Upcoming Pro Bono Opportunities

*This list includes efforts that are on-going or re-occur annually

CASA of Lexington

Office location 3245 Loch Ness Dr., Lexington, KY 40517

Phone: (859) 246-4313

Court-Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) volunteers are appointed by judges to advocate for the best interests of abused and neglected children.
CASA volunteers work through the family court system to ensure child victims receive services and are placed in safe, permanent homes as quickly as possible.
New volunteers complete a 30-hour training course, typically held on nights and weekends; the training counts for pro bono hours.
Once assigned to a case, volunteers typically spend 6-10 hours per month visiting CASA children, interviewing adults involved in the children's lives, writing reports for the judge and attending family court hearings.
CASA volunteers complete 12 hours of continuing education every year; CLE trainings and classes with relevance to CASA duties can be counted.
CASA volunteers must be 21 years old and pass a background check. They are asked to commit to two years of service, in order to provide consistency for the children they respresent.

Spring Break Pro Bono Opportunity

Office location: Prestonburg, Kentucky, offices of AppalRed and the Law Firm of Pillersdorf, DeRossett & Lane; Whitesburg office of Appalachian Citizens’ Law Center

Law students will work with a law firm and a non-profit legal services organization that represent low income individuals with property, environmental and other damage claims against various companies or government entities.
Assist some of the 1,000 plus individuals whose disability payments were suspended by the Social Security Administration due to suspected fraud by their previous attorney and consulting doctors.
Gain first-hand experience in responding to discovery requests, traveling to various counties in Eastern Kentucky and interviewing clients and witnesses, participating in any mediations and assisting with trial preparations.
Contact Ned Pillersdorf at pillersn@gmail.com or (606) 886-6090.

Assist Former Social Security Clients of Eric Conn

Office locations: Prestonburg offices of AppalRed and the Law Firm of Pillersdorf, DeRossett & Lane, Whitesburg office of Appalachian Citizens' Law Center

Law students are needed to review files in storage in an effort to return files and needed medical information to the former clients for their redetermination hearings before the Social Security Administration
Law students, after proper training and under the supervision of a practicing attorney, may have the opportunity to assist the former clients in the redetermination hearings before the Social Security Administration
Contact Ned Pillersdorf at pillersn@gmail.com or (606) 886-6090

Institute for Compassion in Justice

We are an organization of attorneys devoted to building capacity for creative and sustaining legal and community based advocacy for young people and their families in Kentucky. As advocates we will work to impact policy, share advances through education, and provide legal representation in the most critical areas impacting the well being of Kentucky's children and young adults.
Contact Rebecca Ballard DiLoreto, Institute for Compassion in Justice at rbd@icj-ky.org or 859-327-3990

Kentucky Department of Public Advocacy—Trial Division

Office locations: Lexington, Frankfort, Nicholasville, Cynthiana, Richmond (other locations are available)

Duties vary according to needs of each trial office and include opportunities to visit courtrooms, assist with interviews and other duties related to filing and archiving cases
For more information, please visit our website at http://dpa.ky.gov/
Contact Patti Heying, Kentucky Dept. of Public Advocacy, at (502) 782-3510

Kentucky Department of Public Advocacy—Post-Conviction Branch

Office locations: Frankfort and LaGrange

3L’s preferred

The law student would be assigned a post-conviction case to assist an attorney. The assignment would include record review, legal research, claim drafting, and an Oldham County prison visit to meet the client.
For more information, please visit our website at http://dpa.ky.gov/
Contact Patti Heying, Kentucky Dept. of Public Advocacy, at (502) 782-3510

Kentucky Department of Public Advocacy—Appellate Branch, Frankfort Office

Office Location: Frankfort (This project can likely be completed from home)

The Appellate Branch needs students to transcribe video tapes of trials or testimony. The students would be able to complete most of the hours in their home as long as they have access to a DVD player and a computer with internet capabilities. The students may need to make two trips to the Frankfort office: an initial visit to receive their assignment and then a final visit to return videos. It is very likely students will get all 30 hours completed in a week for this project. Since most of the work is done from home, the hours are at the students’ discretion as long as the final deadlines are met.
For more information, please visit our website at http://dpa.ky.gov/
Contact Patti Heying, Kentucky Dept. of Public Advocacy, at (502) 782-3510

Kentucky Department of Public Advocacy—Education Branch

Office Location: Frankfort (most of the work can be done from home or law library)

The Education Branch often updates legal training materials for educational manuals. In most cases, it is a matter of research the most recent case law. This project is not necessarily available year-round.
For more information, please visit our website at http://dpa.ky.gov/
Contact Patti Heying, Kentucky Dept. of Public Advocacy, at (502) 782-3510

Legal Aid of the Bluegrass—General Civil

Law students, under supervision of a local attorney and Legal Aid of the Bluegrass, will assist veterans and other individuals with civil legal matters, including bankruptcy, debtor-creditor issues, family law, landlord-tenant and other civil matters
For more information, please visit our website at http://www.lablaw.org/home/
Contact Joshua Fain, Pro Bono Coordinator, at jfain@lablaw.org or (859) 233-4556 x2224

Legal Aid of the Bluegrass—Domestic Violence Branch

The legal help that we provide for women and children experiencing violence paves the way for physical safety and self-sufficiency. Every year, we help about 350 women and their 500 children become safe through obtaining protective orders.
For more information, please visit our website at http://www.lablaw.org/home/
Contact Catherine DeFlorio, Legal Aid of the Bluegrass, at cdeflorio@lablaw.org or (859) 254-1043

Maxwell Street Legal Clinic

Maxwell Street Legal Clinic is a program of Kentucky Equal Justice Center, a non-profit poverty law advocacy center. We are a trusted source of high quality, low cost legal assistance for the immigrant and refugee communities of Kentucky. Our major need is for volunteers who can give a few hours of work per week on a consistent schedule.
For more information, please visit our website at http://maxlegalaid.kyequaljustice.org/
Contact us at 859-233-3840 or email one of our staff for more information.

Project Citizenship

Contact: Kat Roach, Communications & Data Manager

4 Faneuil South Market Building

3rd Floor

Boston, MA 02109

(617) 694-5949 (ext. 104)

(617) 859-9993 (fax)

kroach@projectcitizenship.org

www.projectcitizenship.org

Watching a one time, 1-hour training
Virtually assist clients with their naturalization application and the attorney with quality control of the application (as often as a student desires to volunteer)
Estimate 3 hours commitment per assignment

Kentucky Refugee Ministries

Make a world of difference in the lives of new Americans. Volunteers play an integral role in the refugee resettlement process here at Kentucky Refugee Ministries. We strive to make our relationship with our volunteers a mutually beneficial one and hope our volunteers find they gain as much from the experience as our clients and staff members.
For more information, please visit our website at http://kyrm.org/
Contact Emily Jones, Immigration Attorney, at ejones@krmlex.org or 859-226-5661 x614