Volunteer! D.C. Bar Pro Bono Center: Advice and Referral Clinic

Trying to find a way to fit pro bono service into your schedule? Join us for a rewarding day of service, where your skills can make a significant difference in the lives of those seeking legal guidance and support! Volunteer on Saturday,  May 30th to gain experience in serving the D.C. community in a variety of matters! At the clinic, you’ll provide brief advice (and referrals) to people who otherwise wouldn’t have access to legal help. We meet at DC Bar Building (901 4th St NW). Please arrive at 9:00 am, a brief orientation takes place at 9:15 am, and volunteers are asked to stay until the last client is seen, usually at least 3:00 pm. There’s no time commitment beyond the clinic itself. As a volunteer attorney, you’ll answer questions about consumer law, family law, housing law, public benefits, bankruptcy, and other topics. You don’t need to be an expert in these areas of law: D.C. Bar Pro Bono Center staff and expert mentors will be on hand to help. You do need to be a member of the D.C. Bar, or a federal government attorney barred in another state to participate. The deadline to volunteer is Tuesday, May 26 by 5:00 pm ET. Once you register to attend, our Program Director and volunteer coordinator, Chris Marin, will be in touch with additional details. We are currently looking for volunteers in private practice, including solo practitioners and those at firms. If you are currently a law student and would like to volunteer please contact Rachel Lawrence at lawrencera@cua.edu. Thank you!

Litigation Skills Series: Trial Advocacy

Join us at Trial Advocacy to refresh the four fundamental trial skills: Opening Statements, Direct Examinations, Cross-Examinations, and Closing Arguments.  Each topic will begin with a lecture by an expert trainer and a demonstration by skilled litigators showing how to put the lesson into practice. Then, we will move to small group breakout rooms where each attendee will get up and practice the skill of the day. Breakout room facilitators will offer individualized, constructive feedback to each participant. Attendees should plan to spend some time between each session to prepare for the on-your-feet breakout sessions. Our fact pattern features a Domestic Relations case, but you need not know anything about substantive law in this area to benefit from the training. View the 2026 Litigation Skills Series Trial Advocacy Schedule. In response to the current state of practice being especially demanding, we are keeping this training in a hybrid format. We hope this balances the goals of learning important skills alongside your peers without keeping you away from your clients or work for too much time! We look forward to feedback after the training! If you have any questions about the schedule, please email Chris Marin at cmarin@wclawyers.org. For Washington Council of Lawyers members, this comprehensive Trial Advocacy training costs just $165. For non-members, the cost is $265. (Join Washington Council of Lawyers to take advantage of the discounted member rates.) Scholarships are available thanks to the generosity of the D.C. Bar Foundation. To apply for a scholarship, please complete this online scholarship form. The list of DC Bar Foundation Grantees is here. If you are working for any of these organizations when registering for Washington Council of Lawyers’ Litigation Skills Series trainings, please submit your registration through the scholarship request form on the registration page. CLE credits are pending for this training for CA, NY, and NJ. This session always sells out. Save your seat today! Registration closes Wednesday, April 29 at 5:00 pm ET.

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