The Pro Bono Wire
September 20, 2012
At their meeting in St. Louis this summer, the Conference of Chief Justices (CCJ) and the Conference of State Court Administrators (COSCA) adopted a key resolution that stands to advance the movement to remove burdensome restrictions on in-house lawyers looking to practice pro bono in the jurisdictions in which they work but in which they are not licensed. The resolution was introduced by PBI President and CEO Esther F. Lardent, CPBO Director Eve Runyon, and Walgreen Co.** General Counsel Thomas Sabatino, all of whom presented on the issue. The resolution was co-sponsored by the CCJ Professionalism and Competence of the Bar Committee and the CCJ/COSCA Access, Fairness and Public Trust Committee. They key language asks CCJ members to “consider promoting the expansion of pro bono legal services, including by amending the practice rules to allow non-locally licensed in-house counsel who are permitted to work for their employer to also provide pro bono legal services subject to the local rules of professional conduct.”
At the conference, Lardent, Runyon, and Sabatino spoke about the unnecessary restrictions practice rules in many jurisdictions place on pro bono legal services performed by in-house counsel who are authorized to work for their employer although they are not locally licensed. They discussed the growing need for pro bono legal services, the thousands of in-house counsel who are impacted by practice rule restrictions, the growing number of formal in-house pro bono programs, and the existing protections for pro bono clients. Lardent, Runyon, and Sabatino also forwarded a letter from the Association of Corporate Counsel** (ACC) signed by 339 chief legal officers from around the country in support of practice rules empowering all in-house counsel to provide pro bono legal services.
Addressing restrictions on in-house counsel’s right to practice pro bono legal services is a key initiative of ACC’s advocacy team and CPBO. ACC, PBI, and CPBO are working to address these restrictions in a number of jurisdictions. Connecticut is the most recent state to amend its practice rules to permit authorized in-house counsel to provide pro bono legal services.
With this clear message of the chief justices’ and state court administrators’ dedication and commitment to improve access to justice, it is likely that more jurisdictions will move to adopt language that would support broad participation in pro bono by in-house counsel.
For more information or to join our effort to change the rules in other jurisdictions, contact CPBO Director Eve Runyon.
*denotes a Signatory to the Law Firm Pro Bono Challenge®
**denotes a Signatory to the Corporate Pro Bono ChallengeSM
MJP-NEWS