That’s right, friends – this week the entire country is celebrating the power of pro bono! October 23 to 29, 2016 marks National Celebrate Pro Bono week, with service projects, trainings, and more. You can check out the national Celebrate Pro Bono site here.
Want to get involved during National Pro Bono Week?
Of course you do! There are lots of opportunities – from happy hours to trainings to ways to volunteer on the ground. To see the events throughout the state, just check out the Celebrate Pro Bono listings in California here.
Also, we’re thrilled to let you know that the legal services and pro bono organizations in Southern California collaborated to create a comprehensive list of pro bono opportunities throughout that region. They are making it super easy to plug in – just check out the list below!
Happy Pro Bono – have a wonderful week!
celebrates
National Pro Bono Week
with
Opportunities to Serve
Free Legal Clinics and Trainings in Southern California
See below for more information on how to get involved. Opportunities are listed by legal services organization (in alphabetical order). Thank you!
Agency: Asian Americans Advancing Justice – LA
Website: Visit http://www.advancingjustice-la.org/get-involved/volunteer-us for the most updated opportunities!
Opportunity: Clinics: Both weekday and weekend opportunities to get involved!
- Citizenship/naturalization clinics
- 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Fridays in October (10/7, 10/14, 10/21) from 12:30-5 pm at Advancing Justice-LA’s offices downtown
- 3rd Wednesday in October (10/19) from 9 am – 2 pm at Hacienda La Puente Adult Education in Hacienda Heights
- 4th Saturday in October (10/22) from 9 am – 2 pm at Advancing Justice-LA’s offices downtown
- Monthly in-person training: 3rd Wednesday of October from 6-7:30 pm (10/19) at Advancing Justice-LA’s offices downtown. Webinar training also available!
- Election Day 2016 poll monitoring (Tues 11/8 from 7 am – 9 am)
- Trainings available on Tues 11/1 from 6-7:30, Thurs 11/3 from 10-11:30 am, Sat 11/5 from 10-11:30 am
To participate, contact Pro Bono Director Christina Yang at cyang@advancingjustice-la.org
Agency: Bet Tzedek Legal Services
Website: www.bettzedek.org
Opportunity: Clinic: Conservatorship Clinic
Date: Mondays
Time: 9:30-12:00
Location: Los Angeles Law Library
To participate, contact: rettinger@bettzedek.org
Opportunity: Clinic: Advance Planning Clinic
Date: Third Friday of each month
Time: 10:00-12:00
Location: Bet Tzedek
To participate, contact: rettinger@bettzedek.org
Opportunity: Clinic: SSI Overpayment Clinic
Date: Various, please contact for more information
Time: TBD
Location: Bet Tzedek
To participate, contact: rettinger@bettzedek.org
Agency: Casa Cornelia Law Center
Website: http://www.casacornelia.org/
Opportunity: Training & Clinic: DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) Training and Clinic
DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) is a type of humanitarian immigration relief that may be requested by certain people who came to the United States as children, and meet several guidelines. Deferred action is a use of prosecutorial discretion to defer removal action against an individual for a certain period of time. An individual granted DACA is also granted temporary permission to work lawfully in the United States. This volunteer opportunity is for licensed attorneys.
Date: During Pro Bono Week 2016; date to be provided at time of registration/inquiry
Times; 3:00pm-7:15pm (approximately), as follows: 4:30pm, mandatory training on the eligibility requirements and processing of DACA applications (1.5 hours of MCLE credit available) | 4:30-4:45pm break | 4:45pm-7:15pm (approximately), consultations with clients, with breaks as needed for snacks, which will be provided.
Location: to be provided at time of registration/inquiry
To participate, contact: Katherine Paculba, Pro Bono Program Director, at kpaculba@casacornelia.org, or 619-231-7788, x304.
Opportunity: Training & Clinic: Victims of Serious Crimes Screening Training and Clinic
This clinic screens victims of serious crime, including domestic violence victims, for qualification for legal relief – specifically for eligibility for a T Visa (trafficking victims); U Visa (victims of serious crime), or eligibility for relief under VAWA (Violence Against Women Act). This volunteer opportunity is for licensed attorneys.
Date: During Pro Bono Week 2016; date to be provided at time of registration/inquiry
Time: 3:00-7:00pm, as follows: 3-4pm Training for licensed attorneys to participate in clinic: “Screening for Immigration Remedies for Victims of Crime.” (Mandatory for those who have not previously participated in a Domestic Violence or Victims of Crime Screening Clinic with Casa Cornelia). RSVP required, as space is limited. 1.0 hours of MCLE credit is available. | 4:00-7:00pm: Volunteer Opportunity at Domestic Violence/ Victims of Serious Crimes Clinic
Location: to be provided at time of registration/inquiry
To participate, contact: Katherine Paculba, Pro Bono Program Director, at kpaculba@casacornelia.org, or 619-231-7788, x304.
