IMPACT LA is an exciting collaboration between Los Angeles area legal services organizations, APBCo-member private law firms, the Jenesse Center (a Domestic Violence Intervention Program), and OneJustice. The project supports survivors of domestic violence by providing wrap-around legal services in a clinic setting. At the clinic, survivors can get a free legal consultation about their housing, immigration, and public benefits issues.
IMPACT LA was launched in 2013 as part of the Association of Pro Bono Counsel’s (APBCo) IMPACT (“Involving More Pro Bono Attorneys in Our Communities Together”) Project. The IMPACT Project is a direct response to a meeting held in Washington, D.C. in 2012 among Vice President Joe Biden, APBCo board members and senior management of the board members’ firms. The meeting focused on issues of access to justice and the role of pro bono attorneys in the delivery of legal services to the poor. As a result of the meetings, APBCo initiated the IMPACT Project, a long-term project to develop new collaborations across the country that expand pro bono resources and inspire new innovative pro bono projects.
The Basics:
- All IMPACT LA Clinics offer limited scope services. Clinic clients sign a limited scope agreement and there is no ongoing representation beyond the date of the clinic.
- No prior substantive knowledge or experience is required to volunteer at an IMPACT LA Clinic.
- Volunteers receive all necessary training via online videos developed by OneJustice and partner legal services organizations.
- Volunteer attorneys are supported throughout the clinic by legal services attorneys and OneJustice staff.
- Most IMPACT LA Clinics run for 5 hours, with a 60 minute volunteer orientation before the clinic begins, during which OneJustice staff reviews clinic processes and procedures.
- Firms and legal departments can staff an entire IMPACT LA or share staffing with another entity.
If your firm or in-house legal department is interested in getting involved with the IMPACT LA Project, or would like to know more about the project, please contact Amy Kaizuka at akaizuka@one-justice.org.
Thank you to our IMPACT LA Project Partners!
Legal Services Organizations & Other Nonprofits
- Bet Tzedek Legal Services
- Central American Resource Center
- Inner City Law Center
- Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles
- Levitt & Quinn
- Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County
- Public Counsel Law Center
Law Firms & Companies
- Ballard Spahr LLP
- Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP
- Jones Day
- Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP
- Latham & Watkins LLP
- Manatt, Phelps & Phillips LLP
- Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP
- Morrison & Foerster LLP
- Nixon Peabody LLP
- O’Melveny & Myers LLP
- Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
- Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP
- Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.
- White & Case LLP
- Winston & Strawn LLP