How to Find Pro Bono Attorneys

Pro bono attorneys provide legal services to the poor and indigent to protect their rights as citizens. Recently graduated attorneys as well as those who are more experienced provide free legal aid. It is well recognized in legal circles that giving back to the community as pro bono attorneys with free legal services has great benefit, not only to those in need, but the attorneys' standing in his or her profession increases. Read the steps below to help assist finding pro bono attorneys that can help with your problem when you qualify, and are in need of free legal aid. The Resources below have information from the American Bar Association.

Things You'll Need

• Telephone and directory
• Computer access
• Circumstances to qualify for services

Instructions

1. Contact your local governmental social services office and ask where you can find free legal aid. The white pages of the phone directory have listings for government agencies that will be helpful to you in your search. Look under the directory headings such as federal, state, and local government offices sections that might offer assistance for your particular need, or find a main number to call and ask the operator to transfer you to someone who can help. If these services are not located near you, contact your county or state offices and ask for direction on where to call for assistance.

   Once you contact the correct agency, it is likely that you will need to go through some process and provide sufficient information to see if you qualify for free legal aid. It is most often an absolute necessity to receive a referral because most attorneys willing to do pro bono work will not take walk in clients that are indigent. Free legal aid is usually only a small part of their practice, and a referral can make the difference between receiving or not receiving aid. Many pro bono attorneys only practice in certain specialty areas, and will only assist in their fields of expertise.

2. Call your (County Name) County Bar Association. If you are in such a rural county that you do not have that, look up your state bar association and ask where help might be available.

   When contacting the Bar Association, ask if there is a particular government agency, such as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), to contact first before proceeding with a pro bono lawyer. It will depend on your own particular situation.

3. Contact the Catholic and Lutheran social services agencies and ask if help is available in your particular circumstances, ask for suggestions if they cannot help. There may be legal aid societies listed in your telephone directory or you can use those words in a search on the net, then search again for your city, county and local area with the words "legal aid society". Just be certain that when contacting them, eligibility for services is determined ahead of time so there are no surprises or wasted time and effort.

4. Contact the closest university in your state with a law school that is preparing future attorneys and ask if help is available.

5. Do a Google search (add Yahoo and other search engines if not enough information is showing up where you live). Use the advanced feature to search with the name of your state, one with your county and try one with your city. Try word combinations such as "pro bono attorney", "pro bono attorneys", then "pro bono lawyer" and "pro bono lawyers". More word combinations would be "free legal aid" and "free legal assistance". Different word combinations can bring up different results that might not have been included in the first search, so it is worthwhile to try.

Tips & Warnings

• If you have reason for a lawsuit or have received notice of suit against you, keep all your papers, receipts etc. in connection with the matter in a safe place.

• Find assistance promptly after notice of a lawsuit against you, or a judgment may enter against you.

• Some agencies may provide services to the poor, but non-indigent, on a sliding scale. It is a good idea to ask if that is a possibility.

• It is difficult for anyone without a legal background to represent their own self (as pro se) and win a case because of the complexities of the legal system.

Resources

• ABA information page
• Law schools