State Bar of Texas - Pro Bono Report 2013 by Texas Access to Justice Commission

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

STATE BAR OF TEXAS

2013 Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

Prepared By: Nils Greger Olsson, Ph.D. Invariance Dynamics Consulting Austin, Texas

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY A survey of 2013 pro bono services by Texas attorneys was administered as part of the Texas Attorney Survey from March 31 to April 21, 2014. This report is a summary of what the 8,206 attorneys who completed the survey said about their pro bono activities in 2013. The 8,206 responses to the pro bono survey questions provided a margin of error of ±1.1 percent at a 95 percent confidence level. This compares to 500 responses and a margin of error of ±4.4 percent in 2012 The main findings from the 2013 survey were as follows: HOURS: 

51 percent of active in-state attorneys in the survey provided an average of 55 hours of pro bono legal services in 2013. Extrapolating to the 84,800 active in-state attorneys, an estimated 2.37 million hours of pro bono legal services was performed in 2013.



24 percent of attorneys in the survey provided an average of 92 hours of substantially reduced fee legal services to the poor in 2013. The sum total of hours for the 84,800 active in-state attorneys was estimated to be 1.87 million hours of substantially reduced legal services to the poor in 2013.

FINANCE: 

The total out-of-pocket expenses (e.g. expenses used on cases) related to pro bono to the poor in 2013 was estimated to be $14.83 million. An estimated 16,941 attorneys in Texas paid an average payment of $876 of out-of-pocket expenses related to legal services to the poor in 2013.



The total estimated direct financial contribution (e.g. 501 (c)(3) donations) to the poor in 2013 was $8.01 million. An estimated 12,319 attorneys in Texas made an average contribution of $650 related to legal services to the poor in 2013.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Survey Report

TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY........................................................................................................... II LIST OF FIGURES..................................................................................................................... IV LIST OF TABLES.........................................................................................................................V I. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................... 1 II. METHOD.............................................................................................................................. 2-4 DATA COLLECTION...................................................................................................................... 2 PRO BONO SURVEY INSTRUMENT ............................................................................................... 2 ANALYSIS BY DEMOGRAPHIC GROUPS ........................................................................................ 3 REPORT FORMAT ......................................................................................................................... 4 III. SAMPLE CHARACTERISTICS ...................................................................................... 5-6 DEMOGRAPHICS OF THE SURVEY RESPONDENTS ..................................................................... 5-6 IV. SERVICES PROVIDED .................................................................................................. 7-16 FREE SERVICES ....................................................................................................................... 7-11 REDUCED FEE SERVICES ...................................................................................................... 12-16 V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED ............................................................................. 17-71 CIVIL MATTERS .................................................................................................................... 17-26 CRIMINAL MATTERS ............................................................................................................. 27-36 UNSOLICITED COURT APPOINTMENT .................................................................................... 37-46 LEGAL SERVICES TO A CHARITABLE ORGANIZATION FOR THE POOR ................................. 47-51 PROVIDED FREE LEGAL SERVICES FOR LEGISLATIVE, ADMINISTRATIVE OR SYSTEMS ADVOCACY FOR THE POOR ................................................................................................... 52-56 PROVIDED FREE SERVICES TO SIMPLIFY OR IMPROVE QUALITY OF LEGAL SERVICES TO THE POOR ..................................................................................................................................... 57-61 FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTIONS................................................................................................. 62-71 APPENDIX A: SURVEY INSTRUMENT .............................................................................. 1-3 APPENDIX B: ANY COMMENTS OR SUGGESTIONS ABOUT PRO BONO SERVICES? .............................................................................................................................. 4-31

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Survey Report

LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4 Figure 5 Figure 6 Figure 7 Figure 8 Figure 9 Figure 10 Figure 11 Figure 12 Figure 13

Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 ........................... 7 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 .................................................................................................................... 12 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters in 2013 ................................................................................................................ 17 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Reduced Free Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters in 2013 .................................................................................................... 22 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters in 2013 ......................................................................................................................... 27 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters in 2013 ....................................................................................................... 32 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Unsolicited Court Appointments in 2013 ....................................................................................... 37 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Unsolicited Court Appointments in 2013 ..................................................................................................................... 42 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Free Legal Services to a Charitable Organization for the Poor in 2013 ............................................................................................. 47 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Free Legal Services for Legislative, Administrative or Systems Advocacy for the Poor in 2013 ...................................................... 52 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Free Services to Simplify or Improve Quality of Legal Services to the Poor in 2013........................................................................... 57 Percent of Attorneys Who Paid Actual Out-of-Pocket Expenses Related to Pro Bono or Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 ....................................................................... 62 Percent of Attorneys Who Made Direct Financial Contributions Related to Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 ....................................................................................... 67

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Survey Report

LIST OF TABLES Table A Table 1 Table 2 Table 3.1 Table 3.2 Table 3.3 Table 4.1 Table 4.2 Table 4.3 Table 5.1 Table 5.2 Table 5.3 Table 6.1 Table 6.2 Table 6.3 Table 7.1 Table 7.2 Table 7.3 Table 8.1 Table 8.2 Table 8.3 Table 9.1 Table 9.2 Table 9.3 Table 10.1 Table 10.2 Table 10.3 Table 11.1 Table 11.2 Table 11.3 Table 12.1 Table 12.2 Table 12.3

Margin of Error by Type of Practice ......................................................................................... 3 Demographics of Survey Respondents ..................................................................................... 5 Demographics of Survey Respondents ..................................................................................... 6 Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 ................................................................... 9 Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 ................................................................. 10 Average Hours of Free Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 ................................................... 11 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 .................................................... 14 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 .................................................... 15 Average Hours of Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 ...................................... 16 Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters in 2013 ....................................... 19 Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters in 2013 ....................................... 20 Average Hours of Free Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters in 2013 ......................... 21 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters in 2013.......................... 24 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters in 2013.......................... 25 Average Hours of Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters in 2013 .................................................................................................................................... 26 Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters in 2013 ................................. 29 Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters in 2013 ................................. 30 Average Hours of Free Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters in 2013 ................... 31 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters in 2013 ................... 34 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters in 2013 ................... 35 Average Hours of Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters in 2013 ........................................................................................................................................ 36 Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Unsolicited Court Appointments in 2013 ........................................................................................................................................ 39 Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Unsolicited Court Appointments in 2013 ........................................................................................................................................ 40 Average Hours of Free Legal Services to the Poor in Unsolicited Court Appointments in 2013 ............................................................................................................ 41 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Unsolicited Court Appointments in 2013 ............................................................................................................ 44 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Unsolicited Court Appointments in 2013 ............................................................................................................ 45 Average Hours of Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Unsolicited Court Appointments in 2013 ............................................................................... 46 Provided Free Legal Services to a Charitable Organization for the Poor in 2013 .................................................................................................................................... 49 Provided Free Legal Services to a Charitable Organization for the Poor in 2013 .................................................................................................................................... 50 Average Hours of Free Legal Services to a Charitable Organization for the Poor in 2013 ................................................................................................................ 51 Provided Free Legal Services for Legislative, Administrative or Systems Advocacy for the Poor in 2013 ............................................................................................... 54 Provided Free Legal Services for Legislative, Administrative or Systems Advocacy for the Poor in 2013 ............................................................................................... 55 Average Hours of Free Legal Services for Legislative, Administrative or Systems Advocacy for the Poor in 2013 ............................................................................ 56

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Survey Report

LIST OF TABLES CONTINUED Table 13.1 Provided Free Services to Simplify or Improve Quality of Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 ................................................................................................................. 59 Table 13.2 Provided Free Services to Simplify or Improve Quality of Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 ................................................................................................................. 60 Table 13.3 Average Hours of Free Services to Simplify or Improve Quality of Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 ................................................................................................... 61 Table 14.1 Paid Actual Out-of-Pocket Expenses Related to Pro Bono or Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 ................................................................................................... 64 Table 14.2 Paid Actual Out-of-Pocket Expenses Related to Pro Bono or Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 ................................................................................................... 65 Table 14.3 Average Amount of Out-of-Pocket Expenses Related to Pro Bono or Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 ......................................................................................... 66 Table 15.1 Made Direct Financial Contributions Related to Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 ........................................................................................................................... 69 Table 15.2 Made Direct Financial Contributions Related to Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 ........................................................................................................................... 70 Table 15.3 Average Amount of Direct Financial Contributions Related to Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 ................................................................................................... 71

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

I. INTRODUCTION The 2013 Pro Bono Survey was done to obtain information on the extent and types of pro bono services provided by attorneys in Texas. The survey measured attorneys’ reported pro bono services in 2013 in several areas of interest:   

Hours of pro bono or reduced fee services; Expenses (e.g. expenses used on cases) and financial contributions (e.g. 501 (c)(3) donations) related to legal services for the poor; and Comments or suggestions about pro bono services.

The 2013 Pro Bono Survey, along with the Texas Attorney Survey, was conducted by the State Bar of Texas Department of Research and Analysis, from March 31 to April 21, 2014. Analysis of the Pro Bono Survey was done by Nils Greger Olsson, Ph.D., Invariance Dynamics Consulting.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

II. METHOD Data Collection 2013 pro bono information was collected in conjunction with the 2013 Texas Attorney Survey. The Texas Attorney Survey is conducted every other year to provide up-to-date and accurate economic information on the practice of law in Texas. The survey was conducted electronically and emailed on March 31, 2014, to all active Texas attorneys with a valid email address on record with the State Bar of Texas and who had not opted out of receiving survey mailings (N = 87,775). Attorneys had from March 31, 2014 to April 21, 2014 to complete the survey. Some 10,347 attorneys responded, resulting in a response rate of 12 percent. For the purposes of this report, the pro bono survey responses were analyzed in relation to only active in-state Texas attorneys who received the survey (N = 74,364). Excluded from the analysis were attorneys who did not provide their occupation (N = 8), county (N =35), if private practitioner, their firm size (N=61), entered ambiguous data regarding their pro bono work (N= 12), or stated they worked as public interest lawyers (N = 125). There were a total of 8,206 attorneys who met the criteria and responded to the pro bono questions, resulting in a response rate of 11 percent.

Pro Bono Survey Instrument The pro bono survey instrument used in this study was based on the pro bono questions used by the State Bar of Texas in previous yearsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; surveys. The instrument asks several yes/no questions to see if respondents provided pro bono hours or reduced-cost hours. For respondents who did provide pro bono or reduced-cost hours, several follow-up questions were asked regarding specific types of work such as hours on criminal or civil cases. The complete survey instrument is available in Appendix A.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

II. METHOD CONTINUED Analysis by Demographic Groups Each question in the survey was cross-tabulated with the following seven demographic categories: Demographic Categories: 1. Type of practice (Divided into 5 mutually exclusive groups) 

Rural attorneys, all occupations



Urban, non-private practitioners



Urban, private practitioners, small firms (1-5 attorneys)



Urban, private practitioners, medium firms (6-40 attorneys)



Urban, private practitioners, large firms (more than 40 attorneys)

2. Occupation 3. Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) 4. Years of experience 5. Age of attorney 6. Race/Ethnicity of attorney 7. Sex of attorney Statistical Significance. This report shows those differences in percentages within each demographic category that are found to be at least statistically significant at the 95 percent confidence level. Non-significant findings are so indicated. The 8,206 responses to the pro bono survey questions provided a margin of error of ±1.1 percent. Due to a varying number of responses to each question, margin of errors will differ from question to question. Margins of error by type of practice are provided below. Table A Margin of Error by Type of Practice

Types of Practice Groups Rural, all occupations Urban, non-private practitioners Urban, private practitioners, small firms Urban, private practitioners, medium firms Urban, private practitioners, large firms Total

Active InState Attorney Population 2,722 20,300 24,714 8,584 7,687 64,007

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Total Respondents 321 2,773 3,075 1,267 770 8,206

95% Survey Confidence Intervals (in percent) + 5.5 + 1.9 + 1.8 + 2.8 + 3.5 + 1.1

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

II. METHOD CONTINUED Average pro bono hours and pro bono financial contributions are also calculated for each of the demographic categories. Those averages within a category that are not significantly different (at the 95 percent confidence level) are shown in italics in the tables.

Report Format The remainder of the report is arranged in four sections:

Section III, Sample Characteristics. This section characterizes the sample of all 8,206 attorney respondents, according to the seven demographic categories.

Section IV, Services Provided. This presents findings about the extent attorneys provided pro bono services either at no charge or at a substantially reduced rate fee. The extent of services, in terms of the number of hours, is estimated for all Texas attorneys.

Section V, Types of Services Provided. This describes the findings regarding each of the types of pro bono work performed by attorneys in 2013 as well as the number of hours spent and financial contributions made in pro bono activities.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

III. SAMPLE CHARACTERISTICS This section describes the Texas attorneys who responded to the 2013 Pro Bono survey.

Demographics of the Survey Respondents Table 1 Demographics of Survey Respondents Demographic Category

Percent of Respondents

Type of Practice Rural, all occupations Urban, non-private practitioners Urban, private practitioners, small firms (1-5 attys) Urban, private practitioners, medium firms (6-40 attys) Urban, private practitioners, large firms (more than 40 attys) Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land MSA Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington MSA Austin-Round Rock MSA San Antonio-New Braunfels MSA El Paso MSA Corpus Christi MSA Beaumont-Port Arthur MSA Central Texas MSAs East and Northeast Texas MSAs South Texas MSAs West Texas MSAs Non-Metropolitan Counties Primary Occupation in 2013 Private law practice Government attorney Full-Time Judge Other Judicial branch Law faculty For-profit Corporate/In-House Counsel Non-profit Corporate/In-House Counsel Other law related Non-law related Retired/Not working Unemployed/Looking for work



3.9 33.8 37.5 15.4 9.4 28.7 29.7 15.7 7.6 1.6 1.4 0.9 1.4 3.3 1.9 4.0 3.9 65.0 12.5 1.0 0.8 0.6 9.2 1.2 4.3 3.1 0.7 1.4

The three largest practice groups were the urban, private practitioners, in small firms (37.5 percent), followed by urban, non-private practitioners (33.8 percent), and urban private practitioners in medium firms (15.4 percent). These account for 86.7 percent of attorneys in the survey. Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land (28.7 percent), Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington (29.7 percent), Austin-Round Rock (15.7 percent), and San Antonio-New Braunfels (7.6 percent) are the four largest respondent groups by MSA. These four urban groups account for almost 82 percent of attorneys in the survey. Private practitioners (65.0 percent), government attorneys (12.5 percent), and corporate/in-house counsel (10.4 percent) were the three largest respondent groups by occupation. These three account for 87.9 percent of attorneys in the survey. Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

III. SAMPLE CHARACTERISTICS CONTINUED Table 2 Demographics of Survey Respondents Demographic Category

Percent of Respondents

Years of Experience 2 or less years 3 to 6 years 7 to 10 years 11 to 15 years 16 to 20 years 21 to 25 years More than 25 years

14.9 15.9 12.1 11.2 9.5 10.0 26.4

21 to 25 years 26 to 30 years 31 to 35 years 36 to 40 years 41 to 45 years 46 to 50 years 51 to 55 years 56 to 60 years 61 to 65 years More than 65 years

0.7 14.2 15.2 11.7 10.9 10.4 10.3 10.7 7.9 8.0

White Black/African-American Hispanic/Latino Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian or Alaskan Native Two or More Races Other

81.1 4.3 8.6 2.9 0.3 1.8 1.1

Female Male

38.8 61.2

Age

Race/Ethnicity

Sex

ď&#x201A;ˇ

The largest race/ethnic group is White, making up 81 percent of the sample. The second largest group is the Hispanic/Latino, with 8 and one-half percent of the sample. Black/African Americans make up the third largest group, with 4 percent of the sample. The remaining four race/ethnic groups make up 6 percent of the sample. Men make up 61 percent of the sample, compared to 39 percent of the sample being women.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

IV. SERVICES PROVIDED Free Services Respondents were asked if, in the year 2013, they performed any free legal services for the poor. There were 51.2 percent of attorneys who provided free legal services to the poor in 2013, as shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 (n = 8,164) 100.0% 90.0% 80.0%

Percent

70.0% 60.0%

51.2%

48.8%

Yes 51.2%

No 48.8%

50.0% 40.0% 30.0% 20.0% 10.0% 0.0% Percent of Attorneys

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

IV. SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Free Services Summary Findings 



Type of Practice: o

Respondents working in Rural/All Occupations practice were most likely (69.6 percent) to report providing free legal services.

