit Hall, CPBO kicked off Monday with a Clinic in a Box^® program attended by 40 in-house volunteers. After volunteers received training from Alston & Bird*† and Public Counsel, they teamed up to meet with Los Angeles area nonprofit representatives to conduct a pro bono legal assessment for the organizations.

Later that day, CPBO hosted a session, “The Ethics of Pro Bono Practice by In-House Counsel.” California Court of Appeal Judge Laurie Zelon, Vice President and General Counsel of Public Counsel Liz Bluestein, and Deputy General Counsel of Caterpillar Inc. Mike Sposato led attendees in an informative and inspiring discussion that addressed many ethical and practical issues impacting in-house pro bono, including privilege, malpractice insurance, multijurisdictional practice, and matter management.

Early Tuesday morning CPBO hosted a pro bono breakfast for in-house counsel interested in pro bono. It featured a great discussion about pro bono activities, department best practices, and strategies for overcoming initial hurdles and hesitations associated with engaging in pro bono.

One theme that has resonated throughout and was shared by Sposato during the ethics program: “Don’t leave anyone out of the party who would like to come.” We’re happy to see in-house counsel be so inclusive when it comes to pro bono.

* denotes a signatory to the Law Firm Project Pro Bono Challenge^®
† denotes a Member of the Law Firm Pro Bono Project