Celebrate Pro Bono 2011
October 23-29, 2011
The week-long event, led by the American Bar Association, highlights the benefit to communities and its citizens by lawyers who provide pro bono legal services. The Celebration also reminds communities to recognize and thank its pro bono lawyers, and to recruit more lawyers to accept pro bono cases.
In 2010 more than 70 events were held around Ohio to mark the National Pro Bono Celebration, including 50 that were client centered activities where lawyers volunteered time to provide free legal advice to individuals who could not afford the services of a lawyer.
Ohio lawyers provided nearly 1,000 low income Ohioans with free legal help during the 2010 National Pro Bono Celebration, and over 200 law students from Ohio's law school also volunteered at events.
In 2011 Ohio will take the next step in celebrating pro bono service by encouraging greater participation in Ohio's small cities and towns; by increasing law school participation; and by increasing the percentage of events that are client centered activities, because the client is "the heart of it all".
Supreme Court of Ohio Chief Justice Maureen O'Connor is Ohio's 2011 honorary statewide chair for the National Pro Bono Celebration. Chief Justice O'Connor will offer remarks at the Pro Bono Convention which opens the Celebrate Pro Bono week on October 21, 2011.
Other activities around the state will include free brief advice and information clinics for individuals who cannot afford an attorney; training sessions for attorneys willing to accept pro bono cases; public education classes about significant law related topics; and recognition events to thank volunteers for pro bono work.
For more information on Ohio's participation in 2011 Celebrate Pro Bono, go to www.celebrateprobono.org and click on Ohio in the interactive map.