6 minute read
Making a Difference
Making a difference, one case at a time
2 VLB volunteers discuss rewards of pro bono service
By Graham Hewitt, Executive Director, and Rosalind Fournier, Communications Coordinator
Tonya Mines (Mines & Drew) is a veteran of nonprofit work, having worked for years with the Girl Scouts and United Way, so she never thought twice about looking for volunteer opportunities once she earned her law degree. She has been volunteering at the Volunteer Lawyers Birmingham Help Desk almost since the day she opened her own practice about a year ago.
“Having come from that background, I’m happy to continue doing what I love,” she says. Mines works primarily with the Domestic Relations Help Desk, helping low-income clients file for divorce, enforce child-support and visitation orders, and resolve other domestic relations issues.
“It can be emotional and sometimes heartbreaking,” she says. “But knowing that you’re able to guide that person in what they need to do and how to close that chapter in their life and move on is rewarding.”
She describes a recent case in which a woman had decided to file for divorce from a spouse who was incarcerated.
“To her it seemed like it should be simple paperwork,” Mines says. “She just wanted a divorce. There were no assets, they had two children, but she wanted to move on. He was in a different state, and she didn’t know how to proceed. So I was glad I was able to give her the information to move on and help her through that situation.”
Mines adds that one perk of volunteering with VLB is that, unlike her previous roles in nonprofit administration, this opportunity allows her to help clients in a single capacity as a lawyer, letting someone else do the background work.
“VLB is a built-in volunteer network,” she says. “I don’t have to go out seeking pro bono opportunities. I’m able just to sign up, and VLB sends me the clients.”
She also considers it a valuable learning experience because domestic relations is part of her private practice.
“I may come across a client and not know the answer to some of the questions they’re asking, but that gives me an opportunity to sharpen my skills by studying the case law or the rules or even asking somebody. It’s a chance to be constantly learning, making sure I’m on top of the latest court decisions and laws so I can show clients how to proceed.”
Conrad Anderson (Balch), also a VLB volunteer, agrees that even a case that seems relatively simple can make an important difference for a client. He recalls a woman who called VLB for help after she had exhausted her options of trying to resolve a problem with a store where she purchased a living room set.
“They had delivered the wrong furniture, and when she called the store to tell them, they came to pick it up and damaged it in the process,” Anderson says. “They told her they would deliver replacement furniture, but she waited months, and it never came. All the while, she continued to make payments on furniture she never received.”
Anderson says at first he seemed to be running up against the same brick walls, until eventually a district manager called him.
“I explained to him the situation, he looked into it, and a couple of days later he called me back and said everything I had relayed to him was absolutely correct,” he says. “He apologized and said there was
Left: Conrad Anderson of Balch. Right: Tonya Mines of Mines & Drew.
”CONRAD ANDERSON “30 minutes or an hour out of your day to share your talent with others is very important, because you never know ” whose life you’re changing. TONYA MINES
no excuse for it. He said to tell the client she could come and pick out whatever she wanted, and they would make it right.”
Anderson says the rewarding part was calling the client to deliver the news.
“She was so appreciative and attempted to apologize. She said, ‘I don’t usually complain like this, but I just felt like they needed to do the right thing.’ I told her she had paid for something she didn’t even have — she wasn’t being unreasonable.
“I think this is a prime example of where VLB can make a difference, because all it really took was a couple of phone calls, but without an attorney calling, I don’t know if she ever would have gotten the attention she needed. And to her it made a big difference.”
Anderson says he tries to dispel any concerns other lawyers might have that the work VLB does is outside their areas of expertise.
“It doesn’t matter what skill set you have,” he says. “I tell people in my firm who aren’t litigators and may do transactional work or environmental work, you don’t have to be a litigator to make a couple of phone calls. And as a lawyer, you’re there to help other people and make a difference, whether it’s for those who pay the bills or others who can’t afford to. They need help as well. I think we have a duty to the community to do that.”
Mines agrees. “If you’ve been blessed with the opportunities, knowledge and talent to be able to help those who need help, I would say, make the time,” she says. “Everybody’s busy. But 30 minutes or an hour out of your day to share your talent with others is very important, because you never know whose life you’re changing.”
To volunteer for Volunteer Lawyers Birmingham or inquire about volunteer training opportunities, email Michelle
Horn Brown at mbrown@vlbham.org or call 205-250-5198.
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