The VBA Service Programs

The Virginia Bar Association provides a number of direct services and activities for the general public or for targeted groups. Many of these public service activities have been recognized on a statewide or national level. The following list is a sampling of VBA public service activities:

Community Law Week and Law Day
Coordinates activities, programs and events in observance of Law Day (May 1) and Community Law Week (the first week of May). Law Day was founded by the American Bar Association in 1957 as a celebration of the American legal system and the freedoms it protects. Law Day activities usually focus on enhancing public understanding of the law.

Disaster Legal Assistance
(ABA Award of Achievement Winner; American Bar Endowment's Outstanding Public Service Project for 2000)
Delivers volunteer legal services to victims of disasters such as hurricanes, floods and tornadoes. Since this program was implemented in 1995, it has become an integral part of Virginia's statewide disaster recovery efforts.

Domestic Violence Project
(ABA Award of Achievement Winner)
Lawyer-volunteers provide legal advice and services to victims of domestic violence. Volunteers receive special training, in exchange for which they agree to handle a certain number of pro bono cases each year.

Lawyers for the Arts
(ABA Certificate of Special Recognition Winner)
Produces seminars for artists on laws which directly affect them, such as copyright, contract and tax law. Also developed and produced a handbook on legal issues for directors of nonprofit organizations.

Legal Services for the Mentally Ill
(Exemplary Service Award Winner, National Alliance for the Mentally Ill-Virginia Chapter)
Lawyer-volunteers offer legal advice to persons referred to them by the Virginia Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI-VA), with NAMI-VA providing background information on each case. Attorneys may give written and/or oral responses to inquiries, or help clients with legal representation.

Mentor Programs in Northern Virginia, Richmond and Roanoke
(Winner, City of Roanoke Gold Medal for Educational Partnership)
Lawyer-volunteers "adopt" elementary school classes for a year, serving as mentors and presenting programs on such topics as the Constitution, the role of law in society, substance abuse prevention, career choices, community service, influencing public policy, conflict resolution, and the like. Mentors also accompany students on related educational field trips.

Minority Recruitment Programs in Richmond and Roanoke
(ABA Award of Achievement Winner)
Gives minority college students in the Richmond and Roanoke areas opportunities to learn about the legal profession by teaming each student with a lawyer and exposing students to the day-to-day work of a lawyer. Each student completes an internship with a law firm and is assigned to a mentor who serves as a sounding board and advisor throughout his or her college years.

Model Judiciary Program
Produces an annual mock trial competition for Virginia high school students in conjunction with the Virginia YMCA. Students serve as jurors and as counsel for both plaintiff and defendant, and real judges preside over "trials." Regional winners proceed to the Virginia Court of Appeals and ultimately, to the Supreme Court of Virginia. Lawyers assist by recruiting teams, coaching student "lawyers" and judging competitions.

Pro Bono Hotlines
(Winner, ABA Harrison Tweed Award, the nation's highest honor for projects which provide legal services to the poor, and ABA Award of Achievement)
Lawyer-volunteers staff "hotlines" at legal aid offices in specific areas of Virginia. Volunteers, on a rotating basis, provide telephone advice to callers meeting financial eligibility requirements, thus easing the caseload of legal aid attorneys.

Publications
The Virginia Homebuyer's Manual (Real Estate Section)
A Guide to the Administration of Decedents' Estates (Wills, Trusts & Estates Section) available online as a web document and in a printable PDF format
A Guide to the Legal and Practical Aspects of Child Care in Virginia (Young Lawyers Division)

Town Hall Meetings in Charlottesville, Hampton Roads, Northern Virginia, Richmond and Roanoke
Sponsors meetings and programs focusing on issues of interest in the areas listed above. Many Town Hall Meetings are broadcast by local public or cable TV or radio stations in an effort to educate the public about important current issues.

Video Series Project
(ABA Award of Achievement Winner)
Has produced free informational videos, in conjunction with other related organizations, for mandated reporters of abuse of children and at-risk adults.

