Volunteer Attorney Legal Services Action Plan
Five-Year Progress Report

Private Law Firms: The VALS Action Plan suggests that law firms develop and implement pro bono policies. To discover the extent of this practice, PBLAC conducted a survey of all law firms of ten or more attorneys in the state to ascertain their views on pro bono policies and whether they utilized them. The survey produced much useful information that, in turn, was incorporated into a model law firm pro bono policy. PBLAC sent this policy back to all the firms, asking for copies of existing policies, encouraging them to adopt the model (or a similar policy), and offering PBLAC's assistance. Although the response to date has been disappointing, there are a growing number of firms that have identified attorneys or paralegals to coordinate pro bono efforts, and there are a growing number of medium to large firms that have pro bono policies. PBLAC's goal is to publicize these efforts in the hope that other firms will begin to see the value of an institutional commitment to pro bono work. Missing from this equation are the attorneys in firms of fewer than ten and solo practitioners, who comprise the large majority of attorneys in this state. Since it is unlikely these smaller practices would adopt pro bono policies, PBLAC must develop other vehicles for educating them about the need for their services and assisting them in their efforts.

Recommended next steps for PBLAC:

WSBA: The VALS Action Plan made four separate recommendations:

1. Law firm pro bono challenge: The Pro Bono and Legal Aid Committee backed away from this recommendation at the request of the Law Firm Pro Bono Project in Washington, D.C., that originated the concept of the law firm pro bono challenge (which includes large Seattle law firms) and feared that a Washington state pro bono challenge would be confusing and duplicative. PBLAC modified its law firm strategy in favor of the institutionalization of law firm pro bono policies (see Private Law Firms, above).

2. Collect and develop model law firm pro bono policies: (see Private Law firms, above)

3. Develop ways to integrate discussion of the importance of pro bono publico service into CLEs on professionalism: Relying on the premise that "professionalism" includes an obligation to provide pro bono publico service, PBLAC took this recommendation a step further and crafted a proposed amendment to the MCLE Rules to award CLE credit for certain types of pro bono representation of low-income clients and mentoring of pro bono attorneys. The proposed rule was adopted by the Board of Governors and is now before the Supreme Court for consideration. If adopted, PBLAC believes the rule will provide a significant incentive for volunteer attorneys and will facilitate their recruitment by VALS programs.

4. Assist local VALS coordinators with recruitment: The advent of technology has refocused WSBA's role in recruitment. The VALS Action Plan contemplates the use of the Bar News and other publications to provide information about volunteer opportunities. And while the May Bar News? Access to Justice issues now include detailed information about volunteer participation, the Access to Justice page on WSBA's Website has become the permanent repository of updated information about every VALS and legal services program in the state. Additionally, all the VALS coordinators are now members of a listserv, administered by WSBA, which enables them to share recruitment strategies and documents.

PBLAC developed three significant projects that were not contemplated by the VALS Action Plan: the (1) Emeritus Attorney Program; (2) proposed amendments to RPC 6.1; and (2) a proposed videoconferencing project to link corporate law department attorneys with rural clients.

(1) The Emeritus Attorney Rule, adopted by the Supreme Court in 1998, provides that retired or inactive attorneys may become active WSBA members for the sole purpose of doing pro bono publico work for qualified legal services providers. Currently 13 attorneys have been awarded Emeritus status and are volunteering in ten programs throughout the state. The first annual training was held in January 1999 for new Emeritus attorneys; subsequent recruitment and training events are planned to publicize and bolster the new program. Washington is the seventh state to institute an Emeritus Program. WSBA Access to Justice staff is administering the Emeritus Rule.

(2) In 1996 PBLAC asked the Board of Governors to embrace revisions to RPC 6.1 (pro bono publico service) designed to bring Washington state's rule into substantial conformity with the ABA's Model Rule 6.1., to institute voluntary pro bono reporting, and to recognize the special contributions of attorneys who provide more than 50 hours of pro bono service. PBLAC's proposal was tabled after substantial debate. The rule would have created an expectation that attorneys provide at least thrity (30) hours of pro bono service, the majority of which would involve provision of representation to persons of limited means or to supporting charitable organizations. The rule also encourages attorneys to voluntarily contribute financial support. The goal of voluntary pro bono reporting is to draw WSBA members' attention to RPC 6.1 and to collect data about the extent of pro bono service in Washington.