Respondents in Urban/Non-Private Practice were least likely (28.5 percent) to report performing free legal services benefiting the poor.

Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs): o

Those in the Non-Metropolitan Counties were the most likely to perform free services (69.9 percent).

The MSA least likely to report providing free legal services was AustinRound Rock (44.1 percent).

Occupation: o

Private Law Practice had the highest percentage (73.0 percent) of providing free legal services.

The three occupations with the lowest percentage of those providing free legal services were: full-time judges (11.8 percent), Other Judicial Branch lawyers (21.9 percent), and Government Attorneys (22.8 percent).



Years of Experience is positively correlated with the likelihood of attorneys providing free legal services to the poor. Those with less experience have a lower percentage of having provided free legal services, while those with more experience show a higher percentage.



Age has a positive effect very similar to that shown by Years of Experience. With increasing age, there is an increased percentage of attorneys providing free legal services.

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Race/Ethnicity shows differences in percentage of attorneys providing free legal services: o The Other race/ethnicity category, even though it is represented by only 90 attorneys in the survey sample, has the highest percentage of those providing free services (63.3 percent). o The Hispanic/Latino group was the other category that had a statistically significantly higher percentage (55.2 percent) than the overall 51.2 percent.



Sex also shows differences: o Men (54.3 percent) were more likely than women (46.3 percent) to provide free legal services.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

IV. SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED The following tables present the percentages within each type of demographic category of who provided free legal services to the poor in 2013. Also shown are the average hours of free legal services for each category. If there are no significant differences in average hours within a category, the averages are shown in italics. Table 3.1 Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in 2013

Percent Providing Free Legal Services Average Hours* (n = 8,164)

(n = 4,099)

All Responding Type of Practice

51.2

54.6

Rural/All Occupations Urban/Non-Private Practice Urban/Private/Small Firm (1-5 attys) Urban/Private/Medium Firm (6-40 attys) Urban/Private/Large Firm (more than 40 attys) Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) of Work Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington Austin-Round Rock San Antonio-New Braunfels El Paso Corpus Christi Beaumont-Port Arthur Central Texas East and Northeast Texas South Texas West Texas Non-Metropolitan Counties

69.6 28.5 69.4 48.0 58.6

74.4 42.4 59.3 39.8 64.0

50.1 48.0 44.1 55.5 53.1 53.1 60.0 64.9 64.8 66.7 59.3 69.6

58.2 49.6 51.9 51.1 54.5 51.6 50.5 47.6 52.2 66.3 54.2 74.4

73.0 22.8 11.8 21.9 62.8 34.4 33.7 28.2 30.6 43.9 37.8 51.8

57.5 28.0 121.1 28.3 135.7 32.5 68.5 44.8 36.6 81.8 52.1 63.4

Occupation Private Law Practice Government Attorney Full-Time Judge Other Judicial Branch Law Faculty For-profit Corporate/In-House Counsel Non-profit Corporate/In-house Counsel Other Law Related Non-law Related Retired/Not Working Unemployed/Looking for Work Unemployed/Not Looking for Work

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05). Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

IV. SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 3.2 Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in 2013

Percent Providing Free Legal Services Average Hours* (n = 8,164)

(n = 4,099)

51.2

54.6

2 or less years 3 to 6 years 7 to 10 years 11 to 15 years 16 to 20 years 21 to 25 years More than 25 years

41.2 43.6 43.9 50.1 53.5 56.8 62.5

36.9 49.3 41.2 53.0 55.5 55.2 68.2

21 to 25 years 26 to 30 years 31 to 35 years 36 to 40 years 41 to 45 years 46 to 50 years 51 to 55 years 56 to 60 years 61 to 65 years More than 65 years

36.1 38.0 43.2 46.0 49.4 54.9 57.2 58.1 62.2 68.3

33.9 41.1 40.7 45.2 47.9 50.3 63.1 57.4 75.4 76.0

White Black/African-American Hispanic/Latino Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian or Alaska Native Two or more races Other

50.6 53.4 55.2 44.6 50.0 53.5 63.3

55.4 54.3 45.3 56.3 54.5 44.6 85.5

Male

54.3

54.4

Female

46.3

54.9

All Responding Years of Experience

Age

Race/Ethnicity

Sex

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

IV. SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 3.3 Average Hours of Free Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 Average Hours of those Providing Free Legal Services

Percent of those Providing Free Legal Services

1 to 10 hours 11 to 20 hours 21 to 30 hours 31 to 40 hours 41 to 50 hours 51 to 75 hours 76 to 100 hours 101 to 200 hours 201 to 500 hours 501 hours or more Total

19.4 20.0 13.2 9.4 12.3 6.4 10.2 5.9 2.8 0.4 100.0



Respondents who performed free legal services in 2013 were asked to indicate the total number of hours they provided (Table 3.3). • About 50 percent of those respondents provided 31 hours or more of service. • Some 19 percent of those respondents provided 76 hours or more.



The average number of hours was 54.6 hours. Some 4,099 attorneys contributed 223,872 total hours of free legal services. Extrapolation to the total active in-state attorney population of 84,800 results in an estimate that 2.37 million hours of free legal services were provided to the poor in 2013 (a 95% confidence interval is 2.32 to 2.42 million hours). This total was obtained by multiplying the estimated 43,449 attorneys in Texas who provided free legal services (51.2 percent of active in-state attorney population of 84,800) by the average of 54.6 hours. If the projection is restricted to just the 64,007 attorneys who meet the criteria of not opting out of taking surveys, who reported occupation, and if private practitioners, they reported firm size, then the total average hours is projected as 1.79 million (a 95% confidence interval is 1.75 to 1.83 million hours).



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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

IV. SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Reduced Fee Services Respondents were asked if, in the year 2013, they performed any reduced fee services for the poor. Some 23.9 percent of attorneys provided substantially reduced fee legal services to the poor in 2013, as shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 (n = 7,923) 100.0% 90.0% 76.1%

80.0%

Percent

70.0% 60.0% 50.0% 40.0% 30.0%

23.9%

20.0% 10.0% 0.0% Percent of Attorneys

Yes 23.9%

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No 76.1%

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

IV. SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Reduced Fee Services Summary Findings 



Type of Practice: o

Respondents working in Rural/All Occupations practice and urban private practitioners in small firms (1 to 5) were most likely (48.4 and 44.5 percent) to report providing reduced fee legal services to the poor in 2013.

Urban/Non-Private Practice respondents and urban private practitioners in large firms (more than 40 attorneys) were least likely (6.1 and 6.5 percent) to report performing reduced fee legal services benefiting the poor.

Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs): o

Those in the Non-Metropolitan Counties were the most likely to perform reduced fee services (48.4 percent).

The MSA least likely to report reduced fee legal services was Austin-Round Rock (18.2 percent).

Occupation: o

Private Law Practice had the highest percentage (33.1 percent) of those providing reduced fee legal services.

The three occupations with the lowest percentage of those providing reduced fee legal services were: full-time judges (3.0 percent), Government Attorneys (3.9 percent), and For-profit Corporate/In-House Counsel (4.0 percent).



Years of Experience is positively correlated with the likelihood of attorneys providing free legal services to the poor. Those with less experience have a lower percentage of having provided reduced fee legal services, while those with more experience show a higher percentage.



Age shows a correlation effect similar to that shown by Years of Experience. With increasing age, there is an increased percentage of attorneys providing reduced fee legal services.

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Race/Ethnicity shows differences in percentage of attorneys providing reduced fee legal services: o The American Indian or Alaskan Native, the Other category, the Black/AfricanAmerican, and the Hispanic/Latino had a greater percentage of those providing reduced fee legal services (in the range from 30.0 to 33.3 percent).



Sex also shows differences: o Men showed a higher proportion (25.5 percent) than women (21.4 percent) for providing reduced fee legal services.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

IV. SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 4.1 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in 2013

Percent Providing Reduced Fee Legal Services Average Hours* (n = 7,923)

(n = 1,796)

All Responding Type of Practice

23.9

92.0

48.4 6.1 44.5 16.4 6.5

107.7 62.2 101.2 54.9 45.7

21.7 20.3 18.2 27.2 29.1 27.4 38.2 33.0 37.0 42.4 30.2 48.4

69.0 86.3 108.5 111.7 97.0 149.1 66.6 117.6 102.0 107.3 99.0 107.7

33.1 3.9 3.0 8.2 16.7 4.0 7.8 11.1 9.7 18.2 10.3 7.4

95.1 41.8 57.5 45.0 32.9 44.8 232.1 94.0 30.5 51.5 32.0 56.0

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

IV. SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 4.2 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 Percent Providing Reduced Fee Legal Services Average Hours* (n = 7,923)

(n = 1,796)

23.9

92.0

2 or less years 3 to 6 years 7 to 10 years 11 to 15 years 16 to 20 years 21 to 25 years More than 25 years

13.7 18.0 17.8 24.8 27.4 29.6 32.6

59.4 94.4 113.7 93.8 85.9 99.3 92.6

21 to 25 years 26 to 30 years 31 to 35 years 36 to 40 years 41 to 45 years 46 to 50 years 51 to 55 years 56 to 60 years 61 to 65 years More than 65 years

13.3 13.0 14.8 18.5 26.4 26.3 26.4 31.1 33.2 41.4

20.0 73.3 83.2 109.5 79.3 92.4 98.1 106.5 101.9 76.8

White Black/African-American Hispanic/Latino Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian or Alaska Native Two or more races Other

22.9 32.0 30.0 16.9 33.3 23.2 33.0

95.7 85.1 69.4 82.8 49.6 93.9 156.3

Male Female

25.5 21.4

91.8 93.4

All Responding Years of Experience

Age

Race/Ethnicity

Sex

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

IV. SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 4.3 Average Hours of Reduced Fee Legal Services Provided to the Poor in 2013 (n=1,796) Average Hours of those Providing Reduced Fee Legal Services

Percent of those Providing Reduced Fee Legal Services 14.0 20.5 12.5 9.1 11.9 5.2 11.5 8.0 4.9 2.3 100.0

1 to 10 hours 11 to 20 hours 21 to 30 hours 31 to 40 hours 41 to 50 hours 51 to 75 hours 76 to 100 hours 101 to 200 hours 201 to 500 hours 501 hours or more Total 

Respondents who performed reduced fee legal services in 2013 were asked to indicate the total number of hours they provided (Table 4.3). • Fifty-three percent of those respondents indicated that they provided 31 hours or more of service. • About 27 percent of those performing reduced fee legal services provided more than 75 hours of those services.



The average number of hours providing reduced fee legal services was 92.0 hours. Some 1,796 attorneys contributed 165,269 total hours of reduced fee legal services. Extrapolation to the total active in-state attorney population of 84,800 results in an estimated 1.87 million hours of substantially reduced fee legal services being provided to the poor in 2013 (a 95% confidence interval is 1.78 to 1.95 million hours). This total was obtained by multiplying the estimate of 20,282 attorneys in Texas who provided substantially reduced fee legal services (23.9 percent of active in-state attorney population of 84,800) by the average of 92.0 hours. If the projection is restricted to just the 64,007 attorneys who meet the criteria of not opting out of taking surveys, who reported occupation, if private practitioners they reported firm size, then the total average hours is projected as 1.41 million hours (a 95% confidence interval is 1.34 to 1.47 million hours).



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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED Civil Matters Respondents were asked if, in the year 2013, they performed any free legal services for the poor in civil matter. As shown, 38.8 percent of the respondents reported providing free legal services in civil matters. Figure 3 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters in 2013 (n = 8,164) 100.0% 90.0% 80.0%

Percent

70.0%

61.2%

60.0% 50.0% 38.8%

40.0% 30.0% 20.0% 10.0% 0.0% Percent of Attorneys

Yes 38.8%

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

No 61.2%

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED Civil Matters Summary Findings 



Type of Practice: o

Respondents working in Rural/All Occupations practice were most likely (60.5 percent) to report providing free legal services in civil matters.

Urban/Non-Private Practice respondents were least likely (19.6 percent) to report performing free legal services in civil matters benefiting the poor.

Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs): o

Those in the Non-Metropolitan Counties were the most likely to perform free services (60.5 percent).

The MSA least likely to show free legal services in civil matters was Austin-Round Rock (33.4 percent).

Occupation: o

Private Law Practice showed the highest percentage (49.0 percent) of providing free legal services in civil matters.

The three occupations with the lowest percentage of those providing free legal services in civil matters were: full-time judges (3.9 percent), Other Judicial Branch lawyers (17.2 percent), and Government Attorneys (15.4 percent).



Years of Experience and Age show a positive relationship with the likelihood of providing free legal services in civil matters. Those younger or with less experience have a lower percentage of having provided free legal services in civil matters, while those older or with more experience show a higher percentage.



Race/Ethnicity show some differences in percentages of attorneys providing free legal services in civil matters. The percentages range from 44.4 percent for the Other category to 30.3 percent for the Asian/Pacific Islander group.