Agency: Esperanza Immigrant Rights Project
Website: www.Esperanza-la.org
Opportunity: Training: Training for Attorneys (MCLE) – Representing UCs in Removal Proceedings
Date 10/22/16
Time 2:15pm – 3:45pm
Location LA Law Library, 301 West First Street, LA, 90012
To participate, RSVP at website: www.probonoweek.lalawlibrary.org/
Opportunity: Informational Session for Potential Volunteers – Learn About Opportunities to Assist Immigrants Facing Deportation
Date 10/22/16
Time 1:00pm – 2:00pm
Location LA Law Library, 301 West First Street, LA, 90012
To participate, RSVP at website: www.probonoweek.lalawlibrary.org/
Opportunity: Open House Work Group Meeting – For Attorneys to Ask Questions and Share Experiences of Removal Proceedings
Date 10/25/16
Time 10:30am – 12:30pm
Location: Esperanza Immigrant Rights Project, 1530 James M Wood Blvd, 90015
To participate, RSVP to careers@esperanza-la.org
Opportunity: Happy Hour to Celebrate and Recognize Pro Bono
Date 10/27/16
Time 5:30pm – 7:30pm
Location: Monty Bar, 1222 7th Street, LA, 90017
RSVP not required.
Agency: Greater Bakersfield Legal Assistance, Inc. (GBLA)
Website: www.gbla.org
Opportunity: Clinic: Veterans Expungement Clinic
Date: Wednesday, October 26, 2016
Time: 1:00-5:00 pm
Location: GBLA, 615 California Avenue, Bakersfield CA 93304
To participate, contact Adeyinka Glover, aglover@gbla.org
Agency: Immigrant Defenders Law Center
Website: www.immdef.org
Opportunity: Cases: SIJS and unaccompanied minor asylum cases. Training with MCLE credit offered.
To participate, contact: kayleen@immdef.org
Agency: LACBA Counsel for Justice – AIDS Legal Services Project
Website: https://www.lacba.org/give-back/aids-legal-services-project
Opportunity: Clinic: Bimonthly Immigration Clinic – to provide counsel and advice and pre-screen HIV+ immigrants on a wide range of potential relief including asylum, DACA, family based adjustment of status, naturalizations and U visas . No ongoing representation required, but appreciated! Bilingual Spanish/English attorneys in high demand.
Date: fourth Thursday of each month
Time: 6:00-9:00 pm
Location: Pico Union area
To participate, contact: AIDS Legal Services Project Director, Laurie Aronoff at laronoff@lacba.org; 213-833-6776
Agency: LACBA Counsel for Justice – Veterans Legal Service Project
Website: http://www.lacba.org/give-back/veterans-legal-services-project
Opportunity: Clinic: The LACBA Veterans Project depends on dedicated volunteers to deliver legal services to our Veteran clients. Clinics focus on helping Veterans overcome legal barriers to their employment such as outstanding tickets and warrants and misdemeanor convictions. Clinics last 3 hours and include both a workshop and consultation component.
Date: monthly
Location: Bob Hope Patriotic Hall
To participate, please apply at: http://www.lacba.org/give-back/veterans-legal-services-project/veterans-projects-volunteer-form
Agency: LACBA Counsel for Justice – Domestic Violence Legal Services Project
Website: https://www.lacba.org/domestic-violence-legal-services-project
Opportunity: Clinic: Every day volunteers provide one-on-one assistance to victims, preparing petitions for Temporary Restraining orders. No representation is required and the Petitioners file In Pro Per. Work is supervised by LACBA Domestic Violence Project. COMPUTER PROFICENCY IS REQUIRED.
Volunteers commit to two 3-hour sessions per month for 7 months. The AM session is from 8:30-11:30, and the PM session is from 1:00-4:00. All sessions are from Monday-Friday. (No PM session on Friday). Volunteers register their hours online.
If you are a law student volunteering to fulfill a required hourly commitment for school or community credit, please advise.
If the volunteer is an attorney, he/she is to be in good standing with the State Bar of California.
To participate, contact: Debbie Kelly, Directing Attorney of Domestic Violence Legal Services Project at dkelly@lacba.org
Agency: LACBA Counsel for Justice – Small Claims Project
Website: http://www.lacba.org/need-legal-help/small-claims
Opportunity: Clinic: The Small Claims Project is a collaboration between LACBA, Bet Tzedek Legal Services, Southwestern Law School, The Civic Mediation Project and several pro bono law firms and attorneys. Litigants, both plaintiffs and defendants, first attend a workshop presentation to learn detailed information on small claims procedures. Following the workshop, volunteer advocates meet with individuals to answer questions and provide additional assistance, such as drafting the complaint and fee waiver forms, identifying the proper defendant in their specific case, discussing how best to accomplish service of process and how best to prepare for the hearing. It’s a fun way to interact with the community and use your lawyer skills to help folks through what is often a confusing process for them. NO ongoing representation.
