Lawyers Help Keep American Dream Alive Through Pro Bono Service
By Jack Londen
Published in the California Lawyers Association Summer 2022 ‘Legal Perspectives’ Digital Publication
The American Dream is alive and well. At least, that is the experience of new entrepreneurs who turn a great idea into a thriving business. The Dream is not the exclusive property of high-tech, venture capital-funded Silicon Valley companies. Many people who have limited means and who come from backgrounds with few advantages or privileges have created successful businesses. They have created a new future for their own families and new jobs, products, and services for their communities. This takes hard work and a good idea. It also takes a lawyer.
You may have decided to become a lawyer with ideals of helping other people. You may wish to comply with the prevailing ethic and the practice of many law firms by spending at least 20 hours per year doing pro bono work. If you are a business lawyer, though, or a specialist in real estate, employment, or insurance transactions, you may have found that pro bono work opportunities in your field are rare compared to litigation pro bono matters that do not call on your particular skills. But such opportunities exist.
Read the rest of Jack Londen’s article for the California Lawyers Association here.