Sex shows differences: Men were more likely (42.4 percent) to provide free legal services in civil matters, compared to women (33.1 percent).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 5.1 Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters in 2013 Percent Provided Free Legal Services Civil Matters Hours

Average Hours*

(n = 8,164)

(n = 3,167)

38.8

40.9

60.5 19.6 53.7 38.3 40.0

41.5 31.6 44.0 32.9 52.7

36.4 35.3 33.4 41.6 37.7 42.3 51.4 51.4 54.2 55.8 48.5

49.1 38.3 39.3 32.8 38.2 34.4 38.9 36.2 35.5 39.0 37.6

60.5

41.5

49.0 15.4 3.9 17.2 43.1 23.9 23.2 19.3 21.8 21.1 25.2 33.3

42.9 20.4 5.7 25.2 123.1 29.7 26.4 28.6 26.6 54.3 43.4 64.1

All Responding Type of Practice Rural/All Occupations Urban/Non-Private Practice Urban/Private/Small Firm (1-5 attys) Urban/Private/Medium Firm (6-40 attys) Urban/Private/Large Firm (more than 40 attys) Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) of Work Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington Austin-Round Rock San Antonio-New Braunfels El Paso Corpus Christi Beaumont-Port Arthur Central Texas East and Northeast Texas South Texas West Texas Non-Metropolitan Counties Occupation Private Law Practice Government Attorney Full-Time Judge Other Judicial Branch Law Faculty For-profit Corporate/In-House Counsel Non-profit Corporate/In-house Counsel Other Law Related Non-law Related Retired/Not Working Unemployed/Looking for Work Unemployed/Not Looking for Work

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 5.2 Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters in 2013

Percent Provided Free Legal Services Civil Matters

Average Hours*

(n = 8,164)

(n = 3,167)

38.8

40.9

2 or less years 3 to 6 years 7 to 10 years 11 to 15 years 16 to 20 years 21 to 25 years More than 25 years

30.5 32.4 30.7 38.3 41.9 44.1 48.1

29.2 42.5 34.0 37.8 42.4 41.8 46.7

21 to 25 years 26 to 30 years 31 to 35 years 36 to 40 years 41 to 45 years 46 to 50 years 51 to 55 years 56 to 60 years 61 to 65 years More than 65 years

29.5 27.8 31.4 33.8 38.6 41.7 44.2 46.3 45.9 52.5

21.3 36.6 34.4 35.5 38.3 37.3 47.1 40.1 48.4 52.5

White Black/African-American Hispanic/Latino Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian or Alaska Native Two or more races Other

39.1 36.4 39.3 30.3 41.7 40.8 44.4

42.2 43.5 29.0 43.4 48.8 32.3 38.8

Male

42.4

40.4

Female

33.1

41.9

All Responding Years of Experience

Age

Race/Ethnicity

Sex

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 5.3 Average Hours of Free Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters in 2013

Average Hours of those Providing Free Legal Services in Civil Matters

Percent of those Providing Free Legal Services in civil matters

1 to 10 hours 11 to 20 hours 21 to 30 hours 31 to 40 hours 41 to 50 hours 51 to 75 hours 76 to 100 hours 101 to 200 hours 201 to 500 hours 501 hours or more Total 

25.3 23.1 14.0 9.2 10.7 6.0 6.8 3.4 1.3 0.3 100.0

Respondents who performed free legal services in civil matters in 2013 were asked to indicate the total number of hours they provided. • 52 percent provided 21 hours or more free legal services in civil matters. • Almost 12 percent provided 76 hours or more of free legal services in civil matters. • The average number of hours providing free legal services in civil matters was 40.9 hours.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Civil Matters

Respondents were asked if, in the year 2013, they performed any reduced fee services for the poor in civil matter. As shown, 18.9 percent of the respondents reported providing reduced fee legal services in civil matters.

Figure 4 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Reduced Free Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters in 2013 (n = 7,923) 100.0% 90.0%

81.1%

80.0%

Percent

70.0% 60.0% 50.0% 40.0% 30.0% 20.0%

18.9%

10.0% 0.0% Percent of Attorneys

Yes 18.9%

No 81.1%

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Civil Matters Summary Findings 



Type of Practice: o

Respondents working for Urban/Private Practice/Small Firms (45.7 percent) and Rural/All Occupations practice (36.8 percent) were more likely to provide reduced fee legal services in civil matters.

Urban/Non-Private Practice respondents(4.6 percent) and Urban/Private Practice/Large Firms were less likely (6.0 percent) to report performing reduced fee legal services in civil matters benefiting the poor.

Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs): o

The rural category of the Non-Metropolitan Counties (36.8 percent) and the Beaumont-Port Arthur MSA (35.8 percent) were the more likely to perform reduced fee services in civil matters.

The MSA areas less likely to report providing reduced fee legal services were Austin-Round Rock (14.6 percent), Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington (16.0 percent) and Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land (16.9 percent).

Occupation: o

Private Law Practice had the highest percentage (26.3 percent) of providing reduced fee legal services in civil matters.

The three occupations with the lowest percentage of those providing reduced fee legal services in civil matters were: full-time judges (1.5 percent), For-Profit Corporate/In-House Counsel (2.8 percent), and Government Attorneys (3.0 percent).



Years of Experience and Age are positively correlated with the likelihood of attorneys providing reduced fee legal services to the poor in civil matters. Those with less experience have a lower percentage of having provided reduced fee legal services, while those with more experience show a higher percentage.



Race/Ethnicity shows some differences in percentage of attorneys providing reduced fee legal services in civil matters:



Sex shows a small difference: o Men (20.1 percent) were slightly more likely than women (17.0 percent) to provide reduced fee legal services in civil matters.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 6.1 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters in 2013 Percent Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services Civil Matters

Average Hours*

(n = 7,923)

(n = 1,501)

18.9

63.1

36.8 4.6 45.7 14.0 6.0

64.9 46.1 68.1 49.0 42.1

16.9 16.0 14.6 21.9 20.5 19.8 35.8 26.6 29.6 37.1 25.7

51.9 58.6 93.8 62.7 47.8 52.1 46.5 72.9 72.1 74.5 59.2

36.8

64.9

26.3 3.0 1.5 6.6 14.6 2.8 7.8 8.7 7.6 12.7 6.5 7.4

64.9 24.7 25.0 36.5 32.6 43.7 224.6 36.7 29.2 46.0 34.9 56.0

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 6.2 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters in 2013

Percent Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services Civil Matters

Average Hours*

(n = 7,923)

(n = 1,501)

18.9

63.1

2 or less years 3 to 6 years 7 to 10 years 11 to 15 years 16 to 20 years 21 to 25 years More than 25 years

10.8 13.9 13.4 19.0 20.6 24.1 26.8

39.5 59.0 81.7 72.3 57.5 63.3 64.4

21 to 25 years 26 to 30 years 31 to 35 years 36 to 40 years 41 to 45 years 46 to 50 years 51 to 55 years 56 to 60 years 61 to 65 years More than 65 years

10.0 10.0 11.5 14.2 19.7 21.2 21.2 26.0 26.9 32.7

20.8 48.2 55.4 84.7 56.8 65.7 58.6 67.5 71.6 60.5

White Black/African-American Hispanic/Latino Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian or Alaska Native Two or more races Other

18.5 24.5 22.6 12.4 20.8 18.1 20.5

66.8 55.7 47.4 52.4 22.4 48.7 60.2

Male

20.1

61.2

Female

17.0

67.2

All Responding Years of Experience

Age

Race/Ethnicity

Sex

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED

Table 6.3 Average Hours of Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters

Average Hours of those Percent of those Providing Providing Reduced Fee Legal Reduced Fee Legal Services in Services in Civil Matters Civil Mattters 1 to 10 hours 19.3 11 to 20 hours 20.9 21 to 30 hours 15.7 31 to 40 hours 8.2 41 to 50 hours 11.1 51 to 75 hours 5.2 76 to 100 hours 9.5 101 to 200 hours 5.8 201 to 500 hours 3.1 501 hours or more 1.1 Total 100.0 

Of the attorneys who performed legal services in civil matters at a substantially reduced rate: • Sixty percent indicated that they provided 21 hours or more of reduced fee legal service. • Ten percent provided 76 hours or more of reduced fee legal services in civil matters.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Criminal Matters Respondents were asked if, in the year 2013, they performed any free services for the poor in criminal matters. Some 7.7 percent of the respondents reported providing free legal services in criminal matters to the poor in 2013. Figure 5 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters in 2013 (n = 8,164) 100.0%

92.3%

90.0% 80.0%

Percent

70.0% 60.0% 50.0% 40.0% 30.0% 20.0% 10.0% 0.0% Percent of Attorneys

7.7% Yes 7.7%

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No 92.3%

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Criminal Matters Summary Findings 



Type of Practice: o

Respondents working in Rural/All Occupations practices were most likely (20.7 percent) to report providing free legal services in criminal matters.

Urban Private Practitioner in Medium Firms (2.6 percent) and Large Firms (4.4 percent), as well as Urban Non-Private Practitioner (4.0 percent) groups were less likely to provide free legal services in criminal matters benefiting the poor.

Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs): o



Those in the Non-Metropolitan Counties, was the most likely to provide free services in criminal matters (20.7 percent).

Occupation: o

Law Faculty had the highest percentage (13.7 percent) of providing free legal services in criminal matters. Private Law Practice were second (9.6 percent).



The other occupations had 6 percent or fewer providing free legal services in criminal matters. Years of Experience and Age show only a moderate positive relationship with the likelihood of providing free legal services in criminal matters. Those younger or with less experience have a lower percentage of having provided free legal services in criminal matters, while those older or with more experience show a higher percentage.



Race/Ethnicity show some differences in percentages of attorneys providing free legal services in criminal matters.



Sex shows differences: Men were more likely (9.0 percent) to provide free legal services in criminal matters, compared to women (5.5 percent).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 7.1 Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters in 2013

Percent Provided Free Legal Services Criminal Matters Hours

Average Hours*

(n = 8,164)

(n = 626)

7.7

36.8

20.7 4.0 12.5 2.6 4.4

26.2 21.2 40.3 27.2 78.7

6.7 6.6 5.2 8.5 13.8 10.8 4.3 8.1 11.7 14.7 8.0

29.7 41.1 33.3 64.5 46.0 26.9 18.3 43.3 48.7 14.6 36.8

20.7

26.2

9.6 3.5 2.6 4.7 13.7 3.7 7.4 3.4 6.3 0.0 5.4 3.7

40.4 28.1 15.0 12.3 29.6 18.3 19.1 27.8 11.4 n/a. 10.5 18.0

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 7.2 Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters in 2013

Percent Provided Free Legal Services Criminal Matters

Average Hours*

(n = 8,164)

(n = 626)

7.7

36.8

2 or less years 3 to 6 years 7 to 10 years 11 to 15 years 16 to 20 years 21 to 25 years More than 25 years

6.1 6.1 5.7 7.8 8.9 9.8 9.1

26.7 29.2 29.0 34.2 30.6 26.1 53.6

21 to 25 years 26 to 30 years 31 to 35 years 36 to 40 years 41 to 45 years 46 to 50 years 51 to 55 years 56 to 60 years 61 to 65 years More than 65 years

0.0 5.0 6.1 5.2 8.9 10.3 9.8 8.1 9.4 9.7

n/a. 27.9 23.6 38.1 26.3 30.8 30.3 44.6 84.8 34.1

White Black/African-American Hispanic/Latino Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian or Alaska Native Two or more races Other

6.8 12.3 13.4 1.7 12.5 11.3 15.6

38.2 22.9 19.3 27.5 30.0 32.5 160.7

Male

9.0

33.5

Female

5.5

45.9

All Responding Years of Experience

Age

Race/Ethnicity

Sex

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED

Table 7.3 Average Hours of Free Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters in 2013

Average Hours of those Providing Free Legal Services in Criminal Matters

Percent of those Providing Free Legal Services in Criminal Matters 43.0 17.6 11.1 5.0 9.0 4.0 5.9 2.9 1.3 0.3 100.0

1 to 10 hours 11 to 20 hours 21 to 30 hours 31 to 40 hours 41 to 50 hours 51 to 75 hours 76 to 100 hours 101 to 200 hours 201 to 500 hours 501 hours or more Total 

Of the attorneys who performed legal services in criminal matters at a substantially reduced rate: • About 39 percent provided more than 20 hours of free legal services in criminal matters. • About ten percent provided 76 hours or more of free legal services in criminal matters.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Criminal Matters

Respondents were asked if, in the year 2013, they performed any reduced fee services for the poor in criminal matters. Some 5.3 percent of the respondents reported providing reduced fee legal services in criminal matters to the poor in 2013. Figure 6 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters in 2013 (n = 7,923)

94.7%

100.0% 90.0% 80.0%

Percent

70.0% 60.0% 50.0% 40.0% 30.0% 20.0% 10.0% 0.0% Percent of Attorneys

5.3% Yes 5.3%

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

No 94.7%

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Criminal Matters Summary Findings 

Type of Practice: o

Respondents working in Rural/All Occupations practice (15.2 percent) and Urban/Private Practice/Small Firms (13.8 percent) were more likely to provide reduced fee legal services in criminal matters.

Urban/Private/Large Firm (0.4 percent), Urban/Non-Private Practice (1.4

percent) and Urban/Private Practice/Medium Firms (1.5 percent) were less likely to provide reduced fee legal services in criminal matters benefiting the poor. 



Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs): o

The rural category of the Non-Metropolitan Counties (15.2 percent) and South Texas (14.6 percent) were the more likely to perform reduced fee services in criminal matters.

The MSA areas least likely to report providing reduced fee legal services in criminal matters was Austin-Round Rock (3.6 percent), Dallas-Fort WorthArlington (3.6 percent), and Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land (4.6 percent).

Occupation: o

Private Law Practice had the highest percentage (7.4 percent) of providing reduced fee legal services in criminal matters.

The next highest percentage was that of Law Faculty (4.2 percent), while all the other occupation groups showed 3 percent or less involvement in providing reduced fee legal services in criminal matters.



Years of Experience and Age each showed a slightly positive relationship between the likelihood of attorneys providing reduced fee legal services to the poor in criminal matters. Those with less experience have a lower percentage of having provided reduced fee legal services, while those with more experience show a higher percentage.



Race/Ethnicity shows some differences in percentage of attorneys providing reduced fee legal services in criminal matters.



Sex shows a small difference: o Men (6.1 percent) were slightly more likely than women (4.1) percent) to provide reduced fee legal services in criminal matters.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 8.1 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters in 2013

Percent Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services Criminal Matters Hours Average Hours*

(n = 7,923)

(n = 421)

5.3

106.6

15.2 1.4 13.8 1.5 0.4

102.7 38.3 116.6 86.8 54.0

4.6 3.6 3.6 6.3 7.1 8.5 10.4 8.3 8.6 14.6 7.0

88.8 103.5 75.8 155.8 146.7 285.6 65.0 203.9 94.0 57.6 135.7

15.2

102.7

7.4 0.9 3.0 3.3 4.2 1.0 3.3 1.2 1.7 1.8 2.8 0.0

113.2 72.9 40.0 5.5 17.5 18.7 18.0 27.0 46.3 10.0 44.3 n/a

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 8.2 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters in 2013

Percent Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services Criminal Matters

Average Hours*

(n = 7,923)

(n = 421)

5.3

106.6

2 or less years 3 to 6 years 7 to 10 years 11 to 15 years 16 to 20 years 21 to 25 years More than 25 years

2.5 3.7 4.6 5.7 6.3 8.5 6.5

67.4 118.3 131.8 74.5 113.4 123.6 104.4

21 to 25 years 26 to 30 years 31 to 35 years 36 to 40 years 41 to 45 years 46 to 50 years 51 to 55 years 56 to 60 years 61 to 65 years More than 65 years

0.0 2.6 3.0 3.5 6.1 7.6 7.3 7.8 6.8 7.2

n/a 67.2 119.7 117.3 84.6 88.4 136.4 148.1 93.1 79.0

White Black/African-American Hispanic/Latino Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian or Alaska Native Two or more races Other

4.6 10.6 9.4 2.7 12.5 5.8 10.2

119.2 84.3 49.8 87.5 61.7 74.4 254.6

Male

6.1

107.4

Female

4.1

105.7

All Responding Years of Experience

Age

Race/Ethnicity

Sex

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED

Table 8.3 Average Hours of Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters in 2013 Average Hours of those Providing Reduced Fee Legal Services in Criminal Matters

Percent of those Providing Reduced Fee Legal Services in Criminal Matters 24.5 17.6 11.4 8.3 9.8 3.1 10.5 4.5 6.0 4.3 100.0

1 to 10 hours 11 to 20 hours 21 to 30 hours 31 to 40 hours 41 to 50 hours 51 to 75 hours 76 to 100 hours 101 to 200 hours 201 to 500 hours 501 hours or more Total



Respondents who performed reduced fee legal services in criminal matters in 2013 were asked to indicate the total number of hours they provided. • About 46 percent of those respondents indicated that they provided 31 hours or more of service. • Some 25 percent of those providing reduced fee legal services in criminal matters provided 76 hours or more of those services.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Unsolicited Court Appointment Respondents were asked if, in the year 2013, they performed any free legal services for the poor in unsolicited court appointments. Some 2.5 percent of the respondents reported providing free legal services in unsolicited court appointments in 2013.

