Private Attorney Involvement (PAI)
Private attorneys are essential to the provision of legal services for low income and otherwise vulnerable members of our communities. Volunteers increase SCCLS’ ability to meet the demand for our services and ensure that clients get the help they need to address critical legal issues. In the last year alone, private attorneys assisted more than 120 clients who otherwise would not have received legal assistance.
Why Volunteer?
The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.
-Mahatma Gandhi
- Hands-on and in court experience
- Case support
- Free trainings
- Reduced fee MCLEs
- Mentorship
- Malpractice Insurance
- Meeting space
- Compensated cases are also available
Pro Bono Opportunities
As a private attorney volunteer in the Southeastern Massachusetts and Cape and Islands areas, you can supplement legal services programs through the generous donation of your time and legal skills to assist eligible clients. Your willingness to help even one client each year makes a real difference. If you are interested in helping to make a difference, we have many ways you can get involved.
PAI refers full representation cases in a variety of substantive areas including family, consumer / bankruptcy, simple estate planning and eviction defense.
Volunteer attorneys provide brief counsel and advice and assistance with basic forms to pro se litigants for a variety of family law issues. These workshops are a great way to assist our clients when you only have a few hours to spare. Please see our Calendar of Events for the current schedule and to sign up.
Volunteer attorneys meet with a small group of applicants to provide the nuts and bolts of the bankruptcy process, requirements and outcomes. They also answer individual questions, providing limited advice as appropriate. Attorney presenters are not required to take on pro bono representation of these applicants, though some choose to.
Volunteer attorneys meet with a small group of clients to discuss the basics of estate planning, covering Simple Wills, Durable Powers of Attorney and Health Care Proxies. Attorneys meet again with some of the clients to provide pro bono drafting services for these documents.
For more details on our projects or to download a pdf of our application, click here.
Compensated Case Opportunities
The Compensated Attorney Program (CAP) provides an opportunity for private attorneys to receive “low bono” compensation to help cover the costs of overhead and time with no charge to our clients. Substantive law areas can include family, eviction defense, basic estate planning and others.
Benefits include:
- $50/hr compensation
- Limited expense reimbursement
- Malpractice insurance for referred case
If you are interested in joining the compensated attorney panel, please review the manual, download a pdf of the CAP Program Agreement and submit to SCCLS along with a W-9 form.
The PAI Project would be pleased to hear from you. For questions or additional information, please contact:
- Jamie Gau, PAI Coordinator
- 774-488-5953
