Pro Bono Program Handbook

Mission

The Washburn Law Pro Bono Program encourages students to understand and embrace their future professional obligation to provide legal services to individuals of limited means. The Pro Bono Program promotes the importance of law-related public service through the administration of several pro bono initiatives within the law school. These initiatives include the Pro Bono Honors Pledge and Recognition and efforts to recognize and support pro bono activities in the law school and greater legal communities.

About the Program

The vision of the Washburn University School of Law is to prepare “outstanding lawyers … to serve their local, national, and global communities with excellence, integrity, and professionalism.” In keeping with this vision, an emphasis on providing legal services to individuals of limited means has always been a priority at the school. Washburn Law has a rich tradition of clinical education, establishing one of the nation’s first in-house, live-client law clinics in 1970. Before opening the Washburn Law Clinic, Washburn Law students and faculty participated in pro bono projects by assisting patients at the Winter V.A. Hospital, serving as juvenile probation officers for the local court, and working in the Topeka Bar Association’s legal aid program. Students, faculty and alumni were deeply involved with the initial Brown v. Board of Education litigation and worked on a pro bono basis when it was re-opened in the 1970’s to determine whether Topeka schools had been desegregated.

The Pro Bono Program is administered by the Assistant Dean for Professional Development with additional guidance from the faculty and administration as needed. The Program is housed in the Professional Development Office.

The Washburn Law Pro Bono Program illustrates the law school’s commitment to law-related public service and includes Pro Bono Honors Recognition to students who satisfy the terms of the voluntary Pro Bono Honors Pledge. The Assistant Dean for Professional Development identifies and facilitates opportunities within the community for students to satisfy the hourly goal. Students also are encouraged to identify projects that meet their own interests.

All students who meet the requirements of the Pro Bono Honors Pledge are recognized at graduation and a notation is made on their transcripts.

Working with the Pro Bono Society student group, the Assistant Dean for Professional Development also invites speakers to campus to promote the importance of and fulfillment received from conducting pro bono service. The Assistant Dean promotes pro bono activities by regularly recognizing pro bono efforts by law students, faculty, and area attorneys and organizations. The Program works with other departments within the law school that provide law-related service to individuals with limited means, such as certain externships, the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Program, and the Washburn Law Clinic. Additionally, pro bono or community service hours are required to attain four of the school’s eleven academic certificate programs.

Pro Bono Honors Pledge & Recognition

Students are encouraged but not required to sign the Law Student Pro Bono Pledge and deliver it to the Professional Development Office at any time during their academic careers. After receiving the Pledge, the Assistant Dean will register the student in the program, begin notifying the student of Pro Bono Service opportunities, and track the student’s participation.

All students who complete at least 50 hours of Pro Bono Service will be recognized in the Washburn Law commencement ceremony program. Students who complete 50 hours of Pro Bono Service may state on their resumes they received “Pro Bono Honors,” those who complete 100 hours of Pro Bono Service may state they received “Distinguished Pro Bono Honors.” The same designations will be noted on the student’s transcript.

For a student’s hours to count toward Pro Bono Honors Recognition, students should complete the Pro Bono Service Commitment prior to participating in any Pro Bono Service project. Students also should submit Pro Bono Time Sheets verifying the hours they complete. Pro Bono Time Sheets must be signed by both the student and the attorney who supervised their pro bono work and should be submitted to the Professional Development Office by the end of each semester in which a student participates in a service project. All time sheets must be submitted to the Professional Development Office no later than April 15 for May and summer graduates and November 15 for December graduates.

Definition of Pro Bono Service

The Definition of Pro Bono Service mirrors the language of Rule 6.1 of the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct and includes:

• work which is law related and benefits persons of limited means;
• work which is law related performed on behalf of charitable, religious, civic, community, governmental and educational organizations in matters that are designed primarily to address the needs of persons of limited means;
• work which is law related performed on behalf of individuals, groups or organizations seeking to secure or protect civil rights, civil liberties or public rights, or charitable, religious, civic, community, governmental and educational organizations in furtherance of their organizational purposes;
• work on projects which improve the law, the legal system, or the legal profession; and
• up to 6 hours spent in training for pro bono service projects.

All legal activities must be performed under the supervision of a licensed attorney.

Students may not receive academic credit or compensation for Pro Bono Service, nor may it be counted toward any other academic goal or program (ex. certificate programs).

Pro Bono Service generally does not include volunteer work for government agencies; however, the Assistant Dean for Professional Development will consider for approval opportunities that exist within government agencies which benefit persons of limited means.

Pro Bono Projects

The Professional Development Office and the student Pro Bono Society will work together to identify and make available a number of Pro Bono Service projects throughout the year. A list of pre-approved projects will be maintained and advertised by the Professional Development Office. In addition to participating in pre-approved projects, students and student groups are encouraged to investigate and submit for approval projects which meet their own interests. For hours in such student-generated projects to be counted toward Pro Bono Honors Recognition, the projects must be approved by the Assistant Dean for Professional Development. Students or student groups planning to submit a student-generated pro bono project should submit the Student-Generated Pro Bono Project Request to the Professional Development Office.