Figure 7 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Unsolicited Court Appointments in 2013 (n = 8,164)

97.5%

100.0% 90.0% 80.0%

Percent

70.0% 60.0% 50.0% 40.0% 30.0% 20.0% 10.0% 0.0% Percent of Attorneys

2.5% Yes 2.5%

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

No 97.5%

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Unsolicited Court Appointment Summary Findings 



Type of Practice: o

Respondents working in Rural/All Occupations practices were most likely (11.9 percent) to report providing free legal services in unsolicited court appointments.

Urban Non-Private Practice (0.2 percent), Urban Private Practitioner in Large Firms (0.9 percent) and Medium Firms (1.3 percent) were less likely to provide free legal services in unsolicited court appointments benefiting the poor.

Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs): o



The Non-Metropolitan Counties (11.9 percent) and South Texas (10.3 percent), were the most likely to provide free services in unsolicited court appointments.

Occupation: o

Private Law Practice (3.8 percent) predominated among occupations in providing free services in unsolicited court appointments.

Only three other occupations provided these services, and at far lower rates: Other Law Related (0.9 percent), Government Attorney (0.2 percent), and For-Profit Corporate/In-House Counsel (0.1 percent).



Years of Experience and Age show only a moderate positive relationship with the likelihood of providing free legal services in unsolicited court appointments. Those younger or with less experience have a lower percentage, while those older or with more experience show a higher percentage.



Race/Ethnicity shows only small differences in percentages of attorneys providing free legal services in unsolicited court appointments. The percentages range from 0.0 to 4.3 percent.



Sex shows virtually no differences: Men’s 2.5 percent likelihood to provide free legal services in unsolicited court appointments was very similar to women’s 2.6 percent.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 9.1 Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Unsolicited Court Appointments in 2013

Percent Provided Free Legal Services in Unsolicited Court Appointments

Average Hours*

(n = 8,164)

(n = 208)

2.5

47.7

11.9 0.2 4.6 1.3 0.9

65.7 31.5 44.4 16.7 105.7

1.9 1.8 1.1 2.6 2.3 4.5 1.4 4.5 3.8 10.3 4.0

44.4 23.8 49.4 57.1 14.3 26.0 30.0 43.6 63.5 41.9 86.2

11.9

65.7

3.8 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.9 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

48.2 30.5 n/a n/a n/a 30.0 n/a 32.7 n/a n/a n/a n/a

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 9.2 Provided Free Legal Services to the Poor in Unsolicited Court Appointments in 2013 Percent Provided Free Legal Services in Unsolicited Court Appointments

Average Hours*

(n = 8,164)

(n = 208)

2.5

47.7

2 or less years 3 to 6 years 7 to 10 years 11 to 15 years 16 to 20 years 21 to 25 years More than 25 years

1.5 1.9 2.7 2.7 3.6 2.8 2.8

22.7 55.8 42.2 21.3 56.5 47.2 62.0

21 to 25 years 26 to 30 years 31 to 35 years 36 to 40 years 41 to 45 years 46 to 50 years 51 to 55 years 56 to 60 years 61 to 65 years More than 65 years

1.6 0.7 1.9 2.4 3.3 3.3 3.3 3.1 3.0 3.1

125.0 18.0 26.0 48.3 35.2 25.9 46.0 71.9 78.0 72.7

White Black/African-American Hispanic/Latino Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian or Alaska Native Two or more races Other

2.3 3.2 4.3 3.0 0.0 2.1 2.2

51.0 24.8 51.2 24.0 n/a 56.7 13.5

Male

2.5

45.4

Female

2.6

51.7

All Responding Years of Experience

Age

Race/Ethnicity

Sex

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED

Table 9.3 Average Hours of Free Legal Services to the Poor in Unsolicited Court Appointments in 2013

Average Hours of those Providing Percent of those Providing Free Free Legal Services in Unsolicited Legal Services in Unsolicited Court Court Appointments Appointments 1 to 10 hours 36.6 11 to 20 hours 21.5 21 to 30 hours 13.7 31 to 40 hours 3.9 41 to 50 hours 5.9 51 to 75 hours 5.9 76 to 100 hours 4.9 101 to 200 hours 3.4 201 to 500 hours 3.9 Total 100.0



Respondents who performed free legal services in unsolicited court appointments in 2013 were asked to indicate the number of hours they provided: • About forty percent of those respondents indicated that they provided 21 hours or more of service. • About 14 percent of those performing free legal services provided 76 hours or more of those services.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Unsolicited Court Appointment

Respondents were asked if, in the year 2013, they performed any reduced fee legal services for the poor in unsolicited court appointments. Some 2.1 percent of the respondents reported providing reduced fee legal services in unsolicited court appointments in 2013. Figure 8 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Unsolicited Court Appointments in 2013 (n = 7,923) 97.9%

100.0% 90.0% 80.0%

Percent

70.0% 60.0% 50.0% 40.0% 30.0% 20.0% 10.0% 0.0% Percent of Attorneys

[VALUE] Yes 2.1%

No 97.9%

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Unsolicited Court Appointment Summary Findings 



Type of Practice: o

Respondents working in Rural/All Occupations practices were most likely (9.7 percent) to provide reduced fee legal services in unsolicited court appointments.

Next most likely type of practice to provide these services was the Urban Private Practitioner in Small Firms (5.5 percent). The other types of practice showed 0.6 percent or less likelihood of providing reduced fee legal services in unsolicited court appointments benefiting the poor.

Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs): o



Those in the Non-Metropolitan Counties were the most likely to provide reduced fee services in unsolicited court appointments (9.7 percent).

Occupation: o

Those in Private Law Practice were most likely (3.1 percent) to provide reduced fee services in unsolicited court appointments.

The other occupations had 1.8 percent or fewer providing reduced fee legal services in unsolicited court appointments.



Years of Experience and Age show a moderately positive relationship with the likelihood of providing reduced fee legal services in unsolicited court appointments. Those younger or with less experience have a lower percentage of having provided reduced fee legal services in unsolicited court appointments, while those older or with more experience show a higher percentage.



Race/Ethnicity shows small differences in percentages of attorneys providing reduced fee legal services in unsolicited court appointments.



Sex shows no differences: Both men and women were equally likely (2.2 percent) to provide reduced fee legal services in unsolicited court appointments.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 10.1 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Unsolicited Court Appointments in 2013

Percent Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services in Unsolicited Court Appointments

Average Hours*

(n = 7,923)

(n = 170)

All Responding Type of Practice

2.1

90.9

9.7 0.3 5.5 0.6 0.0

69.1 17.8 103.3 46.7 n/a

1.1 1.4 1.4 2.6 5.5 5.7 4.5 0.9 3.5 7.3 3.8

66.8 93.1 156.5 63.9 73.6 60.8 75.0 50.0 151.4 100.7 110.6

9.7

69.1

3.1 0.2 1.5 1.6 0.0 0.3 0.0 0.3 0.0 1.8 0.9 0.0

94.6 2.0 10.0 1.0 n/a 12.5 n/a 100.0 n/a 80.0 2.0 n/a

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 10.2 Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Unsolicited Court Appointments in 2013 Percent Provided Reduced Fee Legal Services in Unsolicited Court Appointments

Average Hours*

(n = 7,923)

(n = 170)

2.1

90.9

2 or less years 3 to 6 years 7 to 10 years 11 to 15 years 16 to 20 years 21 to 25 years More than 25 years

1.1 1.8 2.1 2.8 2.4 2.0 2.7

46.4 150.3 65.0 122.8 54.4 83.6 85.6

21 to 25 years 26 to 30 years 31 to 35 years 36 to 40 years 41 to 45 years 46 to 50 years 51 to 55 years 56 to 60 years 61 to 65 years More than 65 years

1.7 1.0 1.5 1.7 4.0 1.6 2.0 3.3 2.7 2.7

15.0 103.3 104.9 109.8 73.4 100.0 109.7 58.4 138.6 68.9

White Black/African-American Hispanic/Latino Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian or Alaska Native Two or more races Other

2.0 2.7 3.7 0.9 0.0 3.6 1.1

85.8 55.6 101.3 100.0 n/a 180.0 4.0

Male

2.2

82.9

Female

2.2

103.5

All Responding Years of Experience

Age

Race/Ethnicity

Sex

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 10.3 Average Hours of Reduced Fee Legal Services to the Poor in Unsolicited Court Appointments in 2013 Average Hours of those Providing Reduced Fee Legal Services in Unsolicited Court Appointments

Percent of those Providing Reduced Fee Legal Services in Unsolicited Court Appointments

1 to 10 hours 11 to 20 hours 21 to 30 hours 31 to 40 hours 41 to 50 hours 51 to 75 hours 76 to 100 hours 101 to 200 hours 201 to 500 hours 501 hours or more Total



27.2 18.9 8.3 4.7 9.5 2.4 4.7 12.4 10.1 1.8 100.0

Attorneys who performed reduced fee legal services in unsolicited court appointments in 2013 were asked to indicate the number of hours they provided: • Fifty-four percent of those respondents indicated that they provided 21 hours or more of service. • Twenty-nine percent provided 76 hours or more of those services.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Legal Services to a Charitable Organization for the Poor Respondents were asked if, in the year 2013, they performed any free legal services to a charitable organization for the poor. About 11 percent of the respondents reported providing free legal services to a charitable organization in 2013.

Figure 9 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Free Legal Services to a Charitable Organization for the Poor in 2013 (n = 8,164) 100.0%

89.2%

90.0% 80.0%

Percent

70.0% 60.0% 50.0% 40.0% 30.0% 20.0%

10.8%

10.0% 0.0% Percent of Attorneys

Yes 10.8%

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

No 89.2%

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Legal Services to a Charitable Organization for the Poor Summary Findings 

Type of Practice: o

Respondents working in Urban/Private/Large Firm practices were most likely (16.6 percent) to report providing free legal services in to a charitable organization for the poor. Those in Rural/All Occupations (13.5 percent) and Urban/Private/Small Firm practices (13.4 percent).



Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs): o



The MSAs were all fairly equally likely to provide free services in to a charitable organization for the poor, with percentages ranging from Corpus Christi (8.4 percent) to South Texas (14.7 percent).

Occupation: o

Retired/Not Working had the highest percentage (15.8 percent) of providing free legal services in to a charitable organization for the poor. Those in Private Law Practice were second (13.1 percent).



Years of Experience and Age show a positive relationship with the likelihood of providing free legal services in to a charitable organization for the poor. Those younger or with less experience have a lower percentage of having provided free legal services in to a charitable organization for the poor, while those older or with more experience show a higher percentage.



Race/Ethnicity show some differences in percentages of attorneys providing free legal services in to a charitable organization for the poor.



Sex shows differences: Men were slightly likely (11.1 percent) to provide free legal services in to a charitable organization for the poor, compared to women (10.5 percent).

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 11.1 Provided Free Legal Services to a Charitable Organization for the Poor in 2013

All Responding

Percent Provided Free Legal Services to Charitable Org.

Average Hours*

(n = 8,164)

(n = 884)

10.8

33.1

13.5 6.5 13.4 9.9 16.6

21.4 39.0 29.5 31.9 41.7

10.5 10.4 10.0 11.4 11.5 8.1 12.9 9.9 14.4 14.7 11.4

33.1 31.6 42.0 33.2 26.1 26.1 34.0 35.3 20.1 64.3 24.3

13.5

21.4

13.1 4.9 3.9 1.6 9.8 9.4 8.4 4.9 5.2 15.8 9.0 7.4

31.7 19.2 353.3 20.0 31.6 19.5 149.4 47.9 47.5 73.9 23.5 55.0

Type of Practice Rural/All Occupations Urban/Non-Private Practice Urban/Private/Small Firm (1-5 attys) Urban/Private/Medium Firm (6-40 attys) Urban/Private/Large Firm (more than 40 attys) Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) of Work Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington Austin-Round Rock San Antonio-New Braunfels El Paso Corpus Christi Beaumont-Port Arthur Central Texas East and Northeast Texas South Texas West Texas Non-Metropolitan Counties Occupation Private Law Practice Government Attorney Full-Time Judge Other Judicial Branch Law Faculty For-profit Corporate/In-House Counsel Non-profit Corporate/In-house Counsel Other Law Related Non-law Related Retired/Not Working Unemployed/Looking for Work Unemployed/Not Looking for Work

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 11.2 Provided Free Legal Services to a Charitable Organization for the Poor in 2013 Percent Provided Free Legal Services to a Charitable Organization for the Poor

Average Hours*

(n = 8,164)

(n = 884)

10.8

33.1

2 or less years 3 to 6 years 7 to 10 years 11 to 15 years 16 to 20 years 21 to 25 years More than 25 years

8.0 8.9 8.2 11.1 9.9 13.6 13.9

33.6 29.9 26.2 39.5 27.0 28.9 37.3

21 to 25 years 26 to 30 years 31 to 35 years 36 to 40 years 41 to 45 years 46 to 50 years 51 to 55 years 56 to 60 years 61 to 65 years More than 65 years

6.6 7.4 9.2 8.6 9.4 12.9 12.1 13.0 14.7 14.4

45.5 27.4 32.5 27.6 23.1 35.5 37.8 25.9 41.6 45.1

White Black/African-American Hispanic/Latino Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian or Alaska Native Two or more races Other

10.1 14.4 13.0 16.9 8.3 9.2 17.8

35.0 27.4 25.0 38.9 13.0 27.4 20.6

Male

11.1

32.7

Female

10.5

34.1

All Responding Years of Experience

Age

Race/Ethnicity

Sex

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 11.3 Average Hours of Free Legal Services to a Charitable Organization for the Poor in 2013

Average Hours of those Providing Percent of those Providing Free Legal Services to a Charitable Free Legal Services Services Organization for the Poor to a Charitable Organization for the Poor 1 to 10 hours 38.0 11 to 20 hours 21.1 21 to 30 hours 13.5 31 to 40 hours 5.7 41 to 50 hours 8.1 51 to 75 hours 4.0 76 to 100 hours 5.6 101 to 200 hours 3.2 201 to 500 hours 0.7 501 hours or more 0.2 Total 100.0



Attorneys who provided free legal services to a charitable organization for the poor in 2013 were asked to indicate the number of hours they provided: • Forty-one percent of those respondents indicated that they provided 21 hours or more of service. • About ten percent provided 76 hours or more of those services.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Provided Free Legal Services for Legislative, Administrative or Systems Advocacy for the Poor Respondents were asked if, in the year 2013, they performed any free legal services for legislative, administrative or systems advocacy for the poor. There were 2.6 percent of the respondents who reported providing free legal services for legislative, administrative or systems advocacy for the poor in 2013. Figure 10 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Free Legal Services for Legislative, Administrative or Systems Advocacy for the Poor in 2013 (n = 8,164) 97.4%

100.0% 90.0% 80.0%

Percent

70.0% 60.0% 50.0% 40.0% 30.0% 20.0% 10.0% 0.0% Percent of Attorneys

2.6% Yes 2.6%

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

No 97.4%

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Provided Free Legal Services for Legislative, Administrative or Systems Advocacy for the Poor Summary Findings 



Type of Practice: o

Respondents working in Rural/All Occupations practices were most likely (4.1 percent) to report providing free legal services in to legislative, administrative or systems advocacy for the poor.

