Oct. 7, 2009 – In honor of National Pro Bono Week, the Milwaukee Bar Association (MBA), together with the Wisconsin Law Journal and Milwaukee Young Lawyers Association, are sponsoring a Pro Bono Cocktail Reception for newer attorneys on Wednesday, Oct. 21, from 5 to 7 p.m. at the MBA in Milwaukee.
This free event will feature information on pro bono opportunities in Wisconsin and the benefits of doing pro bono work from Judge Richard Sankovitz and members of the Milwaukee Justice Center, Marquette Law School, Legal Action of Wisconsin, Legal Aid Society of Milwaukee, and other legal services organizations. For more information or to RSVP, contact Britt Wegner at (414) 276-5931.
“Every day, low-income Wisconsin residents who face complex legal problems are forced to go it alone,” says Sankovitz. “For them, the promise of equal justice is unfulfilled. They cannot afford the professional legal help they need, staffed legal aid offices are unable to help and they cannot effectively represent themselves. They fall into what has been called the ‘justice gap.’ Wisconsin lawyers can provide the resources and the expert advice that help these clients remain in their homes, escape abusive family situations, resolve legal issues blocking the road to self-sufficiency or obtain the resources that allow them to live with dignity.”
There will be a brief program at 5:45, with networking time before and after. Can’t make this event, find out how you can help by visiting the State Bar Pro Bono web page.
The State Bar of Wisconsin is participating along with other organizations in the first ever National Pro Bono Celebration sponsored by the ABA Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service. The celebration is a coordinated national effort to showcase the great difference that pro bono lawyers make to the nation, its system of justice, its communities and, most of all, to the clients they serve. The week is also dedicated to the quest for more pro bono volunteers to meet the ever-growing legal needs of this country’s most vulnerable citizens.
