TU Law Pro Bono Program Goals
INSTILLING - a life long commitment to pro bono and public service
ASSISTING - clients with unmet legal needs under the supervision of lawyers committed to pro bono work or helping other members in the community
ENABLING - public service organizations to increase their case load and individual lawyers to accept more pro bono cases
As stated in the American Bar Association's Model Rules on Professionalism, Rule 6.1:
"Every lawyer has a professional responsibility to provide legal services to those unable to pay. A lawyer should aspire to render at (50) hours of pro bono publico legal services per year. In fulfilling this responsibility, the lawyer should:
(a) provide a substantial majority of the (50) hours of legal services without fee or expectation of fee to:
(1) persons of limited means or
(2) charitable, religious, civic, community, governmental and educational organizations in matters which are designed primarily to address the needs of persons of limited means; and
(b) provide any additional services through:
(1) delivery of legal services at no fee or substantially reduced fee to individuals, groups or organizations seeking to secure or protect civil rights, civil liberties or public rights, or charitable, religious, civic, community, governmental and educational organizations in matters in furtherance of their organizational purposes, where the payment of standard legal fees would significantly deplete the organization's economic resources or would be otherwise inappropriate;
(2) delivery of legal services at a substantially reduced fee to persons of limited means; or
(3) participation in activities for improving the law, the legal system or the legal profession. In addition, a lawyer should voluntarily contribute financial support to organizations that provide legal services to persons of limited means."
The University of Tulsa College of Law strives to instill the desire to do pro bono or public service in students by having a formal voluntary pro bono program. The program is voluntary to mirror Rule 6.1.