Urban Private Practitioner in Small Firms (3.5 percent) and Large Firms (3.4 percent), were next most likely to provide free legal services in to legislative, administrative or systems advocacy for the poor.

Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs): o



South Texas (5.l percent), Beaumont-Port Arthur (4.3 percent), and the NonMetropolitan Counties (4.1 percent), were the most likely to provide free services in to legislative, administrative or systems advocacy for the poor.

Occupation: o

The Unemployed/Not Looking for Work had the highest percentage (11.1

percent) of providing free legal services in to legislative, administrative or systems advocacy. However, this group is relatively small (some 3 out of the total of 27 in the sample). Private Law Practice with 3.1 percent providing these services has in terms of attorneys 167 out of 5,311 doing this pro bono activity. 

Years of Experience and Age show a minimal positive relationship with the likelihood of providing free legal services in to legislative, administrative or systems advocacy. Those younger or with less experience have a slightly lower percentage of having provided free legal services in to legislative, administrative or systems advocacy, while those older or with more experience show a slightly higher percentage.



Race/Ethnicity shows minimal differences in percentages of attorneys providing free legal services in to legislative, administrative or systems advocacy.



Sex shows only slight differences, with men at 2.6 percent and women 2.4 percent providing free legal services in to legislative, administrative or systems advocacy.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 12.1 Provided Free Legal Services for Legislative, Administrative or Systems Advocacy for the Poor in 2013 Percent Provided Uncompensated Leg., Admin., Systems Advocacy Average Hours* (n = 8,164)

(n = 209)

All Responding Type of Practice

2.6

34.8

4.1 1.5 3.5 1.8 3.4

32.9 39.1 29.6 30.3 54.2

2.8 2.0 2.6 2.3 2.3 3.6 4.3 1.8 2.3 5.1 3.1

34.1 35.2 35.3 37.5 15.0 42.5 40.0 12.5 19.2 38.3 46.7

4.1

32.9

3.1 0.8 2.6 1.6 2.0 1.2 3.2 0.9 2.0 8.8 1.8 11.1

33.8 35.4 25.0 20.0 250.0 29.9 14.7 37.7 33.6 49.0 60.0 24.0

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 12.2 Provided Free Legal Services for Legislative, Administrative or Systems Advocacy for the Poor in 2013 Percent Provided Uncompensated Leg., Admin., Systems Advocacy Average Hours* (n = 8,164)

(n = 209)

2.6

34.8

2 or less years 3 to 6 years 7 to 10 years 11 to 15 years 16 to 20 years 21 to 25 years More than 25 years

1.5 1.6 1.9 3.0 3.6 2.6 3.5

35.3 39.5 31.1 34.0 22.1 36.9 38.8

21 to 25 years 26 to 30 years 31 to 35 years 36 to 40 years 41 to 45 years 46 to 50 years 51 to 55 years 56 to 60 years 61 to 65 years More than 65 years

1.6 1.7 1.4 2.6 2.9 2.0 2.6 3.8 3.0 4.1

15.0 52.8 18.9 33.4 26.7 30.1 49.0 33.5 23.7 35.2

White Black/African-American Hispanic/Latino Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian or Alaska Native Two or more races Other

2.5 2.9 2.7 3.0 0.0 2.8 4.4

35.4 16.2 42.3 37.7 n/a 23.8 31.5

Male

2.6

33.7

Female

2.4

36.8

All Responding Years of Experience

Age

Race/Ethnicity

Sex

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 12.3 Average Hours of Free Legal Services for Legislative, Administrative or Systems Advocacy for the Poor in 2013 Average Hours of those Providing Percent of those Providing Free Free Legal Services for Legislative, Legal Services for Legislative, Administrative or Systems Advocacy Administrative or Systems for the Poor Advocacy for the Poor 1 to 10 hours 11 to 20 hours 21 to 30 hours 31 to 40 hours 41 to 50 hours 51 to 75 hours 76 to 100 hours 101 to 200 hours 201 to 500 hours Total



33.0 24.9 11.5 6.7 6.7 2.9 9.1 4.3 1.0 100.0

Attorneys who provided free legal services for legislative, administrative or systems advocacy for the poor in 2013 were asked to indicate the number of hours they provided: • Forty-two percent of those respondents indicated that they provided 21 hours or more of service. • Fourteen percent provided 76 hours or more of those services.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Provided Free Services to Simplify or Improve Quality of Legal Services to the Poor Respondents were asked if, in the year 2013, they performed any free legal services to simplify or improve quality of legal services to the poor. Some 4.2 percent of the respondents reported providing free legal services to simplify or improve quality of legal services to the poor in 2013. Figure 11 Percent of Attorneys Who Provided Free Services to Simplify or Improve Quality of Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 (n = 8,164) 95.8%

100.0% 90.0% 80.0%

Percent

70.0% 60.0% 50.0% 40.0% 30.0% 20.0% 10.0% 0.0% Percent of Attorneys

4.2% Yes 4.2%

No 95.8%

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Provided Free Services to Simplify or Improve Quality of Legal Services to the Poor Summary Findings 

Type of Practice: o



Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs): o



The percentages for each of the Types of Practice ranged from 2.6 percent to 7.2 percent. In terms of absolute numbers, it was the Urban/Private/Small Firm practitioners who had the largest number of attorneys providing free legal services in to simplify or improve quality of legal services to the poor.

The percentages for each of the MSA ranged from 2.9 to 7.2 percent. Two of the MSAs contributed, in terms of absolute numbers, the most: Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land had 109 attorneys, and Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington had 92 attorneys (out of 341 total) providing free legal services in to simplify or improve quality of legal services to the poor.

Occupation: o

Law Faculty had the highest percentage (11.8 percent) of providing free legal services in to simplify or improve quality of legal services to the poor. However Private Law Practice (9.6 percent) had most of the attorneys (268 out of a total of 341) providing this pro bono service.



Years of Experience and Age show a moderate positive relationship with the likelihood of providing free legal services in to simplify or improve quality of legal services to the poor. Those younger or with less experience have a lower percentage of having provided free legal services in to simplify or improve quality of legal services to the poor, while those older or with more experience show a higher percentage.



Race/Ethnicity show only small differences in percentages of attorneys providing free legal services in to simplify or improve quality of legal services to the poor.



Sex shows small differences: women were more likely (4.8 percent) to provide free legal services in to simplify or improve quality of legal services to the poor, compared to men (3.8 percent).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 13.1 Provided Free Services to Simplify or Improve Quality of Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 Percent Provided Free Services to Simplify or Improve Legal Services Average Hours* (n = 8,164)

(n = 341)

All Responding Type of Practice

4.2

27.2

7.2 2.5 6.0 2.6 4.3

24.0 33.5 25.6 18.3 34.1

4.6 3.8 3.5 3.4 6.2 4.5 2.9 2.7 2.7 8.3 4.0

27.1 32.4 26.5 24.3 18.9 18.0 30.0 31.0 17.1 23.5 19.8

7.2

24.0

5.0 2.1 1.3 4.7 11.8 1.7 3.2 2.3 2.8 5.3 4.5 11.1

25.7 14.9 30.0 14.0 63.0 20.2 31.3 57.4 11.7 49.0 91.2 36.7

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 13.2 Provided Free Services to Simplify or Improve Quality of Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 Percent Provided Free Services to Simplify or Improve Legal Services

Average Hours*

(n = 8,164)

(n = 341)

4.2

27.2

2 or less years 3 to 6 years 7 to 10 years 11 to 15 years 16 to 20 years 21 to 25 years More than 25 years

2.2 2.8 3.9 5.4 5.3 5.3 4.9

13.2 20.4 21.6 27.8 28.5 31.9 32.6

21 to 25 years 26 to 30 years 31 to 35 years 36 to 40 years 41 to 45 years 46 to 50 years 51 to 55 years 56 to 60 years 61 to 65 years More than 65 years

1.6 2.5 2.6 3.9 4.8 4.8 3.9 4.9 5.6 7.0

7.0 16.7 18.3 25.8 22.7 31.0 31.7 29.1 27.6 38.1

White Black/African-American Hispanic/Latino Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian or Alaska Native Two or more races Other

3.7 7.0 6.9 6.5 0.0 4.2 2.2

27.7 35.5 19.7 22.3 n/a 12.5 42.5

Male

3.8

24.8

Female

4.8

30.3

All Responding Years of Experience

Age

Race/Ethnicity

Sex

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 13.3 Hours of Free Services to Simplify or Improve Quality of Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 Average Hours of those Percent of those Providing Providing Free Legal Services Free Legal Services to to Simplify or Improve Quality Simplify or Improve Quality of Legal Services to the Poor of Legal Services to the Poor 1 to 10 hours 11 to 20 hours 21 to 30 hours 31 to 40 hours 41 to 50 hours 51 to 75 hours 76 to 100 hours 101 to 200 hours 201 to 500 hours Total



43.2 18.6 15.7 5.3 5.9 2.7 6.5 1.2 0.9 100.0

Attorneys who provided free legal services to simplify or improve quality of legal services to the poor in 2013 were asked to indicate the number of hours they provided: • Thirty-eight percent of those respondents indicated that they provided 21 hours or more of service. • Almost 9 percent provided 76 hours or more of those services.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Financial Contributions Paid Actual Out-of-Pocket Expenses Related to Pro Bono or Legal Services to the Poor Respondents were asked if, in the year 2013, they paid actual out-of-pocket expenses related to pro bono or legal services to the poor. Some 20 percent of respondents reported paying actual out-of-pocket expenses related to pro bono services or legal services to the poor in 2013. Figure 12 Percent of Attorneys Who Paid Actual Out-of-Pocket Expenses Related to Pro Bono or Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 (n = 8,164) 100.0% 90.0%

80.0%

Percent

70.0% 60.0% 50.0% 40.0% 30.0%

20.0%

20.0% 10.0% 0.0% Percent of Attorneys

Yes 20.0%

No 80.0%

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Financial Contributions Summary Findings 

Type of Practice: o



Respondents in Urban/Private/Small Firm practices (32.0 percent) and those in Rural/All Occupations (31.3 percent) practices were most likely to pay actual out-of-pocket expenses related to pro bono.

Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs): o

The MSA varied from a high percentage for Non-Metropolitan Counties (31.3 percent) to percentages in the 20’s for all but two of the MSAs, which were DallasFort Worth-Arlington at 18.4 percent, and Austin-Round Rock at 14.8 percent.



Occupation: o

While Retired/Not Working had the highest percentage (28.1 percent) paying out-ofpocket expenses, this was a relatively small occupation group (N=57). Private Law Practice with 25.6 percent paying out-of-pocket expenses, had 1,350 members out of the 1,631 who paid actual out-of-pocket expenses related to pro bono or legal services to the poor.



Years of Experience and Age show a moderate positive relationship with the likelihood of paying out-of-pocket expenses. Those younger or with less experience have a lower percentage of paying out-of-pocket expenses, while those older or with more experience show a higher percentage.



Race/Ethnicity shows some differences in percentages of paying out-of-pocket expenses.



Sex shows differences: Men were more likely (22.0 percent) to pay actual out-of-pocket expenses related to pro bono, compared to women (16.8 percent).

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 14.1 Paid Actual Out-of-Pocket Expenses Related to Pro Bono or Legal Services to the Poor in 2013

Percent Who Paid Actual Out-ofPocket Expenses

Average Out-ofPocket Expenses*

(n = 8,164)

(n = 1,631)

All Responding Type of Practice

20.0

876

31.3 9.3 32.0 14.9 14.1

1,101 519 904 1,072 921

20.3 18.4 14.8 20.7 22.3 25.2 28.6 22.5 25.0 29.5 22.5

982 808 710 715 1,058 943 575 694 1,323 628 800

31.3

1,101

25.6 5.7 9.2 7.8 19.6 8.5 9.5 12.1 12.7 28.1 19.8 22.2

942 471 301 596 423 416 1,009 841 679 653 176 468

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 14.2 Paid Actual Out-of-Pocket Expenses Related to Pro Bono or Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 Percent Who Paid Actual Out-of-Pocket Average Out-ofExpenses Pocket Expenses* (n = 8,164) All Responding Years of Experience

(n = 1,631)

20.0

876

2 or less years 3 to 6 years 7 to 10 years 11 to 15 years 16 to 20 years 21 to 25 years More than 25 years

12.4 15.2 14.8 21.9 21.7 22.2 27.3

409 836 731 1,011 771 1,021 985

21 to 25 years 26 to 30 years 31 to 35 years 36 to 40 years 41 to 45 years 46 to 50 years 51 to 55 years 56 to 60 years 61 to 65 years More than 65 years

6.6 9.7 13.0 18.0 20.8 23.0 23.7 25.5 26.5 31.9

69 490 589 856 780 952 896 828 1,186 1,128

White Black/African-American Hispanic/Latino Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian or Alaska Native Two or more races Other

19.7 24.0 21.5 15.6 20.8 19.0 28.9

920 657 649 1,304 202 511 692

Male

22.0

1,037

Female

16.8

550

Age

Race/Ethnicity

Sex

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 14.3 Total Amount of Paid Out-of-Pocket Expenses Related to Pro Bono or Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 Percent of those Out-of-Pocket Expenses Related to Pro Reporting Out-ofBono or Legal Services to the Poor Pocket Expenses $50 or Less $51 to $100 $101 to $200 $201 to $300 $301 to $400 $401 to $500 $500 to $1,000 $1,001 to $2,000 $2,001 to $5,000 $5,001 to $50,000

10.6 12.1 11.9 11.7 3.3 17.6 15.1 10.4 6.0 1.4



Respondents who paid out-of-pocket expenses related to legal services to the poor were asked to approximate the total amount. As shown in Table 14.3, of those who paid out-of-pocket expenses: • 22.7 percent paid expenses between $50 and $100 • 23.6 percent paid expenses between $101 and $300 • 20.9 percent paid expenses between $301 and $500 • 25.5 percent paid expenses between $501 and $2,000 • and 7.4 percent paid expenses between $2,001 and $50,000.



The average financial contribution made was $875.67.



