The 2018 Agenda: Collaboration At The Heart of Pro Bono Legal Services

It takes many hands to open doors to access civil justice for those in need. The strong partnership between The Pro Bono Project, its staff and hundreds of volunteer lawyers, paralegals, law students, and other professional and lay volunteers is the just the beginning.

Only through collaboration with our partners in the Access to Justice community can the mission of The Project ultimately come to life. As we move forward in 2018, collaboration is at the heart of our agenda, just as it is at the heart of serving our pro bono clients.

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JFAB 2017: It’s A Wrap … Well, Not Quite Yet

While the 2017 Justice For All Ball (JFAB) is just a memory – you can still have some fun and add to the final tally. The Last Chance Auction opens today and will be available for bidding until 7:00 pm on Wednesday, November 1. This is not a trick but an extra treat to get your hands on items such as tickets to next year’s 30th Anniversary JFAB, a men’s Armani basket and a new mommy gift package.

View the full Last Chance Auction here.

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Partnering Up to Offer Pro Se Help at Orleans Civil District Court

With the guidance of and funding from the Louisiana Bar Foundation (LBF), The Pro Bono Project, Southeast Louisiana Legal Services (SLLS), and the Family Justice Center (FJC) will team up to staff the Orleans Parish Civil District Court (CDC) Self-Help Desk. The Project will serve as the operation lead. 

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Hungry for Justice? Share An Evening with JFAB 2017 Honorary Chair, Chef Leah Chase

Living Legend of the Civil Rights Movement, Chef Extraordinaire, and   the entire Chase Family Craft the Perfect Recipe for JFAB 2017

She stood up for the rights of others her whole life, and now Chef Leah Chase is bringing that passion – that hunger for justice – to her role as The Pro Bono Project's Honorary Chair of its annual fundraiser, The Justice For All Ball (JFAB).

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New Intake Coordinator: Welcome, Ingrid!

It’s always wonderful to have someone who was a volunteer or an intern come to work at The Project. Our new Intake Coordinator, Ingrid Autin fits that description perfectly. Earlier this year, Ingrid came to The Project as a paralegal intern from Nunez Community College in St. Bernard, a parish that we also serve.

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Louisiana Bar Foundation Awards Grant To Help Immigrant Families

The Pro Bono Project was thrilled to accept a check on Thursday, May 18 from the Louisiana Bar Foundation’s Community Partnership Panel. The Project was awarded a $6,705 grant to begin a new program offering pro bono Provisional Custody By Mandate (PCBM) clinics for the immigrant population.

Right now, there is an acute need for this pro bono work.

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Standing Up For Justice

Stakeholder Meeting Convenes with the
President of the American Bar Association and the
Area’s Top Legal Minds to Talk About Pro Bono Work

The Pro Bono Project brought together 60 of the metro area’s top lawyers and jurists to meet with the American Bar Association President Linda Klein and Louisiana State Bar Foundation President-Elect Valerie Bargas on Friday, April 7th to talk about how to build a stronger pro bono partnership. The group met at the Hale Boggs Federal Courthouse in the courtroom of The Honorable Jay Zainey, Judge, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana.

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From The Project’s Chair and Executive Director: Setting the 2017 Agenda

Building a stronger culture of pro bono within the six parishes served by The Pro Bono Project, and across the state of Louisiana sets the stage for 2017 as a year of collaboration, community, and access to justice.

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Dear Friends of The Pro Bono Project ...

As 2016 winds down, change is in the air – change that is sure to affect our organization, our volunteers, and our clients in the new year.

Of most pressing concern are possible cuts to civil legal aid funding beginning in 2017. Because of likely funding shortfalls and potential changes to federal policy, our clients will struggle more to access justice; and worse yet, they may be denied the services they need to provide shelter and food for their families.

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There's Another Jenny In The House

It turned out that finding a new part-time successions attorney was easier than we thought – she was already right under our roof!

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The Next Generation of Access To Justice Leaders

The Pro Bono Project recently hosted two interns as part of the inaugural year of the Louisiana State Bar Association’s Access to Justice Developing Leadership Intern Program. This program is the result of the collaborative efforts of the Louisiana Supreme Court, Louisiana District Judges Association, Louisiana Bar Foundation, civil legal aid providers, law schools, the Louisiana State Bar Association, and four law firms: Adams and Reese and Phelps Dunbar supported two New Orleans-based interns; and Baker Donelson and Jones Walker sponsored two interns in Baton Rouge.

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Media Release: JFAB 2016 Honorary Co-Chairs

Board member and Justice For All Ball Committee Chair, Jan Hayden of Baker Donelson is pleased to announce that Gary Solomon, Jr. (l), co-founder and president of Solomon Group and Seth Bloom, Esq. (r), founder and managing partner of Bloom Legal LLC will serve as Honorary Co-Chairs for The Justice For All Ball. The Ball is scheduled for Friday, September 16, 2016, 8 pm to midnight at the Audubon Tea Room; a patron party will precede the event.

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Jennifer Rizzo-Choi New Executive Director of The Pro Bono Project

The Pro Bono Project is pleased to announce that after a thorough local and national search, it has selected Jennifer Rizzo-Choi as its new executive director. Ms. Rizzo-Choi comes to The Project after having served for the past three years as the National Pro Bono Promotion Counsel for Washington D.C.- based Human Rights First. She holds a Juris Doctorate from SUNY Buffalo Law School and a Bachelor of Arts (Cum Laude) in Journalism from Ithaca College in New York. She takes the helm of The Project on May 2, 2016.

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