The Oklahoma Bar Journal August 2023

E thics & P rofessional R esponsibility

Pro Bono as an Ethical Obligation and Opportunity By Melissa Brooks and Katie Dilks

“Professionalism for lawyers and judges requires honesty, integrity, competence, civility and public service .” – Definition from the Oklahoma Bar Association Standards of Professionalism

the kind of work attorneys can take on to improve the lives of their neighbors. Many people need assistance in areas well suited for limited-scope services, such as wills preparation, representation in eviction court, assistance with ben efits applications or appeals and title clearing. Additionally, even in areas of family law, limited-scope services are often incredibly valu able. The Pro Se Waiver Divorce Clinic in Oklahoma County is an excellent example of the impact limited assistance can have in helping litigants ensure their docu ments are correctly prepared. There are also opportunities to help organizations that serve low-income and underserved pop ulations. Assisting with contracts, governance, employment law and the other day-to-day legal needs of nonprofits is another way to provide pro bono service and positively impact our state. Secondly, we often hear that there just aren’t enough hours in the day, or a firm cannot afford to do more pro bono work. While we all wish more time was available,

1) A lack of understanding about the range of ways to help those in need or the most effective ways to make a difference. 2) A belief that the practice of law is a zero-sum game and time spent on pro bono is necessarily at the expense of fee-generating work. 3) A disconnect between those in need and those who can help. THE IMPORTANCE OF PRO BONO LEGAL SERVICES At the Oklahoma Access to Justice Foundation, we endeavor to address all these points in mean ingful ways. One tactic is educa tion around the range of pro bono needs and opportunities. Many attorneys believe the only way to help is by volunteering to take on a full-representation case, often in family law and often seemingly interminable. While it is true that Oklahoma lacks sufficient resources for low-income indi viduals facing family law needs, these cases are just a fraction of

Public service and the provision of legal services for those who can not afford them is a deeply rooted ethical obligation for attorneys. Sections 1.1, 1.3 and 1.5 of the OBA Standards of Professionalism all underscore this obligation and start to highlight the myriad ways it can be meaningfully met. 1 The American Bar Association Model Rules of Professional Conduct lay out this expectation as well, in Rule 6.1, stating that lawyers have a professional responsibility to provide legal services to those who cannot afford it and should aspire to contribute at least 50 hours of pro bono service annually. 2 Law schools regularly educate students on the importance of pro bono, encouraging consistent ser vice through voluntary pro bono pledges – a feature at all three of Oklahoma’s law schools. Why, then, do so few of our attorneys regularly engage in pro bono work? We believe the challenge lies in three primary areas:

Statements or opinions expressed in the Oklahoma Bar Journal are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Oklahoma Bar Association, its officers, Board of Governors, Board of Editors or staff.

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THE OKLAHOMA BAR JOURNAL