There have been many difficult, challenging and troubling events unfold in the new year and throughout 2020. There have also been many inspiring responses, acts of bravery, resistance and activism. Pro bono is one of the ways you can use your legal skills and education while in law school to impact the communities and issues you care about and challenge systems and injustice.
There are pro bono opportunities in racial justice, criminal justice reform, health justice, voting rights, eviction defense, citizenship and immigration law, women’s rights, civil rights, good government and more!
The best way to locate a pro bono opportunity of interest to you is to use the PSJD.org Search Employers feature and find organizations by location, employer type or practice area of interest to you. Once you get a list that matches your interests on PSJD, go to those organizations websites and check out their Volunteer or Internship information to learn how you can get involved and what time of year and hourly commitment they seek law student volunteers for. Each organization utilizes volunteers to fulfill mission critical work but those needs are determined based on the type of work they do, training required to do the work and client population served. Some organizations look for students for short-term temporary projects but some prefer a longer commitment with set hours. As you begin to reach out to organizations, it’s important to communicate your availability to determine if the opportunity is a good match.
Where else can I find pro bono opportunities?
- In the weekly CSO newsletter
- On SAGE
- In the massprobono.org Pro Bono Opportunities Guide
- By using the PSJD.org Search Jobs feature and selecting “Internship” and “Project” under Job Schedule and “Student” under Experience Level
- On probono.net
- Making an appointment on SAGE with Michelle Grossfield