Published on Post-Gazette IPSO FACTO THURSDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2012
Written by Justin Karter
The past two weeks we have documented the funding cuts to poverty legal services and examined one of the ways that the local legal community has stepped up to answer the call and support legal services. On Thanksgiving, NLSA thanks those who have supported the mission of equal access to justice for all and celebrates the pro bono contributions of outstanding local attorneys. The following is one example of the life changing cases handled by those attorneys who volunteer to assist clients through NLSA. Efrem Grail is a lauded defense attorney in “white collar” criminal matters for Reed Smith, the largest law firm in the city of Pittsburgh, and has been selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America in both corporate compliance and white collar defense law. Grail said, however, that some of the most rewarding experiences in his legal career have come out of pro bono cases he handled through Neighborhood Legal Services Association (NLSA).
“It is life affirming to be able to get back in the battle and represent individuals and families,” said Grail. “This is about going to court for someone who has suffered and is standing up for themselves and you are able to advocate for them.”
Grail’s firm, which consistently volunteers as a member of the Pittsburgh Pro Bono Partnership’s PFA Project, agreed to handle all Protection from Abuse (PFA) cases that came in to NLSA on a designated day.
In one remarkable case Grail remembered a middle-aged woman with 5 children who called seeking protection after years of domestic violence against her and her children. The woman was a member of an insular religious and cultural minority and because of this isolation she had waited many years to ask for help from the outside. “For her to take this brave step toward intervention was truly remarkable,” said Grail.
The woman’s oldest child was a student at a local university and the daughter had grown increasingly worried about the abuse in the house. “She was instrumental in facilitating getting the mother to take this positive step for herself and for the family,” said Grail. NLSA and Grail provided free legal assistance to this family so that the mother could seek court protection and provide a home for her children, free from abuse.
“The efforts she made, the help of the daughter, and the assistance of the legal system combined to prevent this woman from becoming another terrible statistic,” said Grail.
Last year, pro bono attorneys handled 2,088 cases through NLSA. In the same year 269 different attorneys took at least one case through the pro bono program, contributing a total of 7,054 hours of service.
“This is about handling cases that do fundamental good for families and children in a very basic one-to-one way,” said Grail.
Rule 6.1 of professional conduct in The Pennsylvania Code states that lawyers “shall render public interest legal service,” and that this duty can be met by “providing professional services at no fee to persons of limited means,” and by “financial support for organizations that provide legal services to persons of limited means.” NLSA welcomes attorneys at all stages of their legal careers to volunteer and provide pro bono services.
NLSA’s pro bono program is committed to making the referral process beneficial for both the client and volunteer attorney and periodic training sessions on the particular substantive areas of the law are offered. Volunteers can accept work or other volunteer tasks according to their own schedules and will be provided opportunities to use their own expertise to develop new areas of the law.
Lawyers can also get involved by taking reduced fee referrals, participating in the private bar in the Older & Wiser Project, taking bankruptcy referrals, representing clients at unemployment compensation referee hearings, handling litigation defense cases and joining the Equal Justice Campaign Committee, among other opportunities.
According to the American Bar Association (ABA) moral code of professional responsibility, “personal involvement in the problems of the disadvantaged can be one of the most rewarding experiences in the life of a lawyer. Every lawyer, regardless of professional prominence or professional workload, should find time to participate in serving the disadvantaged.”
For more information about volunteer and pro bono opportunities with NLSA contact Christine Kirby at kirbyc@nlsa.us or Lynn Ramsey at ramseyL@nlsa.us. To volunteer to participate in NLSA’s Protection from Abuse Representation Project, representing Victims of Domestic Violence in their final PFA hearing, contact Mary Ann Troper-Malley at troperma@nlsa.us.
Click here to volunteer or donate to NLSA.
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