This was a fantastic and informative conversation, a quick summary has been included but a deeper dive into the talk can be found below because we didn’t want to leave anything out!

Quick Summary:

• Organizations connect with firms’ orientation programs to provide trainings, share client stories, and uplift pro bono superstars as a way to spark interest in pro bono.
• As new associates join the firm their pro bono interests are collected and are often matched with existing pro bono matters in the firm to reinforce existing teams.
• Firms find trainings, impact stories, and clinic opportunities a fantastic tool to spark interest in pro bono.
• Staying grounded in the needs of the community is the responsibility of everyone involved. Firms shared that pro bono counsel attend conferences, evolve their programs in line with the needs of the community, and maintain relationships in the community. The goal of these connections is to be able to advise the next generation on pro bono needs in the community.
• While the new associates starting is a great incentive to reconnect with pro bono, it may be time to look throughout the year, as the fall is full!
• There are so many opportunities to plug into pro bono in the community. Tune into DC Pro Bono Week, stay connected to the DC Courts, and keep an eye out for both on-demand and live trainings from legal service organizations and community partners!

Full Summary:

On Wednesday, September 29, we hosted Best Practices in Pro Bono: Launching Careers with Purpose: New Associates as Drivers of Pro Bono Engagement. Our panel focused on the ways organizations and firms get new associates engaged in pro bono matters and how we can continue to develop that experience for everyone involved and increase the impact of pro bono in our community. Our conversation was moderated by Andrea Mangones, Director of Professional Skills Support at George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School. Our panelists include:

• Jennifer Grishkin, Managing Attorney for Pro Bono Coordination, Amica Center for Immigrant Rights
• Erin Mee, Senior Pro Bono Coordinating Attorney, National Veterans Legal Services Program
• Gwen Washington, Pro Bono Counsel, Cleary Gottlieb
• Danielle Moise, Pro Bono Attorney, Covington
• Sharmaine Heng, Director of Pro Bono & Social Impact, Nixon Peabody

We opened the conversation by discussing the current framework for how each panelist and their organization or firm welcome the new associate class. This conversation covered both internal orientation structures from the firms as well as the management and marketing strategies from the legal service providers. All strategies aim to identify the passion and skills for pro bono in firm associates and connect them with opportunities that align with the needs of the community. Not everyone has the same strategy, and we explored the benefits and drawbacks of each.

When the firms welcome associates, they undergo some type of survey process to collect an individual understanding of each of the associates. These surveys help pro bono teams understand the associates’ personal passions, pro bono interests, and skills gained in law school. This allows the pro bono team to identify opportunities that match their interests and give the new associates a chance to flex the skills they gained in a clinic or through previous experience.

From there, each firm has a process of reviewing their current pro bono portfolio to see if any cases already placed with the firm need any additional support. The firms then start by plugging associates into existing pro bono teams rather than finding new pro bono matters for them to take on. This placement process takes many forms like 1:1 meetings with the firm’s pro bono counsel or team, small group sessions in orientation, or full orientation sessions with the pro bono partners. Some new associates reach out to reconnect with matters they worked on as summer or at the trial level that are now up for appeal. At every stage, the pro bono counsel is working hard to connect new associates with pro bono matters quickly.

An example one firm provided, they try to have associates matched with a pro bono case in the first six to eight weeks. For most firms, pro bono is voluntary, so everyone endeavors to create a culture where it is prioritized and praised early and often. Many have seen the most effective moments being ones between peer associates, when one associate shares with someone at the same level as them how impactful pro bono is to them and their practice it really engages folks in the conversations. Every firm acknowledges that early participation in pro bono creates more of a culture of career long pro bono advocacy.

The legal service providers on the panel shared the robust training schedules they create around new associate orientations at different firms. One organization outlined the firm-by-firm training schedule they maintain throughout the fall. Another organization discussed the multifirm, virtual training they often host or attend as a way to reach many different firms at once.

The main benefit of the individualized, in-person trainings is the ability to speak to the specific cases within the firm and bring up pro bono superstars to discuss their experiences. The drawback of this model is the time and effort required by legal service providers to be on site for a training and away from their cases. On the other hand, the virtual, multifirm training allows legal service providers to connect with several firms at a time allowing them to meet with many people and maximize the number of associates that hear about their pro bono opportunities. The drawback of this model is the need to generalize information as well as the success stories shared.

An interesting alternative that one organization has experienced and really enjoyed was the firm inviting the organization but then volunteers within the firm lead the training. They shared their experiences doing the pro bono service in a robust training format and gave the organization the opportunity to take second seat. This reduced the effort the legal service provider had to expend while also allowing for individualized training for the firm.

An important note for firms is that legal services organizations would be interested in being invited to participate in multifirm trainings rather than initiating the planning. This allows the firms to cohort in a way that makes sense for their needs while allowing the legal service organizations to reach many new associates at once. Firms, if you have a training with a legal service organization that is just for your firm but would still meet its intended goal as a multifirm training, consider working with other firms as it takes some of the lift from our legal service providers. Some firms have also highlighted the benefits of the multifirm training model, especially when larger firms open their trainings to smaller firms to ensure resources reach the entire community.