Date: second Thursday of each month
Time: 7:00 – 9:00 pm
Location: Southwestern Law School
To participate, contact LACBA Pro Bono Coordinator, Laurie Aronoff at laronoff@lacba.org
Agency: Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles
Website: www.lafla.org
Opportunity: Expungement Training for Volunteers – Learn About How to Complete an Expungement or Prop 47 Petition
Date 10/22/16
Time 4:00pm – 5:00pm
Location LA Law Library, 301 West First Street, LA, 90012
To participate, RSVP at website: www.probonoweek.lalawlibrary.org/
Opportunity: Clinic: Expungement Clinic (Expungement and Prop 47 petitions)
Date: Second Tuesdays of each month
Time: 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Location: LA Law Library, 301 W 1st St, Los Angeles, CA 90012
To participate, contact: rpena@lafla.org
Free Online Training available at: probonotraining.org
Opportunity: Training: Training on Section 8 and Subsidized Housing – Learn about low-income housing assistance programs and services available to tenants with Section 8 vouchers
Date 10/22/16
Time 2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Location LA Law Library, 301 West First Street, LA, 90012
To participate, RSVP at website: www.probonoweek.lalawlibrary.org/
Opportunity: Clinic: Trial Preparation Clinic for Unlawful Detainers (clinic prepares tenants who are going to trial)
Date: Every Friday
Time: 9:30am – 12:30pm
Location: LAFLA West Office, 1102 Crenshaw Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90019
To participate, contact: rramos@lafla.org
Opportunity: Clinic: Trial Preparation Clinic for Unlawful Detainers (clinic prepares tenants who are going to trial)
Date: Every Friday
Time: 1:30pm – 4:30pm
Location: LAFLA Long Beach Office, 601 Pacific Avenue, Long Beach, CA 90802
To participate, contact: jjaikman@lafla.org
Opportunity: Clinic: Santa Monica Night Clinic (landlord/tenant and consumer issues)
Date: Tuesdays and Thursdays
Time: 6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Location: LAFLA Santa Monica Office, 1640 5th St., Suite 124, Santa Monica, CA 90401
To participate, contact: cpena@lafla.org
Free Online Training available at: probonotraining.org
Opportunity: Clinic: Santa Monica Domestic Violence Clinic (family law and domestic violence restraining orders)
Date: Every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday
Time: 8:30-11:00
Location: Santa Monica Courthouse, 1725 Main St. Room 121, Santa Monica, CA 90401
To participate, contact: Rsalinas@lafla.org
Opportunity: Clinic: Long Beach Domestic Violence Clinic
Date: Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday
Time: 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Location: Long Beach Courthouse, 275 Magnolia Ave, Long Beach, 90802
To participate, contact: pcohen@lafla.org
Opportunity: Clinic: KABA Legal Clinic in Korean (clinic sees all legal issues, services in English and Korean)
Date: Second Tuesdays of each month
Time: 6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Location: Karsh Center, 3750 West 6th Street Los Angeles, CA 90020
To participate, contact: pwong@lafla.org. For information, call 323-801-7987
Opportunity: Clinic: Self Help Legal Access Centers
Date: Monday through Thursdays from 8:00-4:30 pm and Fridays from 8:00-12:00
Location: Various Locations: Torrance, Long Beach, Santa Monica, and Inglewood Courts
To participate, contact: mlarios@lafla.org
Opportunity: Clinic: LA Can Clinic (clinic sees all legal issues that affect local skid row community)
Date: Every Wednesday
Time: 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Location: LA CAN, 838 E 6th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90021
To participate, contact: pwong@lafla.org
Agency: Legal Aid Society of San Diego, Inc.
Website: www.lassd.org
Opportunity: Clinic: Power of Attorney & Advance Healthcare Directive
Date: October 27, 2016
Time: 1:00 PM- 3:00 PM
Location: 1764 San Diego Avenue, Suite 150, San Diego, CA 92110
To participate, contact: SaraR@lassd.org
Agency: Mental Health Advocacy Services, Inc.
Website: www.mhas-la.org
Opportunity: Clinic: Pasadena Free Legal Clinic, second Tuesday morning of each month, 10:30 am to 1 pm
To participate, contact Pamela Marx, Supervising Attorney, pmarx@mhas-la.org
Opportunity: Clinic: periodic special education legal check-up clinics, dates to be determined
To participate, contact Pamela Marx, Supervising Attorney, pmarx@mhas-la.org
Opportunity: Training: Free MCLE/Major Issues in Mental Health Law in 2016
Date: October 28, 2016
Time: 12 noon
Location: 3255 Wilshire Boulevard #902, Los Angeles 90010
To participate, contact Pamela Marx, Supervising Attorney, pmarx@mhas-la.org
Agency: Public Law Center
Website: www.publiclawcenter.org
Opportunity: Clinic: Naturalization Fair
Date: 10/15/2016
Time: 9 am – 5 pm
Location: Boat People SOS, 9842 Bolsa Ave #205, Westminster, CA 92683
To participate, contact: Roxana Rosas, rrosas@publiclawcenter.org
Agency: San Diego Volunteer Lawyer Program, Inc.
