If you're looking to volunteer your time and put your skills and expertise to good use by providing assistance to those in need, you have come to the right place! Austin chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC Austin) is here to make it as easy as possible for you to volunteer even if you don't know where to start and are part of a small legal department with limited resources. Please review below - keep an eye on our emails and join us in one of many upcoming pro bono and community service opportunities.
A Message From The Pro Bono Chair
ACC Austin strives to make it easy, efficient and fun for in-house and corporate counsel to provide pro bono assistance and engage in community service projects. We are constantly working on identifying and organizing pro bono and community service opportunities in the Austin area. If you have any questions, please contact Hollis Levy, Executive Director for ACC Austin, or feel free to reach out to me directly.
Best Regards,
Pro Bono Opportunities
EVICTION DEFENSE TASK FORCE
ACC Austin has partnered with DLA Piper, Dell Technologies, and Volunteer Legal Services (VLS) to form an eviction defense task force for Austin residents whose housing is at risk.
You can watch the task force training recording here and sign up for a volunteer time on our consortium's docket at https://vls.volunteerhub.com and look for the DLA/ACC/Dell Docket on the 4th Wednesday of each month. We'll be teaming up in pairs or groups of three for these dockets to help new volunteers get accustomed to the setting.
VLS CLINICS
VLS hosts a Legal Advice Clinic open to members of Greater Austin/Central Texas to receive free legal advice and apply for pro bono representation. The clinics support people seeking advice on issues such as landlord/tenant & eviction issues, wills, divorce & legal protection in fleeing abusive relationships, bankruptcy and more.
Attorneys can sign up for a volunteer shift as often as makes sense for their schedule or serve as one of our special back-up volunteers for substitutions or emergencies. Please visit VolunterHub to sign up for a shift.
CHILD PROTECTION
CASA of Travis County, Inc. recruits, screens, trains, and supervises volunteers to provide “guardian ad litem” representation for abused and neglected children to help them reach a safe and permanent home. This is a great opportunity for lawyers, paralegals and others to represent those without a voice in our legal system.
CASA volunteers are concerned community members who complete 30 hours of intensive training and donate an average of 20 hours a month to the service of one child or sibling group for a minimum of one year. CASA volunteers monitor each child’s educational, therapeutic, placement, legal, and medical progress and work one-on-one with each child to gain trust, offer insight, and speak up for the child’s best interest. Court appointed by a judge, a volunteer advocate provides verbal and written reports to the judge including final placement recommendations. The opinions of the CASA volunteers and staff members are often incorporated into the children's service plans. CASA staff provides guidance and supervision for the volunteers as they serve child victims.
For more information about working with CASA, please visit CASA's website.
PRO BONO TEXAS
Pro Bono Texas is a on-stop hub for all things pro bono. Find the perfect place to volunteer, mentors to guide you, resources to help you succeed, and a space to celebrate pro bono. Pro Bono Texas provides access to a Pro Bono Opportunity Portal powered by Paladin and The State Bar of Texas. There are remote opportunities, COVID-19 relief opportunities, disaster relief opportunities as well as non-attorney volunteer opportunities. There are also legal research, limited scope, litigation and transactional opportunities. For more info and to browse and access all available opportunities, please go to probonotexas.org.
FREE LEGAL ANSWERS
Free Legal Answers provided by the American Bar Association is a virtual legal advice clinic in which qualifying users post civil legal questions at no cost to be answered by pro bono attorneys, licensed in their state. Question topics include family, divorce, custody, housing. eviction, homelessness, consumer rights, financial, work, employment, unemployment, health and disability, civil rights, income maintenance, juvenile and education law. To get started, please go to freelegalanswers.org.
FAQs
- What if I'm not Texas licensed?
In most situations, you will be paired with a Texas-licensed attorney.
- What if I don't have malpractice insurance?
In most situations, the nonprofit with which we are partnering on a pro bono opportunity carries the malpractice insurance that covers volunteers.
- What if I’m not a subject matter expert in the areas needed?
Don't worry. Resources and experts are available if you need to step back and ask questions. However, you'll be surprised how much you can help with just basic legal knowledge and common sense. Plus, it’s a great way to expand your own knowledge base and network.
- I want to help, but I do not know what to do.
Contact our Pro Bono Committee Chair or Hollis Levy.