Extrapolation to the total active in-state attorney population of 84,800 results in an estimate that the total out-of-pocket expenses related to pro bono or legal services to the poor in 2013 was $14.83 million (a 95% confidence interval is $14.03 to $15.64 million). This total was obtained by multiplying the estimated 16,941 attorneys in Texas who paid out-of-pocket expenses related to legal services to the poor (20.0 percent of active in-state attorneys) by the average of $876 paid per attorney. If the projection is restricted to just the 64,007 attorneys who meet the criteria of not opting out of taking surveys, who reported occupation, and if private practitioners they reported firm size, then the out-of-pocket expenses related to pro bono or legal services to the poor in 2013 was $11.20 million (a 95% confidence interval is $10.59 to $11.81 million).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Financial Contributions Made Direct Financial Contributions Related to Legal Services to the Poor Respondents were asked if, in the year 2013, they made direct financial contribution related to legal services to the poor. Some 14.5 percent of attorneys made direct financial contributions related to legal services to the poor in 2013. Figure 13 Percent of Attorneys Who Made Direct Financial Contributions Related to Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 (n = 8,164) 85.5%

90.0% 80.0% 70.0%

Percent

60.0% 50.0% 40.0% 30.0% 20.0%

14.5%

10.0% 0.0% Percent of Attorneys

Yes 14.5%

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No 85.5%

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Financial Contributions Summary Findings 

Type of Practice: o



Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs): o



Respondents working in Urban/Private/Large Firm practices were most likely (27.3 percent) to make direct financial contributions related to legal services to the poor.

El Paso attorneys were the most likely to make direct financial contributions related to legal services to the poor (26.2 percent), followed by AustinRound Rock (22.7 percent).

Occupation: o

Full-Time Judges (32.9 percent) and Law Faculty (31.4 percent) had the highest likelihood of making a direct financial contributions related to legal services to the poor.

Private Law Practice had 15.9 percent making a direct financial contribution. In terms of absolute numbers, this occupation with 844 attorneys making direct financial contributions, made up 71 percent of all those making this kind of contribution.



Years of Experience and Age show a positive relationship with the likelihood to make direct financial contributions related to legal services to the poor. Those younger or with less experience have a lower percentage, while those older or with more experience show a higher percentage.



Race/Ethnicity show some differences in percentages of attorneys to make direct financial contributions related to legal services to the poor.



Sex shows only a slight difference: Women were more likely (15.3 percent) to to make direct financial contributions related to legal services to the poor, compared to men (14.1 percent).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 15.1 Made Direct Financial Contributions Related to Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 Percent Made Direct Financial Contributions

Average Direct Financial Contribution*

(n = 8,164)

(n = 1,186)

All Responding Type of Practice

14.5

650

9.1 12.2 13.2 16.3 27.3

1,533 466 764 644 613

11.9 14.5 22.7 11.4 26.2 6.3 18.6 9.9 11.4 17.9 12.3

773 639 525 649 509 686 560 382 652 584 441

9.1

1,533

15.9 10.3 32.9 9.4 31.4 14.9 17.9 9.2 6.0 15.8 3.6 3.7

727 289 341 246 638 542 1,034 536 343 471 566 250

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 15.2 Made Direct Financial Contributions Related to Legal Services to the Poor in 2013 Percent Made Direct Financial Contributions

Average Direct Financial Contribution*

(n = 8,164)

(n = 1,186)

14.5

650

2 or less years 3 to 6 years 7 to 10 years 11 to 15 years 16 to 20 years 21 to 25 years More than 25 years

5.6 10.4 13.5 14.1 15.4 17.8 21.3

243 537 400 484 478 832 853

21 to 25 years 26 to 30 years 31 to 35 years 36 to 40 years 41 to 45 years 46 to 50 years 51 to 55 years 56 to 60 years 61 to 65 years More than 65 years

3.3 7.1 10.3 13.1 13.3 15.4 18.4 21.4 21.4 19.4

125 275 398 609 524 550 911 717 697 957

White Black/African-American Hispanic/Latino Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian or Alaska Native Two or more races Other

14.9 10.9 13.0 16.0 8.3 14.1 12.2

628 709 724 971 200 325 1,014

Male

14.1

740

Female

15.3

517

All Responding Years of Experience

Age

Race/Ethnicity

Sex

* Average hours are shown in italics if differences within a demographic category are not statistically significant (p <= .05).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

V. TYPES OF SERVICES PROVIDED CONTINUED Table 15.3 Total Amount of Direct Financial Contributions Related to Legal Services to the Poor in 2013

Direct Financial Contributions Related to Pro Bono or Legal Services to the Poor

Percent Responding who Made Direct Financial Contribution

$50 or Less $51 to $100 $101 to $200 $201 to $300 $301 to $400 $401 to $500 $500 to $1,000 $1,001 to $2,000 $2,001 to $5,000 $5,001 to $25,000 

7.9 16.1 22.3 14.8 3.2 13.7 11.6 6.0 3.0 1.5



Forty-six percent of attorneys made direct financial contributions between $50 and $200. Twenty-two percent of the respondents made financial contributions of $500 or more.



The average financial contribution made was $650.47.



Extrapolation to the total active in-state attorney population of 84,800 results in an estimate that the total direct financial contributions related to pro bono or legal services to the poor in 2013 was $8.01 million (a 95% confidence interval is $7.41 to $8.61 million). This total was obtained by multiplying the estimated 12,319 attorneys in Texas who made direct financial contributions related to legal services to the poor (14.5 percent of active in-state attorneys) by the average of $650 contribution per attorney. If the projection is restricted to just the 64,007 attorneys who meet the criteria of not opting out of taking surveys, who reported occupation, and if private practitioners they reported firm size, then the out-of-pocket expenses related to pro bono or legal services to the poor in 2013 was $6.05 million (a 95% confidence interval is $5.60 to $6.50 million).

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Survey Report

APPENDIX A: SURVEY INSTRUMENT

State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey -- Status 2013 Dear Attorney, The State Bar of Texas needs your help! Complete the 2013 Texas Attorney Survey and you could win a new iPad Air. The State Bar is conducting the 2013 Texas Attorney Survey to provide you and other Texas attorneys with information about the economics of the practice of law. This survey is conducted every other year. Reports generated from this survey provide statewide and regional information on current economic trends. The reports feature detailed breakdowns of income and hourly rates by firm size, years of experience, practice area, occupation, race/ethnicity, sex, and metropolitan area. Results of this survey will be made available on the Department of Research and Analysis website. The survey also includes questions regarding pro bono. This data will be used to highlight how Texas attorneys are doing their part to help low-income people in our state. Attorneys who participate will be entered in a drawing to win one of two new iPad Airs. This survey is completely anonymous, and the process is secure. Your email address will be used for the iPad Air drawing and will then be deleted and not associated with your responses. Completion of the survey should take no more than 3 minutes. Please complete the survey by 5 p.m. Monday, April 14, 2014. Click here to complete the 2013 Texas Attorney Survey. Your participation will help ensure you and other Texas attorneys have the most current economic information available. If you have any questions please feel free to call us at (800) 204-2222, ext. 1724 or email us at research@texasbar.com. Thank you for your help. Sincerely, Cory Squires State Bar of Texas Department of Research and Analysis

Instructions: Each question can be answered by simply selecting a response or filling in a blank. These questions are for information related to calendar year 2013. Completion of the survey should take no more than 3 minutes. Please complete this questionnaire by 5 p.m. Monday, April 14, 2014.. Thank you for your participation.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

Survey Questions: 1.

For 2013, what was your primary occupation?

___ Private law practice ___ For-profit Corporate/In-House Counsel ___ Non-profit Corporate/In-House Counsel ___ Full-Time Judge ___ Other judicial branch ___ Retired/Not working ___ Public Interest Lawyer

___ Law faculty ___ Other law related ___Non-law related ___ Unemployed/Looking for work ___ Unemployed/Not looking for work ___ Government attorney ___ Was not licensed to practice in 2013

In calendar year 2013, did you work: ___Full-time ___Part-time ___Other

What was your approximate gross personal income during calendar year 2013? __________________

For 2013, if you were in private law practice, how many attorneys, including yourself, worked in your firm? (Please include attorneys at all locations of your firm in the total.) Number of attorneys (can be approximate): ________

For 2013, if you worked as a private law practitioner, please list the areas of practice that account for 25 percent or more of the time you spent practicing law and the typical hourly rate (if applicable) you charged in each area. Practice Area Hourly Rate ________________________________________________ ______________ ________________________________________________

______________

________________________________________________

______________

________________________________________________

______________

Did you provide any free legal services to the poor in 2013? (Do not include cases where your clients failed to pay you.) ___Yes ___No

If so, approximately how many total hours did you provide? _________________________

Approximately how many hours were for: Please note that these categories do not need to sum to the total hours provided. ___Civil Matters ___Criminal Matters ___Unsolicited Court Appointments ___Legal services to a charitable organization for the poor ___Legislative, administrative, or systems advocacy for the poor ___Legal services to simplify or improve quality of legal services to the poor

Did you provide any legal services at a substantially reduced fee that benefited the poor in 2013? (Do not include cases where your clients failed to pay you.) ___Yes ___No

10. If so, approximately how many total hours did you provide? _________________________

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

11. Approximately how many hours were for: Please note that these categories do not need to sum to the total hours provided. ___Civil Matters ___Criminal Matters ___Unsolicited Court Appointments 12. Did you pay actual out-of-pocket expenses related to pro bono or legal services to the poor in 2013? ___Yes ___No 13. If so, what was the approximate total amount of the out-of-pocket expenses that you made in 2013? ______________________________________________________________________________________ Did you make any direct financial contributions related to legal services to the poor in 2013? ___Yes ___No 14. If so, what was the approximate total amount of the financial contribution made in 2013? ______________________________________________________________________________________ 15. If you have any comments or suggestions about pro bono services please provide them below: ______________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________ 16. In which Texas county is your office located (in 2013)? _________________________________________ 17. Years of experience as an attorney, up to and including calendar year 2013: ___ 2 or less years ___ 3 to 6 years ___ 7 to 10 years ___ 11 to 15 years ___16 to 20 years ___21 to 25 years ___ Over 25 years 18. What is your age? ___ 21 to 25 years ___ 31 to 35 years ___41 to 45 years ___ 51 to 55 years ___ 61 to 65 years

___ 26 to 30 years ___ 36 to 40 years ___46 to 50 years ___ 56 to 60 years ___ More than 65 years

19. What is your sex? ___Male ___Female 20. What is your race/ethnicity? ___White ___Black/African-American ___Hispanic/Latino ___Other

___Asian/Pacific Islander ___American Indian or Alaskan Native ___Two or More Races

21. If you have any additional comments regarding the information collected with this survey please provide them below: __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

APPENDIX B: Any Comments or Suggestions about Pro Bono Services? 1. Please add the category of "Administrative Law" to the list of "hours were for", (which I indicated were for civil matters). 2. Why are hours for "the poor" more noble than hours provided for any non-profit advocacy group (i.e., first amendment, environment, etc.)? 100% participation at some level by all Texas licensed attorneys should be goal of the State Bar. 2013 was a year of transition for me and my family, but I hope to increase my pro bono services in the future. 2013 was the first year that I had done any pro bono work, because I thought a finance attorney would have limited utility. I haven't gotten out of my comfort zone and know work with the Austin Bar Associations Veteran's legal clinic each month! I love it, but it does keep me extra busy, but it is worth it! I've probably spent 70-80 hours pro bono so far in 2014. A great deal of pro bono work falls outside of organized pro bono groups, such as work for extended family, neighbors, teachers, students, church friends/acquaintances, former clients, children of former clients, etc. A large number of my clients are low income clients, so my work for them is not included above even though I accepted a reduced fee for the work. A lot of attorneys are not in the position to offer pro bono services because they are too busy trying to find work that pays a decent salary. A lot of my clients are poor & then a lot of them simply cannot pay me; I am doing the best I can; A lot of my volunteer work indirectly supports the financing of legal services to the poor, such as the writing and editing of a newsletter for section members promoting membership and contributing to the funding of over $30,000 in grants to legal aid agencies. A lot of my work ends up being free or pro bono because clients do not finish paying my fee. Court appointed work pays very low rates. A mandatory pro bono program is necessary to meet the legal needs of the large indigent community in Texas. Abolish the IOLTA program and let the attorneys or the clients keep the interest. After many, many, years in practice, I am still amazed at the lack of understanding on the part of the judiciary of the impact of a constant flow of court appointments on the management of a criminal practice. I would have had a respectable income had I not been precluded from billing by an unmanageable court appointed caseload. Ultimately, that is overburdened again by the tendency of trial judges to cut bills so that the promised reduced fee becomes in some cases less than overhead. And, of course, since all clients deserve the same level of service, there comes a time when a major appointed case (murder, child sex assault, etc.) takes so much time that one cannot in good faith accept new retained business for a while. I am thus amazed that the younger lawyers still sign up for appointments. I would like to see a State Bar committee re-visit the idea of a state wide public defender service. Agreed to handle a major pro bono case in 2014. All attorneys can perform some pro bono service. All attorneys need to be involved; there are many legitimate legal needs of indigent people all attorneys should donate time or money All clients should have skin in the game, even if it is greatly reduced by income.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

Allow fees to be recovered from the government if the government initiates or brings an action and the government loses. Allow reasonable fees to be recovered from an insurance company that denies medical care and the insurance company loses. Allow substitution of CLE hours for pro bono hours. Almost have to do some Appropriate for Big Law, not solo practitioners. (Unless other income from spouse, family or trust fund.) Approximately $15,000 to $20,000 annual charitable contributions into their general fund. As a government attorney, there is a large amount of pro bono work that I can't do. Consequently, I volunteer with several non-legal agencies As a federal government lawyer, I am restricted to practicing on behalf of the federal government only. As a government attorney (staff attorney for a Court of Appeals justice), I am not permitted by the rules of ethics to do pro bono work. As a government attorney for a prosecutor's office, it is difficult to do actual pro bono cases that do not conflict with my employment. I do try to donate financially or participate in community outreach through my office. As a government attorney, I provide free legal services that benefit families, but I do not represent individuals. As a judge, the ethical rules prohibit me from doing pro bono work myself, although we obviously provide services to pro se and indigent parties. As a prosecutor, I dedicate all of my time helping the public! As a senior district judge, sitting by assignment, I do not do any legal work As a solo attorney practicing family law, I find that a majority of the working people that come to me cannot afford legal services, even at a reduced rate. My skills and practice area would allow me to bill at least at $225, I've been billing at $175 to help people. They still can't afford it. I work on payment plans, but if they're are not getting child support or other help, it makes it very hard for them to even do that. I do it mostly because I know they need an attorney for help with their issues. It is very disheartening As a solo practitioner this on-going question just amazes me. It seems to come from people who have no contact with real, normal, working people and families, especially minorities. It seems to come from what I call well-meaning silk drawer lawyers who are trying to find a connection between society and their activities as lawyers. They put the term pro bono on it so they can get credit for doing what lawyers like me do on a daily/weekly basis because for my clients I am the only lawyer many of them know. Calls come in that simply take time to understand before you can advise the person about what they are dealing with. I never get paid for it and it always takes more time than I would like, but these are nice people who have a question but nowhere else to turn. State Bar, I have been called a number of times and asked this question and I have been asked this question in surveys and forms; and my bar page asks me to contribute to the pro bono fund; I don't contribute because I literally gave at the office. As a solo, I enjoy freedom to identify "worthy causes" for pro bono work on a case-by-case basis. I do not actively seek out pro bono work. But I find that through my religious and civic activities, I am presented with opportunities to help those lacking the financial means to help themselves. The only condition I usually impose on my pro-bono clients is that they refrain from telling anyone that I helped them "pro-bono." As a Texas attorney after tort reform, I need pro bono services for me.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