(3) In an effort to tap into the pro bono resources of corporate law departments and to share resources with rural areas, PBLAC is working on the development of a unique project to provide low income rural clients with representation from large Puget Sound-area corporate law departments. Corporate attorneys would utilize cutting edge videoconferencing technology to interview and represent clients in court on specific types of cases. The American Bar Association has expressed interest in collaborating and supporting this effort.

Recommended next steps for PBLAC:

Local Bar Associations: The VALS Action Plan contemplates that local bar associations will provide free CLE credits to attorneys in exchange for a certain number of pro bono hours or cases; and that they will assist VALS coordinators with recruitment. The challenge for many bar associations and VALS programs, particularly in rural areas, continues to be two-fold: insufficient resources to provide their own free CLEs; and a finite number of attorneys who can be tapped to participate. The institutionalization of incentives at the state level (e.g., Emeritus Attorney Program, MCLE Pro Bono Rule), development of new recruitment strategies (e.g., Corporate Counsel project), and the expansion of training opportunities (see Support to VALS) all are designed to provide additional resources and incentives which local bar associations can employ to assist their local VALS programs with recruitment.

Law Schools: The VALS Action Plan recommends that the three law schools institute educational strategies around lawyers' professional responsibility to engage in pro bono publico work, as well as to provide their students with relevant pro bono opportunities. During the past five years, there has been a perceptible increase in law school awareness of, and involvement in, providing these educational opportunities for their students. Of note is Seattle University's new Access to Justice Institute, designed to be both a research arm for access to justice-related issues and a resource for legal assistance to low income individuals. The Access to Justice Board's Education Committee, now chaired by a Gonzaga Law School professor, has met with the faculty of all three law schools around these issues. The June 1999 Access to Justice Conference spawned a law school coordinating committee of students and professors whose goal is to increase the participation of the law schools in access to justice efforts, including pro bono legal services, across the state.

VALS Coordinators: The VALS Action Plan recommends that coordinators prepare recruitment materials about their programs. They can now post this information on-line at websites in our state (e.g., King County Bar Association, Washington State Bar Association) that are visited by the private bar.

Both the original and revised State Plans clearly contemplate that VALS programs are equal partners in this state's civil legal services delivery system and, as such, are beneficiaries of the strategies being developed statewide, regionally and locally to support this delivery system, e.g., judicial support, malpractice coverage, training, mentoring. Because of the increasingly critical and expanded role the private bar must play in the delivery of civil legal services, it falls on the entire delivery system to ensure that the VALS programs have the support they need to recruit, train, mentor and retain their volunteers.

Judiciary: The VALS Action Plan spells out strategies for minimizing disincentives associated with delays on court calendars while handling pro bono cases. While some courts have fashioned strategies for resolving this problem, no state Supreme Court- or judicial association-sanctioned guidelines or model policies have been developed, and there are no statewide judicial-based initiatives to encourage local judges to actively support VALS and legal services programs. PBLAC's strategy, described in more detail above, is to encourage the Supreme Court and the Chief Administrative Law Judge to take the leadership roles in developing and marketing these statewide strategies.

WSBA: The VALS Action Plan sets out five specific recommendations:

1. Address the malpractice "barrier:" This has largely been accomplished through the State Plan, which provides that the Northwest Justice Project, as grantor for the VALS programs, obtain an umbrella malpractice policy that covers all VALS program volunteers.

2. Develop a model for a complete county-based family law resource center: This recommendation has not been implemented by any member of the equal justice community except King County. The Regional Justice Center, located in Kent, has numerous resources available including courthouse facilitators, computers with Forms Plus and Support Calc software, and relevant family law materials. King County's Pro Se work group is attempting to expand the resource center to the downtown Seattle courthouse. Statewide, the approach to has been multi-faceted, e.g., increasing the number of courthouse facilitators and defining their role in a proposed rule; developing document assembly software for pro se family law clients; coordinating statewide domestic violence advocacy through Columbia Legal Services. Significantly, the Access to Justice Board is organizing a family law task force that will take a critical look at the entire family law "system" to determine whether it is serving the needs of low and moderate income clients and pro se litigants, and whether to consider alternative structures for the resolution of family law disputes.

