About this report
California's largest cities have some of the world's highest numbers of lawyers per resident and strong pro bono cultures. Rural counties are a different story: Lake County has 84 lawyers, and Lassen County has only 24.
With $50,000 from the California Lawyers Foundation, the Commission ran a pilot connecting urban volunteer lawyers with rural small business clients through remote services, working with Start Small Think Big and the Central Valley Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Applications from the participating counties rose 60%. This final report describes how the pilot worked, what it learned, including the need for paid staff based in the rural communities served, and how similar programs can be replicated.
Grant Report · PDF, 8 pages