Website: www.sdvlp.org
Opportunity: Clinic: HIV/AIDS Legal Clinic – Advice/representation on health-related and poverty related legal issues.
Date: Monday, October 24, 2016
Time: 5:15 p.m.-7:00 p.m.
Location: University Christian Church, San Diego, CA
To participate, contact: Staff Attorney Heather Carmody, hcarmody@sdvlp.org, 619-235-5656 x 105
Opportunity: Clinic: Family Law Clinic – Advice/representation on family law issues.
Date: Wednesday, October 26, 2016
Time: 3-5:30 p.m. (free MCLE 2-3 p.m.)
Location: San Diego Public Law Library, San Diego, CA
To participate, contact: Managing Attorney Kris Jacobs, kjacobs@sdvlp.org, 619-235-5656 x 111
Opportunity: Clinic: Restraining Order Clinic – Domestic Violence, Elder Abuse, Civil Harassment.
Date: Monday, October 24, 2016, Tuesday, October 25, 2016, Wednesday, October 26, 2016, Thursday, October 27, 2015, Friday, October 28, 2016
Time: 8:30 a.m.- 4:30 p.m.
Location: Downtown Courthouse (Madge Bradley Building), San Diego, CA
To participate, contact: Staff Attorney Bhavani Peesapati-Madero, bpeesapati@sdvlp.org
Opportunity: Clinic: Restraining Order Clinic – Domestic Violence, Elder Abuse, Civil Harassment.
Date: Monday, October 24, 2016, Tuesday, October 25, 2016, Wednesday, October 26, 2016
Time: Monday 8:30 a.m.- 3:30 p.m., Tuesday 8:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., Wednesday 8:30 a.m.- 3:30 p.m.
Location: East County – El Cajon Courthouse, El Cajon, CA
To participate, contact: Staff Attorney Emily Kirohn, ekirohn@sdvlp.org
Opportunity: Clinic: Restraining Order Clinic – Domestic Violence, Elder Abuse, Civil Harassment.
Date: Monday, October 24, 2016, Tuesday, October 25, 2016, Wednesday, October 26, 2016, Thursday, October 27, 2016, Friday, October 28, 2016
Time: 8:30 a.m.- 5:00 p.m.
Location: North County – Vista Courthouse, Vista, CA
To participate, contact: Staff Attorney Laura Handler, lhandler@sdvlp.org
Opportunity: Clinic: Unlawful Detainer/Landlord-Tenant Clinic – Legal information to litigants in unlawful detainer cases and landlord-tenant disputes.
Date: Monday, October 24, 2016, Tuesday, October 25, 2016, Wednesday, October 26, 2016, Thursday, October 27, 2016, Friday, October 28, 2016
Time: 8:30 a.m.- 5:00 p.m.
Location: North County – Vista Courthouse, Vista, CA
To participate, contact: Staff Attorney Nichole Dominguez, ndominguez@sdvlp.org
Opportunity: Clinic: Guardianship Clinic – Advice/representation to low-income grandparents, relative caregivers, and abused, neglected, and abandoned children
Date: Monday, October 24, 2016, Tuesday, October 25, 2016, Wednesday, October 26, 2016, Thursday, October 27, 2016, Friday, October 28, 2016
Time: 12:00 p.m. – 5 p.m.
Location: SDVLP Offices, Downtown San Diego, CA
To participate, contact: Staff Attorney Leslie Mackay, (619) 235-5656 x104, lmackay@sdvlp.org
General questions – contact Pro Bono Manager Parisa Ijadi-Maghsoodi, pijadi@sdvlp.org, (619) 235-5656, ext. 107.
Agency: SoCal Pro Bono Managers
Website: https://www.californiaprobono.org/socal
Opportunity: Training: Free MCLE/Working Effectively in Representation of Clients with Challenging Behaviors
Date: October 26, 2016
Time: 12:15 pm
Location: 301 W. 1st Street , Los Angeles 90012
To participate, register at http://bit.ly/2cZMmtI
Agency: The Southern California Collaborative for Medical-Legal Partnership
Opportunity: Training: Free MCLE/Ensuring Effective Representation of Clients with Challenging Behaviors in Medical/Legal Partnerships
Date: October 24, 2016
Time: 12:30 pm
Location: 301 W. 1st Street, Los Angeles 90012
To participate, register at http://bit.ly/2cRmH4g