3. Develop a central resource clearinghouse to support VALS attorneys: The VALS Action Plan contemplates a document-based clearinghouse that would be maintained at the WSBA offices. Shortly after the VALS Action Plan took effect, WSBA became one of the first state bar associations to get Internet access and to develop its own Website. WSBA Access to Justice staff determined that much of the clearinghouse and related support to VALS programs could best be accomplished through technology. In 1998 WSBA became the first state bar association to hire a full time communications and technology specialist to support the state's pro bono and legal services delivery initiatives. WSBA now has an Access to Justice page on the WSBA website which features information about every VALS and local legal services program. Current plans call for the expansion of the website to include information on education and training programs, resources for ancillary services such as interpreters, information on operating a VALS program, recruitment tools, etc. The communications and technology specialist also manages listservs for VALS coordinators to enhance communication and sharing of resources. WSBA, in cooperation with the Legal Foundation of Washington, Columbia Legal Services, the Northwest Justice Project, the Access to Justice Board, the King County Bar Association and Microsoft, has played a large role in providing hardware, software, training and Internet access to all VALS and specialty programs in Washington state. The Northwest Justice Project (NJP) operates a Website that includes the Law Center, where hundreds of legal education brochures are available for on-line reading and download (www.nwjustice.org).

4. Continue to enhance the annual conference for VALS: One of the first actions taken by PBLAC was to ask the Access to Justice Board to expand the annual VALS conference to a statewide conference for all members of Washington State's Access to Justice Network (legal services providers, courthouse facilitators, court clerks, judges, law students and faculty, bar leaders, etc.). These very successful annual Access to Justice Conferences have become a focal point for Network members to explore strategies for expanding, improving and supporting the civil legal services delivery system in Washington state. The 1999 conference brought 350 people to Wenatchee; another 50 attended as part of WSBA's annual Bar Leaders Conference. Significantly, VALS coordinators are able to meet as a group before the conference begins. VALS coordinators also sit on the Conference Planning Committee to ensure the conference has relevance for their programs and for the private bar.

5. Award MCLE credit for mentoring: PBLAC proposed a rule to award MCLE for certain types of pro bono work, including mentoring of pro bono attorneys (see Recruitment). The proposed rule was adopted by the Board of Governors and is now before the Supreme Court for consideration.

Local VALS Program: This recommendation contemplates that local VALS coordinators will develop mentoring programs, CLEs and non-attorney support (e.g., translators, legal secretaries) for their panel attorneys. The reality for most coordinators, however, is that the overwhelming need to find attorneys to provide direct representation occupies the time and consumes the resources that might instead be directed to implementing this recommendation. PBLAC has determined that the single most effective recruitment strategy is to offer free CLEs in exchange for pro bono work. PBLAC has begun to play a significant role in supporting these efforts through its proposed MCLE rule (see Recruitment, above) and its efforts to collect existing audio, video and written CLE materials for a free lending library sited at WSBA for local programs and their volunteers. Furthermore, the revised State Plan contemplates a significant strategy to coordinate substantive training among legal services staff attorneys, pro bono coordinators, volunteer attorneys and other advocates. PBLAC can also play a role in identifying statewide organizations of non-attorney legal support resources (e.g., translators, legal secretaries, paralegals, court reporters, physicians, expert witnesses, investigators, psychologists) and in seeking institutional buy-in for pro bono involvement by their members in VALS and legal services programs.

Recommended next steps for PBLAC:

Government, In-House and Academic Lawyers: This recommendation explores creative ways these attorneys can provide support to VALS programs given their unique status and the various limitations imposed on their ability to provide direct representation to clients. The following two recommendations are in the process of implementation. The others, which encourage private firms and corporate attorneys to provide conference space, computers and clerical support for government and academic attorneys who cannot use their office resources; and which encourage private attorneys to co-counsel with government, academic, and in-house counsel to help avoid malpractice and conflicts; have not been explored except, perhaps, in local programs.

1. Government attorneys: Shortly after the VALS Action Plan was adopted, the Attorney General instituted a pro bono policy for its staff attorneys. To date, no other government agencies have followed suit. Neither the Attorney General's policy nor the efforts of PBLAC have addressed the VALS Action Plan recommendation to establish a private fund to purchase support such as secretarial services for government attorneys

2. Corporate law department attorneys: PBLAC is developing a project that will link urban corporate law department in-house counsel with rural low income clients via cutting-edge videoconferencing technology (see Recruitment). This project has the enthusiastic support of the American Bar Association, that is spurring the development of pilot projects on around the country on utilizing in-house corporate counsel.

