PRO BONO WEEK: OCTOBER 22-28, 2017
As Co-Chairs of the YLD Pro Bono Committee, Stephanie Cagnet Myron and Eric Elms are excited to announce the start of Pro Bono Week! This year, National Pro Bono Week runs from October 22-28, 2017. Throughout the week we will be highlighting various pro bono activities throughout the Florida Bar. We encourage you to participate in local pro bono activities, then share photos on social media with a brief description of your pro bono event using #flprobonocounts. Please also tag us in the post on social media under “Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division.” On Twitter, be sure to include @flabaryld or #FlaYLD.
If you are not aware of a local pro bono activity, we have a way for you to participate in pro bono through volunteering to help with the FEMA Hotline.
FEMA HOTLINE
We need your help. Hundreds of our neighbors and fellow citizens are calling The Florida Bar’s Disaster Relief Hotline in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma. Most need only simple advice. All of us want to help.
The Florida Bar YLD, in conjunction with the ABA Young Lawyers Section and FEMA, has set up the Disaster Relief Hotline. All Florida Bar members eligible to practice may volunteer to provide basic civil legal services for people who cannot otherwise afford legal representation in non-fee generating cases. Volunteers should complete the signup form and review the Disaster Assistance Manual for Legal Services Advocates. Volunteers assist by returning calls placed to the YLD’s 1-800 hotline or at FEMA centers. To be a volunteer, you simply have to indicate a willingness to serve, and have a basic understanding of common problems experienced by disaster victims.
The Florida Good Samaritan Act and the Federal Volunteer Protection Act provide protection for the volunteers who offer assistance. The legal assistance provided will be to people who cannot otherwise afford representation.
The types of legal questions most frequently asked as related to hurricane disasters involve landlord/tenant and other housing problems, consumer protection matters, and home repair contracts.
This counts as pro bono hours for reporting purposes.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
- Sign up to volunteer to answer the questions of Hurricane Irma victims on a pro bono basis. Sign up online at https://yldbog.formstack.com/forms/disaster_legal_services_volunteer_intake_form_2017
- Review the Disaster Assistance Manual for Legal Services Advocates This explains what you need to know to assist victims. The Manual can be found online at /app/uploads/2016/11/Disaster070214Manual.pdf.
- The Florida Bar YLD will be promoting this volunteer opportunity on all of its social media platforms. Please share the social media posts and encourage your friends and colleagues to volunteer.
WHY YOU SHOULD HELP
We became lawyers to help others, and this is a time when you are most needed. You are fortunate to have the tools and ability to help those who have had their lives turned upside down due to the hurricane. This is a quick and easy way to give back to your community.
Additional information can be found on The Florida Bar YLD’s website at /get-involved/disaster-relief-fema-hotline/ and on The Florida Bar’s website at https://www.floridabar.org/public/hurricaneinfo/.
Thank you for your time and please encourage other lawyers to volunteer their time as well to help the citizens of Florida who are affected by disasters.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON PRO BONO WEEK
Celebrate Pro Bono Week with The Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division. For more information, visit /get-involved/pro-bono-and-community-service/ and http://www.probono.net/celebrateprobono/.