Pro Bono Opportunties
The law school’s Pro Bono Program engages students in the delivery of legal assistance in cooperation with local attorneys and community agencies serving the poor and certain other groups, introduces students to the difficulties of the under-represented and the rewards of public service, encourages students after graduation from law school to discharge the lawyer's professional responsibility to render public interest service.
The Pro Bono Program also offers monthly community service opportunities such as building homes with Habitat for Humanity, serving lunch at a local soup kitchen, and planting a garden in the inner city of Cleveland.
Students who volunteer a minimum of 40 hours a year (in the course of one or more placements) are recognized at the College of Law annual awards ceremony.
Contact Clinical Law professor Pamela Daiker-Middaugh, LB 59c, 687-6878, pamela.daiker-middaugh@law.csuohio.edu for more information.
Upcoming 2007-08 Events
Wednesday, January 16th, 12:00 to 1:00 PM – 3Rs Project/Mock Trial Program and 5:30 to 6:00 PM - Informational Meeting
Saturday, January 26th, 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM – Law Day at the Friendly Inn
Saturday, February 2nd, 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM – Tax Preparation Training
Cleveland-Marshall students worked with the Cuyahoga Earned Income Tax Coalition at area tax sites – including Cleveland-Marshall College of Law – to provide free tax preparation for low-wage taxpayers. This year, 50 law students, together with other volunteers, helped over 3,200 citizens receive $4.6 million in refunds across Northeast Ohio.
Thursday, February 21st, 6:00 to 8:00 PM – Cleveland Food Bank
March 9th through March 16th – Alternative Spring Break in New Orleans
Wednesday, April 2nd, 12:00 to 1:00 PM – Summer Public Interest Opportunities Informational Meeting
Friday, May 2nd, All Day – 11th Annual City of Cleveland High School Mock Trial Competition
Saturday, May 3rd, All Day – Cleveland Bar Association Volunteer Day
2006-07 Events
2006-2007 Pro Bono Program
Cleveland-Marshall College law students, under the guidance of Professor Pamela Daiker-Middaugh ’88, Director of the law school’s Pro Bono Program, volunteered over 11,000 hours of community service to individuals and organizations throughout Northeast Ohio. The projects listed below are in addition to many other Pro Bono Program initiatives, such as working with Habitat for Humanity, coaching high school students competing in the city-wide Moot Court Competition or counseling the homeless in a Pro Se Divorce Clinic.
The 3Rs (Rights, Responsibilities and Realities) Program is a partnership between the Cleveland Bar Association and the Cleveland Municipal School District that enlists volunteer lawyers, law students and law faculty to teach the American Constitution, improve passage rates on the state-mandated Ohio Graduation Test, provide practical career counseling, and encourage minorities to seek careers in law. This year, over 70 law students, faculty and staff formed a portion of the 700 volunteers who taught tenth grade government classes in every high school in Cleveland and East Cleveland.
The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland Volunteer Program – This year 40 Cleveland-Marshall law students volunteered at the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland to help provide pro bono legal services to low-income people in Northeast Ohio. Law students participated in Saturday Free Advice and Referral Clinics in city neighborhoods, developed community legal education workshops, and assisted volunteer lawyers who are working on pro bono legal cases referred by Legal Aid and other legal service providers.
The Homeless Legal Assistance Program – Our students worked with volunteer lawyers through the Homeless Legal Assistance Program and staff at the Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless to provide pro bono legal assistance to homeless men and women in our community. Volunteers provided a variety of services, including conducting intake during weekly legal advice workshops at homeless shelters and assisting with legal research for volunteer lawyers providing direct representation in pro bono legal cases.
The Driver License Reinstatement Project – Over 350,000 residents of Cuyahoga County are driving under suspended licenses. Most of these drivers are poor and unemployed and, in many cases, unsure what is needed to have their licenses reinstated. Working with a cadre of volunteer lawyers and judges, law students interviewed clients in Northeast Ohio to determine why their licenses were suspended. Then students assisted volunteer lawyers in researching their clients’ cases, and, when necessary, accompanied their clients to court as they worked toward license reinstatement.
The IRS-Certified Volunteer Tax Preparer Project –Cleveland-Marshall students worked with the Cuyahoga Earned Income Tax Coalition at area tax sites – including Cleveland-Marshall College of Law – to provide free tax preparation for low-wage taxpayers. This year, 50 law students, together with other volunteers, helped over 3,200 citizens receive $4.6 million in refunds across Northeast Ohio.
Awards and Fellowships
Pro Bono Service Award
Students who volunteer a minimum of 40 hours a year (in the course of one or more placements) are recognized at the College of Law annual awards ceremony and receive a certificate in honor of their community service. One student is selected each year to win the William A. Blair Memorial Service-Before-Self Award for outstanding community service.
Edith & Sidney Simon Civil Rights Fellow
One (1) law student will be named as a Simon Fellow. The student will receive a stipend of $1,600 for 160 hours of legal work at the Cleveland Office of the American Civil Liberties Union or another non-profit agency addressing issues of civil rights.
An applicant must submit his/her resume along with a letter detailing interest in civil rights, outlining past legal experience, and describing how the fellowship will impact his/her future legal career. If the applicant would like to work at another non-profit besides the ACLU, describe the organization and the work to be addressed.
David C. Weiner-Charna E. Sherman Community Service Fellow
One (1) law student will be named a David C. Weiner-Charna E. Sherman Community Service Fellow. The student will receive a stipend of $1,600 for 160 hours of legal work at a non-profit organization in Northeast Ohio during the summer.
An applicant must submit his/her resume along with a letter outlining the type of work the student hopes to undertake, a description of the non-profit organization—with the name of his/her supervisor (the applicant needs to have made that contact before applying for the fellowship)—and how the fellowship will impact his/her future career.
Cleveland-Marshall Pro Bono Fellows
Four (4) law students will be named Cleveland-Marshall Pro Bono Fellow. The students will each receive a stipend of $1,600 for 160 hours of legal work at a non-profit organization during the summer.
An applicant must submit his/her resume along with a letter outlining the type of work the student hopes to undertake, a description of the non-profit organization—with the name of his/her supervisor (the applicant needs to have made that contact before applying for the fellowship—and how the fellowship will impact his/her future career.
Dean’s Community Service Awards
Five (5) recipients will each receive $1,000 Awards.
An applicant must submit his/her resume along with a letter (maximum of five (5) pages) that describes your service to the community during the past five years, include dates and supervisors’ names, and service to the school (if applicable). Service to the community need not have been affiliated with the Pro Bono Program or the law school. Service may have been in another city or state. Service may have been legal, non-legal or both. Also, explain in detail how you think these experiences will impact your future professional life and how your commitment to the community will continue after graduation.
The awards are open to full- and part-time student who are in good standing and have completed at least one full year of law school.