Recommended next steps for PBLAC:

This section of the VALS Action Plan is premised on two operating principles: (1) the effective delivery of civil legal services must necessarily involve coordination and resource sharing among VALS programs, legal services providers, the courts and others and; (2) effective delivery also requires specialized training of volunteer attorneys to ensure that special populations (e.g., institutionalized clients, the elderly, those facing language barriers) receive high quality legal assistance. A primary focus of the revised State Plan is the coordination and resource sharing among providers of civil legal services. Some of the recommendations in this section focus on those strategies, whose planning and implementation, in the wisdom of the drafters of the State Plan and the Access to Justice Board, are more appropriately sited with regional and local providers rather than at WSBA.

Judiciary: The VALS Action Plan suggests that the judiciary consider both a limited license for non-WSBA attorneys to provide pro bono publico service, and an expansion of Rule 9 to include non-WSBA members attorneys in government, in-house and academic positions. In 1998 the state Supreme Court adopted the Emeritus Attorney Rule (see Recruitment), which provides a limited license to inactive and retired WSBA and non-WSBA members, for the sole purpose of providing pro bono legal services. No efforts have been taken to expand Rule 9.

Recommended next steps for PBLAC:

® Explore the feasibility of expanding Rule 9 to include non-WSBA member attorneys in government, in-house and academic positions

WSBA: The VALS Action Plan suggests four recommendations:

1. Establish an effective link between volunteer attorney efforts and high priority needs : PBLAC has plans to identify and publicize firms that adopt pro bono policies (see Recruitment). WSBA staff currently has the capacity to make general referrals of clients that find their way to WSBA (staff does not provide an intake function, rather they make appropriate referrals to CLEAR, King County Bar programs, lawyers referral services, public defender offices, etc.), as well as the capacity to direct potential volunteer attorneys to VALS programs.
2. Identify and create opportunities for government lawyers and non-WSBA members: As indicated in the introduction to this section, WSBA's role is necessarily limited to coordination on a statewide level, which precludes an effective role in identifying and creating local opportunities (e.g. advice clinics, mediation programs, self-help clinics, representation in administrative tribunals) for volunteer service. WSBA does publicize these volunteer opportunities on its Website, and has been involved in creating statewide pro bono panels (Native American, Children's SSI). Indeed, the revised State Plan contemplates WSBA's support in the identification of the need for, and development of, additional statewide pro bono panels.

3. Establish voluntary mediation panels on a local basis: See previous response.

1. Develop a resource pool of experts and materials on special populations: This pool of experts and resources exists, or is being developed, within the legal services provider network, through specialty and minority bar associations, and within numerous law-related organizations in Washington state. CLEAR (Coordinated Legal Education, Advice and Referral) has client-centered legal materials in its on-line "Law Center" (http://www.nwjustice.org/) in numerous languages, as well as multi-language capability among the CLEAR advocates. Additionally, the Access to Justice Board's Status Impediments Committee will be identifying individuals and resources within Washington state and nationally to address the barriers to the legal system faced by many special populations.

 

Recommended next steps for PBLAC:

Identify the need for, establish, and recruit volunteer leadership to coordinate targeted statewide pro bono panels

Local Bar Associations: The VALS Action Plan recommends that local bar associations work with VALS coordinators to develop educational programs to enable members to provide legal services to special populations; and to provide a directory of appropriate services. As with many of the previous recommendations in this section, the implementation of these involve adherence to the revised State Plan, the identification and prioritization of client needs, and local coordination with legal services programs, VALS coordinators and other relevant stakeholders. The Access to Justice Board has been assigned the responsibility of overseeing the revised State Plan.

Private Law Firms: See previous responses.

Local VALS Programs: See previous responses.

1. RECOGNITION

   The drafters of the VALS Action Plan correctly assessed that recruitment strategies are a key aspect of an effective private bar involvement effort. Although volunteer recognition is largely local, ideas and resources can be generated from other locales and statewide for the benefit of the local VALS programs.