As a way for large/medium sized law firms (LMs) to provide pro bono services to the poor, as well as create a revenue stream for struggling solo practitioners and small firms (SFs), I would suggest that pro bono work be outsourced by LMs to SFs. The LMs would pay SFs an hourly fee to handle the pro bono work for them, and the LMs would be eligible for State Bar credit for the outsourced pro bono work done by the SFs. It is a classic win-win proposition for the LMs, for the SFs and most of all for the poor who need legal services. As a working mother of two young children I cannot find time to do pro bono work. However, if there was an easy way I could contribute each year toward pro bono services each time I paid my bar fees and/or attorney taxes I would do it. As an assistant County Attorney, I am prohibited from engaging in the practice of law outside of my employment, including pro bono service. As an associate with a heavy case load, it is hard for me to complete the work I am required to perform and have any quality if life outside the office. I am involved in other civic groups mainly because by the time I leave the office the last thing I want to think about is work or the law. As an associate, unless the partners require it, it is very difficult to do pro bono work and meet the expectations of the firm. While I am inclined to do pro bono work - I didn't for fear of not meeting the firm expectations with additional non-billable work on my plate. As an in-house attorney and the only one in my company, I have very little outside contact or knowledge on how to volunteer. Would love to assist folks with contracts or other civil matters if I knew how--so the suggestion is provide more information about how to make one's services available. As solo practitioner, I take pro bono cases. As an associate with the firm I was working for does not take pro bono cases. As the market tightens, as it is, the time that is available for pro bono becomes less, not more. Ask about pro bono work for community orgs and similar entities. Does not need to be "for the poor" to be legit pro bono services! At the salary I earn as a suburban/rural prosecutor, the majority of my work was "reduced rate" benefiting "the poor" ATJ has corrupted the system and completely mislead the public. ATJ would have you believe pro bono equals poor. The two terms are completely unrelated. Attorney should be compensated for out of pocket expenses. Attorneys need help finding more pro bono opportunities in their practice area. Attorneys should not be required to provide services to the poor in practice areas in which they are not competent. Attorneys should provide pro bono legal services in family law matters in cases other than mere simple divorces. Many people that I have helped needed legal representation in matters involving custody and child support, and were turned away by other attorneys and local legal aid Attorneys who do pro bono or reduced fee cases should be allowed To request compensation from the State Bar Access To Justice Fund Bar needs more focus on helping members make a living so they can afford the time and money to provide pro bono services Became licensed in November 2013. Because I work for a court of appeals, I am not permitted to do pro bono work (although I admittedly could donate to such causes) Been there; done that; now do very little in my retirement. Sometimes help little ladies in my church. Being officers of the court, the pro bono requests should be for legal residents/citizens and not for illegals. There are plenty of poor people who did things the right way who could use our help. Better incentivize firms to support pro bono Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

Pro Bono services are absolutely good & necessary, with an understanding that Lawyers cannot survive and work all free. By supporting legal aid organizations you support those who practice pro-bono style law as a full time job. Can't afford them Change the culture. Charge very reasonable rates for my service. clients receiving legal aid assistance need to be screened carefully for eligibility Contributed time and legal counsel to friends and family members on a pro bono basis for Landlord-Tenant and Domestic Relations matters. Contribution to Texas Bar Foundation Create a fund for legal services for the poor by billing corporations which earn above a certain threshold in profits; their cups are overfilled, let it spill onto those who need legal services. The burden for the legal costs of representing the poor can never and shouldn't be borne by the legal profession itself (physicians do not cover Medicaid and similar programs; they always charge and give little or nothing). Current system is a failure. Attys should be required to handle cases free if the matters in question are properly vetted. Dallas County District Judges need to stop defrauding court appointed attorneys out of their fees in termination of parental rights cases. There needs to be an attorney wheel. of random assignments. There needs to be training requirements for ad litems that are enforced. The administrative judge needs jurisdiction over these cases of nonpayment. Dallas Volunteer Attorney's program (DVAP) and Legal Aid of North West Texas (LANWT) are two of the most deserving organizations in Texas. Both young lawyers wanting to learn how to practice law in Texas and the poor who deserve fair representation are supported by these organizations. Did not provide pro bono services because not allowed as an appellate court staff attorney and, sadly, because income is below average attorney income, unable to donate. Do everything possible to eliminate/reduce the need for lawyers in civil matters. Examples - Sup. Ct work for family forms, improvements to JP court processes. Change ethics rules from zealous advocacy for client to zealous advocacy for truth. Discourage concept of "winning" from court/legal processes. Goal should be truth, not winning - and there is a difference! Do not make it mandatory let the rich civil firms provide it. Solos do not have the resources or time to do this. do not mix pro bono and public service Does the bar not care about pro bono services to non-profits that are educational, abuse prevention, etc. and not specifically targeted to the poor? I could report hours in those cases. Donated many hours as co-chair of fundraiser and $3,000 to assist poor students attend my children's private Catholic high school Donations to Southern Poverty Law Center Don't force lawyers to do Pro Bono work. There are other areas of ministry where lawyers are gifted and can undertake their work, perhaps even out of the legal field. The State Bar should not tell me how to undertake my charitable work. E-filing charges have cause me to stop being willing to take on reduced rate cases. El Paso has a program compelling free work for divorces and criminal matters...I pay to opt out of those assignments because I do not know how to, or want to, practice in those areas in which I am forced to participate. eliminate them Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

Ensure the local bar associations are the main conduit between lawyers and the potential needy client. Equal access to justice is vital for the functioning of our system. Ethical duties as a judicial branch employee prevent me from contributing to most organizations that could potentially bring actions before our Court. Every attorney must take Pro Bono Every attorney should do it! every attorney should provide some sort of pro-bono type of service to the community Every lawyer should help out, even in a small way like me. It's rewarding. And, I think it's part of our ethical duty as members of the Bar. Every person should contribute something toward their case or there is Jo value in their estimation. Some clients can contribute very little and that is fine if they actually contribute. Family law cases are difficult as pro bono because when people don't pay they fight over stupid things and the attorney basically funds it. Fifth Circuit really needs a pro bono appeals program For profit corporations do not encourage any pro bono work at all and only encourage any work that will increase profitability. Work needs to be done in this area. For years, as a staff attorney I have provided quality service to the public at low pay. That sometimes feels like pro bono. I support other charities for the poor. Free training to private attorneys to fight for the poor in Child Protective Services and Immigration deportation. Frequently, I earn less than $20 @ hour on unsolicited court appointments. This is due to the ethical need to provide my work hours, in and out of court, for the client's needs, rather than my own. Unfortunately, I see this lacking in many others. I believe this shame is caused by the need to survive and the low fees paid. Those paid are usually the same amount for one court appearance as for multiple. I have made up to seven appearances, many times, for as low as $140, total, so my client would benefit. This included many hours spent in jury preparation for cases that were ultimately dismissed. My clients would not do the time, but we were both do the ride. I believe this is often caused by some prosecutor's need to punish defendants and the attorneys from whom they receive a true choice of available options. I find no area of the law more important to the citizen and our country's constitution, than criminal law. Unlike many areas, it uses most of the constitution, constantly. It is for all the marbles: life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Too bad the rights of our poor are so undervalued. Frequently only the new attorney takes these appointments. Many are not ready to provide an adequate trial for their client. This is another cause of the rush to a plea deal. Many good attorneys find other, more lucrative areas, in which to practice. Then they disappear. I have seen the same old-timers around for nearly thirty years. I see many of the youngsters come and go, quickly. I plan to remain. But, sometimes I wonder why. Get rid of the forms for family law Give some CLE credit for cases completed. Got license late November of 2013 Government attorneys are not allowed to practice law outside of our jobs, therefore we can not do pro bono hours. Your survey would be better to include a choice of "not allowed by law". Government attorneys are usually not allowed to do pro bono. Government attorneys may not donate their time. Government employee, not actively practicing law

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

Great need. Maybe it should be mandatory for lawyers to provide a minimum number of pro bono hours every year so we can make/have a more positive impact. Many people need help but the number of lawyers who are willing to give of their time and talent seems to be diminishing. Younger lawyers do not seem to be interested. Many well established and experienced lawyers feel it is beneath them to take on pro bono cases or to volunteer to work for a few hours in an "Ask a Lawyer" program. Hard to figure out efficient way to participate in pro bono work. Having just started in private practice in October 2013, I completed no pro bono hours until the start of calendar year 2014. Help make connections for attorneys easier. Market to poor on behalf of those willing to help. Offer free training in family law issues. I "give" away legal services on a regular basis, to those not able, or willing to pay for those services. I always give more time advising people too poor to pay me than I can report because I tend to fail to accurately document the time. I am a fan of Texas C-Bar and Legal Services of Northwest Texas I am a Fellow of the Bar Foundation, and I make annual contributions to that organization, a portion of which benefits the poor. I am a full time legal aid attorney and some questions don't apply to me. I am a government attorney, my agency will not approve any outside representation, including pro bono. I am a legal aid lawyer. All services provided are free to the poor, but I get paid a salary from my legal aid law firm for doing this, so I can't take personal credit for doing it for free. Instead, I donated money for a couple of clients who needed cash while I fixed their legal problems. I am a nonprofit lawyer and we don't charge for our services. But I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t consider it pro bono bc I get a salary. I would suggest trying to make these questions inclusive of this type of work bc I work on average 50-55 hrs/week. I am a prosecutor in a municipal court, so I work with pro se defendants all the time. I don't calculate or keep track of how much legal assistance I give, but the hand holding through the process of working out cases in municipal court seems to me like it should count as some sort of pro bono work. I spend a large percentage of my time explaining the legal ramifications of different types of citations to people who have no legal representation. There should be a way to include this type of uncompensated service in your survey. I am a public defender so was not sure how to answer this I am a public defender, paid a set salary, though all my clients are indigent. I said "no" since I was paid for my services, but these questions do not fully reflect service to the poor. I am a public defender. It is hard to determine, given this form, whether I provide "pro bono" legal services to the poor. All the services I provide are free to the public, however, I am salaried and am paid for my time. Additionally, I spend time assisting and educating other lawyers, attempting to improve the quality of indigent defense. I am a public interest attorney who provides free legal services to the poor so that all of my full time paid work is free to my clients but for the occasional court fees I am a public interest, court-appointed attorney in a county office. My caseload is high and serves primarily those found to be indigent. Since I am a county employee on a fixed salary, with a high caseload, the attorneys in our office don't have the time for pro bono work and really can't do pro bono work due to potential conflicts. I am an Asst. Public Defender who works only with indigent clients.

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

I am disappointed that volunteer legal services and other programs for the poor do not require a financial commitment from the poor. As a consequence, I find that people seeking the benefit of such programs lack a commitment to their own legal services. In my experience, many of these people also fraudulently receive these services by falsifying applications (e.g. they have more assets and income than they report). I am happy to hear that the Bar now has a Pro Bono Campaign. I look forward to hearing about its progress. I am more able to donate an evening a month at fee clinics than to fully take on pro bono cases. I am more than willing to provide pro bono services, but my firm discourages it, as it takes away from "profitable billable hours." My firm discourages pro bono work even if I do the pro bono work on my own time, as the firm does not want the pro bono work to be a distraction. I am not against pro bono services, but frankly I did not receive assistance for either my undergraduate degree or my law degree either. Pro bono should be a personal decision, not something that is demanded by the bar or the profession. I am not going to do much free stuff in the future, instead I am going to do reduced fee. Already this year I am doing a case and billing the client at $5 per hour as opposed to my usual $300 per hour. I think everyone needs a little skin in the game. I am not sure where advice to churches, charitable organizations falls. I am prohibited by my job in representing individuals. I am required to handle corporate-related cases only. I am the Chair of **** **** ****** ****** and organize approximately 2 legal clinics per year and do low cost representation to E-4s and below. I am the poor. I like many law graduates have over 100k in loans and make around 50-60K. There are better paid secretaries. I am tired of the Bar continually bullying attorneys, particularly solo or small groups practitioners into providing pro bono services. IF I want to do it or can afford to do it, then I do so. I do not need to be made to feel guilty if I don't or that someone else is better than me because they do. I am unable to handle any pro bono cases as I represent the State of Texas. Before working for the government, I did take pro bono cases. I am uncomfortable with pro bono legal services. I have represented clients that were sued by pro bono services and they are very difficult to deal with because the plaintiff does not have any skin in the game. In other words, you cannot manage the lawsuit efficiently because the plaintiff is not paying their lawyer. I am VERY pleased to have done it. It meant I was an attorney in more than name only I and many other attorneys provide a substantial amount of non-paid legal assistance to educational, cultural and trade related non-profit organizations. That work should be counted in some way. I applaud those that take it upon themselves to represent those that need legal assistance but cannot afford the services. I appreciate the local bar association setting up pro bono services to the poor throughout the year and try to attend as many as i can I assisted people that did not qualify for free legal services because they were just above the property line- the working poor. I believe all legitimate hours an attorney works for a client that are not billed due to the client's financial status, should count as pro bono work. I believe it is incumbent on all attorneys to provide pro bono services, and think t should be a mandatory requirement to maintain a license to practice law. I believe pro bono services should not be tracked. I also believe they are a false aspiration. Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

I believe that all attorneys owe a duty to their community to assist the poor. I do not believe that the government/bar should make this compulsory since that becomes a "tax". I believe that all attorneys should contribute time to pro bono services. At legal aid we have thousands of eligible clients for every one of our staff attorneys. We need help to provide legal services to the low income population of Texas. I believe that attorneys are being unfairly vilified by the public. Attorneys, along with any other profession, have a right to earn a living. I find that most individuals who claim that they are unable to afford an attorney have plenty of money for a smartphone, television, cable, etc. I tend to donate my time to organizations (such as my church) rather than to individuals. I have clients who have to save small amounts of money out of their Social Security checks every month to pay my fees for a will (albeit I charge a reduced rate to such elderly individuals). I am thus unsympathetic to the claims of those who would impoverish our profession by stating that our fees are "too high" and that we are a "monopoly" that is somehow hurting poor people. I charge $100 for a deed and $250 for a will, yet somehow I am a villain because I need to make a living and pay back the exorbitant amount of money I borrowed to attend Baylor Law School. The cost of basic legal services has never been an issue- the issue is the public’s willingness to demonize our profession because “rich attorneys” “exploit” their clients with “exorbitant” fees. The very same individuals who complain to the State Bar about “unaffordable” legal services have no problem buying the latest televisions, phones, etc. Paying the attorney is simply not a priority for them. The best thing the State Bar could do for the poor of Texas would be to crack down on the unauthorized practice of law, which occurs daily in poorer communities, including but not limited to "notario" fraud. I feel that Texas attorneys, at least in rural areas, provide honorable service to their communities and are generally underappreciated by the Bar as a whole. Please resist the pressure from the Legislature to demonize our profession. I believe that if there were resources available that provided attorneys with pro bono opportunities in their area, more attorneys would give their time. I believe that it is never my intention to do pro bono work but sometimes it is hard to ask people for a large sum of money if it is clear they have none to give. This is what I saw in my private practice. So many people have terribly sad stories and it still brings about a sense of sympathy on my part. I believe that it is unethical and illegal to take interest earned on clients’ money (IOLTA) and pay it toward ANY person or group that does not have the CLIENTS' specific authorization. This is exactly what is mandated by the IOLTA. I believe that large firm attorneys, practicing civil defense, large probate, etc., should pay a substantial fee in excess of 10% of their gross billings I believe that many solo practitioners, especially in our small communities devote time at no pay or significantly reduced rates to the working poor. These are folks not classified as poverty but could not afford representation needed for legal matters to redress civil wrongs that have occurred to them. The State Bar needs to understand that is a major issue for solo practioners whose door is always open I can't afford to make financial contributions due to student loan payments. I changed jobs in June from State of Texas to Private Practice. This year, so far, I have billed 32.25 hours on a family law matter assigned to me by VLS I continue to resent the narrow definition of pro bono services, which excludes a wide variety of uncompensated legal service benefitting society in numerous ways.