For more information about any of these programs, please contact the VBA office at (804) 644-0041, or visit the VBA Young Lawyers Division page. The VBA Young Lawyers Division offers a wide range of public service activities throughout Virginia in which volunteer lawyers of all ages and levels of experience may participate. Click here for the VBA/YLD page, which includes a listing of all VBA/YLD committees, descriptions of many projects, and contact information for all committees.

Virginia Lawyers for the Arts (VaLA) is a new program co-sponsored by the Washington Area Lawyers for the Arts and The Virginia Bar Association Young Lawyers Division. Funded by the National Endowment for the Arts to provide legal assistance to artists and arts organizations throughout Virginia, VaLA will recruit and train Virginia attorneys who are interested in the arts to participate in and support the program.

VaLA is part of a national network of volunteer-lawyers-for-the-arts organizations, and will be run initially with structural support from Washington Area Lawyers for the Arts and the VBA Young Lawyers Division. VaLA will provide legal support for the arts and culture in Virginia with clinics, workshops and pro bono placements through alliances with arts organizations in Richmond, Roanoke, Hampton Roads and Charlottesville.

In March 2002, VaLA held its first monthly Art Law Clinic in Hampton Roads, and clinics in Roanoke and Charlottesville began in April. Artists and representatives of arts organizations meet with lawyer-volunteers in 30-minute consultations to discuss arts-related legal questions.

VaLA will develop a roster of lawyer-volunteers interested in advising clients at the clinics a few times each year or in taking on longer-term pro bono cases. Any attorney may participate, and a training course will be offered to new volunteers in each of the four Virginia locations, to give them the skills they need to advise clinic participants. VaLA will also hold continuing legal education programs throughout Virginia on subjects that will help lawyers to advise and assist artists and arts organizations.

For more information about VaLA or to volunteer, contact VaLA Director Paige Conner Totaro at 1-888-223-4674.

The VBA Domestic Relations Section Council is interested in implementing a project in the Richmond and Lynchburg areas to assist victims of spousal abuse. This project has been in place in Virginia Beach Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court for a number of years and has provided outstanding pro bono services to the general public.

Members participating in the CLASS program volunteer to represent victims of spousal abuse in court for up to three days per year. In Virginia Beach, the Juvenile Court has cooperated by moving the protective order hearings to the same day each week and by giving the CLASS attorneys priority on the docket as they are volunteering their time.

If anyone is interested in assisting the Council in implementing this project in other areas of the state, please contact Cheshire I'Anson Eveleigh at (757) 497-6633 or by e-mail at eveleigh@wolriv.com.

The Center for Elder Rights is an information and referral service of the Virginia Department for the Aging, providing information about services available to older Virginians such as health care, insurance, nutrition, consumer protection and other issues for older people. Referrals are made to agencies that may be able to assist an older Virginian with a personal problem. The Center maintains an Attorney Directory, in which attorneys who have a particular interest in the legal issues of older Virginians and who are willing to consider taking pro bono cases are asked to participate. Periodically the Center offers no-cost continuing legal education opportunities to attorneys participating in the Attorney Directory.

Looking for a great way to become actively involved in your community? Court Services (Room 211C) of the Fairfax County General District Court needs you to volunteer a couple of hours a week. Hours are flexible and the work environment is fun. It is a wonderful learning experience and an excellent way to contribute and apply your skills and talents. You will feel great when you see the difference you make! Court Services of Fairfax County General District Court needs Court Assistant Volunteers to perform financial interviews of adult defendants, direct citizens to various areas of the District and Circuit Court, accept and process interpreter and attorney requests, and answer telephone inquiries. Training will be provided. Four hours a week commitment and criminal background clearance required. Please contact Teri Pritchett at (703) 246-4760 to set up an interview.

VBA members in the metropolitan Richmond area have a unique opportunity to help preserve the natural beauty of the James River Park System and to help visitors fully appreciate its natural wonders. Here's how it works:

Save your aluminum cans at home and at the office. On the fourth Saturday of every month, cans are collected at the Pony Pasture area of the park on Riverside Drive. Proceeds from recycling the cans are used to fund interpretive guides to the Pony Pasture, a frequently visited section of the park, and have funded the construction of steps at the canoe launching area there.

The VBA office staff is involved in this effort and encourages VBA members, their staffs and their families to participate!

Click here for more information about the James River Park System!