   Judiciary: Most VALS programs work with their local judges to honor local volunteers. PBLAC's plans to seek the commitment by the Supreme Court and the Chief Administrative Law Judge to playing a greater role in supporting VALS Programs will necessarily include recognition strategies.

   Private Law Firms: See previous responses.

   Local Bar Associations: See previous responses.

   WSBA: The VALS Action Plan recommends that there be an annual Access to Justice Conference, which now exists. It also recommends that WSBA use its Bar News magazine to recognize volunteers attorneys, to provide practice tips, and to remind attorneys of their professional responsibilities. While the Bar News has not been used very effectively for formal recognition of volunteers, it has done a good job of reminding attorneys of their ethical and professional responsibilities to perform pro bono publico service. WSBA gives a pro bono award every year, and makes every effort to promote the need for a significantly greater investment of time and resources by its members in pro bono service.

   Recommended next steps for PBLAC:

2. Explore ways to use the Bar News to recognize individual attorneys/law firms/government agencies/etc.

3. Explore ways to use WSBA's Website to recognize individual attorneys/law firms/government agencies/etc.

4. Explore the feasibility of annual pro bono awards for each of WSBA's eleven districts

5. FUNDING

The VALS Action Plan envisions that WSBA, local bar associations, legal services providers, VALS programs, the Legal Foundation of Washington and other parties concerned about VALS programs will work to assure current levels of funding and to develop additional funding to offset inflation and provide for expansion of VALS programs to serve unmet needs. The 1995 State Plan provided that VALS programs continue to be funded at their current levels despite reduced state funding for civil legal services programs. The revised State Plan contemplates the continued financial support of VALS programs as key partners in this state's civil equal justice delivery system.

The amount of funding raised by local VALS programs and specialty legal services providers has increased substantially. In addition, a number of local bar associations have responded to the stagnation of statewide funding for VALS programs by committing an increasing amount of membership dues to underwriting VALS program operations. The ATJ Board's Resource Development Committee is supporting these and other fundraising initiatives by coordinating fundraising activities throughout the state; providing ongoing resource development support and coordination, including development and coordination of state and local resource development materials, messages, brochures, and strategies; and educating private foundations, corporations and others about the civil legal needs of low income people and opportunities for private foundations to contribute to this cause.

During 1998, the Pro Bono and Legal Aid Committee developed a detailed report outlining the current state of the civil equal justice delivery system and offered a comprehensive range of ideas for raising revenues needed to respond to what the committee described as a failure of critical mass so extreme that it amounted to a "crisis in the availability of civil legal services." In June 1998, the Board of Governors accepted the Committee's report and unanimously declared that the "chronic lack of funding for civil legal services had reached a crisis level." The Governors determined that not less than $ 10 million in new funding would be needed over the next biennium to address this crisis, and pledged to work with a broad array of stakeholders to secure legislative appropriation of this level of additional funding. This past session, the WSBA, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and the Equal Justice Coalition all called upon the Governor and the Legislature to substantially increase state funding for civil legal services. These efforts were not successful, and the state appropriation was continued at the previous level of $6.8 million per biennium.

A key recommendation in PBLAC's report was to institute reporting of pro bono hours with a buy-out. (In 1996 PBLAC had unsuccessfully requested that the Board of Governors adopt a similar, but more limited proposal, for voluntary reporting. See Recruitment). The Board of Governors did not adopt this recommendation.

Recommended next steps for PBLAC:

Consider proposed changes to RPC 6.1 and the propriety of establishing reporting and buy-out procedures

In cooperation with the Washington State Trial Lawyers Association, study the feasibility of authorizing the award of punitive or enhanced damages in certain types of cases, which damages would be paid to the Legal Foundation of Washington

CONCLUSION

The previous analysis delineates the recommendations that have been implemented by PBLAC, the recommendations that are being implemented by others, and the recommendations that remain. Much has been accomplished; and much remains to be done. The "Recommended next steps for PBLAC" sections are the blueprints for the committee's continuing efforts to implement the VALS Action Plan in close cooperation with other members of Washington State's Access to Justice Network. The enduring and supportive role of the Washington State Bar Association and its staff is critical to the continued success of the implementation of the VALS Action Plan, and the optimal improvement and expansion of volunteer attorney legal services in Washington state.