One firm also highlighted the benefit of being able to connect their associates to existing opportunities in the community like the DC Superior Pro Bono Open Houses. This is a great opportunity to remind folks of the benefits of attending a DC Superior Court Pro Bono Open House, as an audience member did during our conversation. Throughout the year, there are Open Houses scheduled in specific Divisions and Branches that are open to anyone in the community interested in learning more about pro bono service in DC Superior and how they can start getting involved. During DC Pro Bono Week this year, the DC Courts have reimagined the Pro Bono Open House so you can learn about opportunities in every Branch and Division in one day as well as opportunities in the Court of Appeals. The DC Courts Pro Bono Open House is on Wednesday, October 28 from 12:30 to 2:30 pm at DC Superior, Moultrie Courthouse (500 Indiana Ave NW).

Our legal service providers then discussed their case management and marketing strategies. From the management perspective, they also undergo a process of reviewing open cases to ensure they are appropriately staffed and see if any matters need to be moved around. This includes a process of checking in with volunteers and moving cases to new volunteers when either there is no response from the original volunteer or the mentor in the organization has flagged a team or pro bono matter may need some switching up. This process is either done on a regular basis or as a part of the mentor’s review process.

These organizations are also always receiving new cases and they put a lot of time and energy into screening them and sharing them out with firms in a timely manner. Organizations often have a process to support law firms in creating robust pro bono teams by flagging if opportunities are in-person or fully remote so the firm knows if the team needs to be located in one city or can include associates from offices around the country.

From the marketing perspective, organizations are considerate about messaging and timing. When reviewing cases, they flag if an opportunity would be a good fit for a summer associate or a new associate. These organizations are also creatively expanding pro bono service in line with changes in the law. For example, they are now marketing and placing Maryland habeas corpus cases all over the country because the organization can represent Maryland residents no matter where they are sent in the country. The organization stays tuned into offices around the country that may be interested in pro bono service and place cases with folks all over the nation.

Both organizations and firms agreed that there’s a benefit to the impact stories that organizations provide to firms. Firms shared that they love when an email includes a story and links directly to similar pro bono opportunities. By connecting the impact of pro bono with the need in the community, firms are able to communicate clearly the impact associates can have and get them signed up right away. Being able to easily forward these messages also allows firms to reach as many people as possible.

Organizations also focus their communications in the fall because there is so much excitement from the new associates starting. This is wonderful because firms can connect new associates to opportunities when they are getting started which helps keep pro bono a part of their career throughout. While it’s wonderful to have this synergy in the fall, organizations expressed an interest in exploring ways to extend this energy throughout the year because the fall can get so busy! Everything we’ve described so far in terms of information gathering, data hygiene, case placement, team rearrangement, client support, and more all happens in this 3 month period! If you have creative ways to spread the excitement, please let us know!

Beyond surveying, training, and sharing stories, another great tool firms have found when it comes to engaging new associates in pro bono are clinic opportunities. By allowing them to dip their toe in the water and get hands-on training at the clinic, associates get the chance to understand the impact of pro bono, build their confidence, and connect with the community. Firms shared some ways they are trying to meet this need without putting more work onto legal service organizations. Some firms have started taking new case types as needs in the immigration community changed greatly and allowed them to create new small batch pro bono opportunities. They have also established more small business clinics to bring their attorneys more transactional opportunities. These firms increased access to services, met the interests of their associates, and didn’t add too much onto the already full plates of legal service providers. Good job, firms.

We closed our conversation with a dream wish list from our panelists; what they want to make pro bono service more effective and get more associates involved. Our legal services organizations shared an interest in finding opportunities for efficiency. First, they highlighted multifirm training as being able to do their pro bono pitch fewer times and reach more people which alleviates those legal service attorneys’ schedules. Second, organizations stressed the extensive process that goes into finding specific cases rather than placing the cases they receive organically. While not impossible, firms that make such requests should be ready to take the case once it’s been identified to ensure it’s still ripe. Finally, encouraging firms to spread their pro bono efforts out throughout the year to alleviate the pressure on fall schedules.

From our firms, we heard a spectrum of wants from the systemic to the everyday. On a systemic level, it would be fantastic if Rule 6.1 had some teeth in it and in their dream world civil Gideon guarantees legal representation in many of the cases at issue. Another panelist shared that associates will listen to judges and would be interested in court appointments because judge encouragement can spark pro bono interest. The final panelist shared their dream of having access to easily sharable stories from legal service organizations, including short videos, that engage new associates where they are more likely to get information.

This concludes the recap of our extensive conversation. We also discussed the technologies that folks used to organize opportunities including Paladin, and we learned that all panelists approach their use of Paladin and other organizational tools differently. If you are interested in connecting with any of our panelists or have any questions regarding this discussion please contact Chris Marin at cmarin@wclawyers.org.