South Texas College of Law Annotations (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 41, No. 2, Ed. 1, December, 2008 Page: 2 of 8
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Page 2
ANNOTATIONS
Pro Bono is a Win/Win
Situation
By Kevin M. Jones
Contributing Writer
Great, someone is writing
about Pro Bono. You are probably
thinking this will be the usual pitch
about how lawyers need to give back
to the community; how lawyers need
to help those less fortunate; or how
many people can't afford the legal
help they need. These arguments
may influence practicing attorneys
to take on pro bono work, but what
about students?
It may truly be a worthy
cause, and volunteering may really
give you a good feeling to help those
in need, but how many students
have free time on their hands? Who
among us is looking for something
else to occupy our minds when we
are away from school? So, why
should you volunteer for one of the
many legal related pro-bono clinics?
Because there is a lot you can get out
of it to help you as a student, and to
help your career.
Pro Bono work does not only
have to be a selfless act, particularly
for a student. Over the past year, I
have volunteered at a number of
legal clinics around die Houston
area. Looking back, I know that the
small commitments of time that I
have invested have paid back huge
benefits in the form of experience
and confidence, to say nothing of the
networking opportunities.
The Houston Volunteer
Lawyers Program (HVLP) is one such
volunteer opportunity. They have
Saturday clinics open to the public
who meet their income requirements
(175% of Federal Poverty Income
Limits - Veterans 300%). Bill
Eckhart, HVLP's Director of Legal
Clinics and Human Resources says,
"We serve Houston's working poor.
Those who make too much to qualify
for legal services for the indigent, and
too little to afford a private attorney."
HVLP also sponsors clinics directed
to specific target populations, like the
Veteran's Affairs (VA) Legal clinics
where clients are veterans and the
immediate family of veterans. The
Saturday clinics begin seeing clients
at 9:00 a.m. and continue until
the last client is handled, usually
around noon. HVLP, and other
similar organizations are looking for
volunteers with any level of legal
training.
The clinics are mainly staffed
with volunteers from all areas:
from solo practitioners to corporate
counsel. The attorney's gather about
a half hour before the clinic begins
seeing clients for a quick breakfast,
and training/orientation session.
Volunteer's are assigned tasks
based on their skill level and work
preference. Students can choose to
help with client check-in, or pair
with an attorney to handle intake
interviews.
Legal clinics give students
a chance to experience first hand
the handling of actual clients.
Student volunteers learn to issue-
spot during client interactions, and
how to effectively interview to get
the necessary information in an
efficient manner. Most clinics handle
a large range of legal problems, so
a student can be exposed to a wide
variety of legal issues. This is a great
opportunity for the student who may
have trouble determining the focus
of their future career.
Most students' biggest
question is how will they know what
to do, or what questions to ask the
client? HVLP has this covered. First,
students are paired with experienced
attorneys who conduct intake
interviews to determine the problem
the client is facing and whether it is a
case with which HVLP can help. For
instance, in a divorce case HVLP
needs to be sure the client has been
in Texas long enough to be subject
to jurisdiction; where the spouse
is living; are they agreeable to the
divorce; are there children involved,
etc. HVLP has questionnaires to help
guide the interviewer through the
particular issue. After a few clients,
many attorneys would gladly offer
the student a chance to handle the
interviews under supervision. These
intake sessions give students great
experience in handling clients. A
student needs to learn how to deal
with people who are not sure what
they need, and do not know what
information to give to their attorney.
Clients often have several issues,
and need help prioritizing. They may
want to discuss everything at once,
but the attorney needs to control
the flow of the conversation to stay
on the correct topic and determine
what are the most pressing issues.
There may be clients who are upset,
frustrated or simply just scared of
the unknown. An attorney needs
to be able to put the client at ease
and guide them through the process
of reaching a solution. All of these
skills are developed through practice,
and volunteer clinics give students a
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America's Aggressive Role in Abanian Legal Reform
By Paulina Harris
Staff Writer
Ask the everyday American, even an educated one, about Albania
and one might get responses about war, Kosovo, and communism. One might
even hear an ill-mannered joke. But, Albania is no laughing matter. On the
contrary, Albania is beautiful county filled with pro-American sentiment.
What many fail to learn is that the United States government has played an
important role, and spent a lot of money doing so, in promoting and bringing
about legal reform to the Balkan state. Why would the U.S. be so interested
in helping a poor country like Albania? Well, geographically situated to the
east of Italy across the Adriatic Sea, Albania and its U.S. military base are
ideally located between upheaval in the northern Balkans and the war in
the Middle East. It-has also been a supporting ally for U.S. intervention and
humanitarian efforts to Eastern Europe in general.
Furthermore, after the terrorist attacks of September 11*, it was
Albania that stood up to give us their unfettered support in the War on
Terror. Currently, Albania has sent
a few hundred of their own troops
to fight along-side our own in both
Afghanistan and Iraq. The Albanian
government also acted swiftly in
freezing terrorists' bank accounts in
their county. When no other country
in the world would accept them,
it was Albania that volunteered to
give refuge to eight detainees who
had been held for years in our own
Guantanamo Bay, Cuba Marine base.
Nicole Itano reported in the June 11,
2007 edition of Christian Science
Monitor that the United States and
President Bush have seen Albania
as a "model for moderate Islam and
religious tolerance."
In fact, while other European
chance to practice in a supervised
environment.
Time is the big thing on most
students' minds when you talk about
volunteering. Between attending
class, briefing cases, working on
outlines, and the hundreds of other
things to get done, the last thing the
average student needs is another
commitment This is especially true
for us part-timers who work full-
time jobs in addition to attending
law school. But consider this, have
you ever used a "Crunch-Time", or
"Q&A" supplement? Probably so,
because it is worth the additional
reading due to the condensed and
straightforward nature of the material
covered. Legal clinics are similar
to these supplements. Students are
seeing 'hypos' unfold in front of
them as they talk with the clients.
This is great practice. Once you have
done real client interviews where you
have to dig to reveal the facts, issue
spotting on a final exam is easy.
So don't think of it as
volunteering, think of it as hands-on
training for your legal career. This is
an investment in your future that is
worth the effort. You will be better
focused on the area of law that most
interests you. You will gain valuable
hands on experience, and you will be
confident about your abilities when
the first client walks into your new
law office. And, as a plus, you just
may help someone and feel a little
better about all that time spent in the
library. #
people have not always given our
diplomats warm welcomes, the
people of Albania graciously open
their arms of hospitality. They see
the United States as a savior in
helping to bring about peace in their
country and in bordering states.
Albania was freed from the chains
of communism in 1991, enduring
much social and political reform
since. With the help of the United
States and NATO, Albania has seen
progress in legislation concerning
free and democratic elections,
education reform, human trafficking
legislation, and a reduction in
political corruption.
Today, even as transitions
and reform continue, Albania
stands strong as our friend. In 2003,
it co-signed the "Prevention of
Proliferation of Weapons of Mass
Destruction" and the "Promotion of
Defense and Military Relations with
the U.S" treaties. President Bush used
the "Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat
Reduction" program funds to help
Albania destroy dangerous chemicals
left over from the communist era. In,
2005, the Washington Post reported
that a stockpile 16 tons of cheriiical
agents and weapons had been found
by the Albanians and disposed of
with the help of $20 million in U.S.
funding.
One organization through
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Poronsky, Bradley L. South Texas College of Law Annotations (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 41, No. 2, Ed. 1, December, 2008, newspaper, December 2008; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth144586/m1/2/: accessed May 24, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting South Texas College of Law.