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

I contributed a great deal of time -- more than 5000 hours -- to assist other organizations with nonprofit management. I suspect other lawyers do as well, but it is not captured as "pro bono hours". I also contributed a significant sum of money to organizations that assist low income families but these organizations do much more than just legal assistance. Might consider how to frame the questions around "pro bono services" and "financial contributions" to take into account these issues. I could not find a job for part of 2013, so I worked as a law clerk (unpaid) for the ************* of Texas. Would you consider this Pro-Bono work? I did maintain an IOLTA Account and fees were paid to Equal Access to Justice. I did not make any financial contributions to pro bono services as I have not been terribly impressed by the services which those organizations provide. I did perform approximately 10 hours of pro bono legal services to a school charitable organization. I did provide a significant amount of free legal services to friends or colleagues, none of whom are poor. Is there any way to provide easy access to or highly publicized notices about the local organizations that target those in need? I did provide direction and assistance in creating funding for pro bono legal services but it did not involve direct out of pocket expenses. Total awarded was around $60,000 in 2013. I disagree with pro bono services. I would have to charge my other clients for services they should not have to pay for to enable servicing of non-paying clients and I think that is unethical. They make these messes in civil law and they need to pay to fix them. Also, they tend to be the worse clients. We need to stop promoting free legal care. It is not a right. It is also unfair to the other party. Legal Aide of NW Texas cannot take a case on both sides of the case but often both parties are poor and that creates vast injustices as the represented party almost always wins. I do 95% appointed work in Bexar county. There is no public defender's office. I do believe it is inaccurate to not include services where you were not paid and did not seek full payment, as this is essentially the exact same as a reduced fee case- attorney's know midway they won't be paid and yet remain, which is like a lawyer knowing upfront they won't get paid in full. You are lessening the actual services rendered based on the attorney's foresight. I do immigration work. I apply for Pauper status so the client does not have to pay anything for my services. I do it as a personal obligation, and not as a reporting matter to the Bar. I do not believe in it I do not consider myself to be competent to provide pro bono legal services to the poor. I am basically a business person, not so much a lawyer anymore. I do not keep self-aggrandizement records for pro bono I do not track the pro bono I do very closely, both in areas of free and reduced costs. I typically will just not charge for all of my hours I spend with clients who have issues affording legal aid. I do them when I have time. But understand that appointed cases are pathetically underpayed. I do too much pro bono work. Many of my friends and colleagues make way more money than I do because of that. I just have not been practicing long enough, or have a hard enough heart, to send someone with a genuine legal need away from my office simply because they cannot afford to pay me. I donate a lot of time to foundations and public agencies, but that doesn't count as pro bono for the poor. I don't care about them at all I end up doing lots of pro bono by helping folks who need help and who simply can't pay and therefore don't. Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

I find that many pro bono clients take unreasonable advantage of free services because they have no "skin in the game." Perhaps some kind of scaled payments based on income and assets (I do divorces) can be devised where the attorney would withdraw if not paid. The scaled payments should probably go to legal services groups rather than the attorney. i have been assigned cases by NWTLS in Fort Worth that had $50,000 in assets and by VLS in Austin with over $100,000. Those groups could probably do a better job of screening. All in all, though, I enjoy my pro bono work. I find this to be a very rewarding part of my practice in my semi-retirement. I give them to unsolicited clients who in my opinion deserve those free pro bono benefits. I give time to the SBOT. My practice does not allow me to assist plaintiffs in workers compensation matters. I had a baby last year, so while I worked full-time, my time for pro bono case work was limited. I currently have a pro bono civil case, and I have assisted with our local legal aid clinic in the past. I handled only court-appointed cases so I consider that my pro bono work. I have lots of cases helping people correct the mistakes they make by representing themselves, Some of the mistakes are not correctable I have provided pro bono services for 40 years. I believe in it and do not brag on it. The form over substance litigation today literally prevents the poor from getting representation. I have referred some to the South Texas College of Law legal clinic and to Lone Star Legal Services and have had some positive feedback, but I hear very little about individuals providing pro bono services. I have volunteered for Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid but have not been recontacted -I helped administer the TRLA Bankruptcy Pro Bono Project. I assist or act as point person with TRLA for four quarterly Clinics in BR court each year. I know and run across people who are poor and I assist them many are children or old clentes who fell on hard times or church people etc.. I left my law firm in 2013. During my tenure with the firm, there was no encouragement to perform pro bono work, and the billable requirement worked as a disincentive; it is difficult to juggle client billables, firm time, and family. I like to provide the service as I see fit and not for it to be expected. Many people call and want to know do I work pro bono. Do I work for free. Some are actual business persons who can very well afford to pay a reasonable fee. They somehow feel that as attorneys we will take anyone who asks. I do not like to be taken advantage of but provide the service when I deem it necessary and welcomed . I need to do more, was dealing with own financial and health issues I never hear about weekend free clinics any more . . . I often charge a small fixed foo to poor folks because I believe everyone needs "some skin in the game" Nothing is free I paid for legal services for animals through the Animal Legal Defense Fund I performed about 200 hours of non-paid work for churches and other charitable institutions, but not necessarily for "the poor." I also performed another 100 hours of unpaid work for civic organizations which could not pay me. I personally believe the client should have some stake in the matter, even if it is not a dollar payment. For example, providing a service back to the attorney or another person. People tend to not appreciate that for which they do not pay in some way. I personally don't believe any legal work should be given away for absolutely nothing. I can work for $5/hour; pounds of pecans etc... to give away service is demeaning to the client; the practice and me. Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

I pick and choose the cases that I wish to take. I refuse to allow some group or association to assign them to me. Further I have found that these are the cases that cause the most problems, the people are ungrateful, they act as if it is owed to them. That is why I pick. Normally only public servants or vets. I PREFER REDUCED FEE TO FREE WORK I provide certain non-profits with assistance. While some of their services are provided to the poor, I feel as if I cannot report this assistance because of the "legal services to the poor" definition. I provide free services to existing clients. I provide many hours of legal service to other charitable organizations, and I reject the notion that "pro bono" only applies to services that benefit the "poor." I provide pro bono services for non-profit organizations, which are not strictly "poor", but are worthy, in my view. I provide pro bono services to a church, which in turn provides food, clothing, and shelter to the poor and homeless. I provide significant pro bono services for non-profit entities including schools and arts organizations which should be included in surveys on pro bono time. I provided approximately 200 hours of pro bono work to non-profit charitable and civic organizations in 2013, but these didn't specifically benefit the poor so I showed 0 hours based on the questions asked. I provided legal services without compensation as part of a local Bar program. I provided over 50 hours of pro-bono work to help a state university, an HBCU, establish a nonprofit foundation to raise scholarships for disadvantaged students. The survey above is severely flawed when it limits pro-bono to the "poor." I provided pro bono services for non-profit charities, but not for "the poor". I provided pro bono services for several non-profit organizations in 2013 but they are not directly for the poor so I did not include those hours. If you want to count those hours, would be around 30. I provided pro bono services to a 501(c)3 organization that does public interest advocacy on behalf of Highland Lakes interest. The advocacy was mostly administrative law related and legal research. I had unpaid expenses for mileage and other items that I did not charge the organization for. I provided pro bono services to non-profit entities and a church I provided the free legal services mentioned above as a Staff Attorney for a legal aid organization. I regularly answer questions from the general public regarding the mortgage lending process. I am not sure if this counts as 'pro bono' for the poor as my firm does not enquire as to the income level of people who call. I resent the living daylights out of the way these questions are worded. I spent many, many hours providing free legal advice, document preparation and even an occasional court appearance, but because I do it on my own, without the governance of some pro bono agency, I am not able to state that I did the work. So wrong!!!!! It is one of many reasons that I am very weary of the way or State Bar is organized and administered. I routinely provide 200 or more hours a year to pro bono for persons who cannot afford legal services. I do this in lieu of paying to pro bono organizations I serve the Body of Christ in their legal needs. However, this doesn't fit your PC definition of "poor" imbedded in your questions. I spent most of the time working with law students on pro bono cases. This was a very rewarding experience for myself and the students. Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

I spent probably 100+ hours serving as Chairman of the Board of a charity with 3 centers that cater to the poor, but do not provide legal services. Do you not consider that pro bono? I started out working for legal aid. I found that people do not need free legal services or any other kind of free services. They need money. I am against providing legal services for the poor. People never appreciate that which they receive for nothing. My tour at legal aid was very unrewarding. I started providing services in 2014 through VLS. I support access to justice efforts, especially the family law forms. I target the low-income Hispanic community in Corpus Christi, Texas, my hometown, where free or reduced-cost legal services are desperately needed in several practice areas. I taught classes at SMU law school as my public service. I think all lawyers should be required to provide 24 hours of pro bono services 2 hours/month) or, in the alternative, pay $1,000. I think every attorney should provide pro bono services to the poor or provide reduced rates to help them, but such a practice should not be made mandatory. I think it is a joke that I have to pay an attorney occupation tax to help the poor. After expenses, I netted $**** dollars last year. . I think it would be helpful to have CLE and/or training for attorneys that wish to provide pro bono services but do not practice in the areas of criminal or family law. I think more free training needs to be made available so that attorneys who practice law in one area can help others in another. Mentoring would also be really helpful. Perhaps the training is already out there, but I do not know much about it. I think pro bono for Determination of Heirship should be scrutinized. If there is an estate to distribute and a need for a determination it would stand to reason that attorneys both for the applicant and the unknown heirs should be paid. I think pro bono work is rewarding and serves to help those that cannot help themselves. I think it would be nice if there were a way for attorneys to be recognized for pro bono work. For instance, maybe for any pro bono work a lawyer could provide a link to a State Bar website where the clients could provide input as to the value/benefit/thanks/number of hours involved by the lawyer, for those lawyers who choose to perform free services. Maybe you could be awarded "stars" for bro bono service based on hours, client input, or other criteria, that could accumulate through the years and be available for display on the State Bar website. I think pro-bono services should be a requirement to maintain a law license. I did continuous and regular pro-bono work in law school, and the only reason I do not do so now, is 1) I am not allowed leave time from my full-time job to perform such services 2) and I am not required to do so by the State Bar I think sliding scale in family law works better. People in family law cases who get services for free don't seem to be invested in their cases. If they put up even $50, they are more engaged in the process. I think the public should be better informed by the Bar How generous Lawyers are with their ProBono time I think there is great value in pro bono legal work. I think this is a bullshit question I thought serving on the board of a nonprofit that provides free legal services to the poor would count, but now I'm thinking maybe it doesn't. I tried to volunteer services to Texas Accountants and Lawyers for the Arts, however, they will not take admin support only (or other volunteer hours) from attorneys; TALA will only permit attorneys to take cases, which is in conflict with corporate demands. Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

I typically volunteer, but I faced significant personal economic hurdles in 2013. I used to provide pro bono services and would like to continue to do so. However, I have been told by the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, that I cannot provide pro bono services during normal business hours while at work, nor can I use any of the resources available to me from my employer, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, such as computer, Lexis-Nexis, printer, etc, in order to do so. As such, I stopped providing pro bono services a few years ago because of that. I view "legal services to the poor" as political advocacy and resent the bar pushing this agenda. I volunteer at the Jefferson County Dispute Resolution Center doing mediations. I became a certified mediator just for this purpose and do not do mediations for money. I volunteer in other areas. I want to do pro-bono work, and I want to help people who need a major price break, but I can't. Every penny I make goes to paying my law school loans (reduced to $***** per month after the birth of my child in **********) and supporting my family. I wish there a way to get tax credit or something for pro-bono work. I've spoken with many attorneys in the same boat. I fear pro-bono work will become the privilege of big firms and the well off. I was a government attorney up until the end of July, 2013. After that, I opened my own private practice. I was just licensed in November 2013 - so don't let my numbers skew the totals!! I started my own practice January 1, 2014. So I will have better data next year. I was licensed in November 2013, I am not currently a practicing attorney. I was small firm pro bono attorney of the year for Dallas bar association. I did pro bono legal services for the Dallas volunteer attorney program. I will be happy to contribute to pro bono services once my student loans are paid off. I will not participate in assisting Legal Services any longer based on the conduct of the staff attorneys in two separate cases in 2013. I will probably stop providing no-pay pro bono services because the recipients generally demand excessive time far beyond those who pay for calls and meetings, complain the most about the services they get, despite the fact that I provide the quality, and are too frequently confrontative and accusatory by stating that since they aren't paying, they believe they are getting poor services. In this way, they are almost identical to those non-pro bono clients who are behind on paying their invoiced legal services, or who have quit paying. I wish I had the opportunity to provide pro bono services in areas for which I am qualified. Most people need lawyers who are less specialized than I am. I wish the State Bar would ask about free or reduced rate services provided to charities and nonprofit organizations instead of just about unserved poor. I wish they were less painful to provide for someone like me, newly starting out. I work for a nonprofit legal service agency and am not allowed to practice law outside of our organization. I do provide legal services to those at poverty level in civil matters. I work for a non-profit organization at below-market rates. Our lawyers here are never paid in full for our court-appointed legal work. But this is not considered pro bono by our profession. Rather, it's considered "that's the way it is." I work for a Texas state agency, so these questions don't apply to me I work for the gov't and my services as a prosecutor benefit the poor on a daily basis I work for the Texas Sixth Court of Appeals. Pursuant to Court policy, Staff Attorneys are prohibited from providing legal advice and cannot provide pro bono services. I believe that exceptions to this rule should be carved out and that we should be able to provide pro bono services for cases that are outside of our Court's jurisdiction. Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

I work in a county government that does not allow me to provide pro bono services directly to clients. I manage the law library. That said, persons of modest means are assisted at the law library on a daily basis. Many are pro se litigants. Public law libraries are well positioned to provide attorneys a way to locate pro bono opportunities. I work in a tax accountant office. I have my LLM in taxation and would love to be able to provide pro bono services. But, as I understand the ethics laws, I am prohibited from practicing in an accounting office as an attorney, so I cannot offer free legal services. I really wish that the old ethics law would go away, as I will have dual professional licenses soon and really see very little difference in what services tax accountants provide vs tax attorneys. My practice would be much more valuable being able to work as an attorney and accountant in whichever professional office I am able to be hired in, plus I would be able to give back to the community, which is not possible right now. I work in-house and it is very difficult to find pro-bono work that I can do from my office, although I would really like to do more. I work with the poor and disenfranchised in my work position due to that being the population of people we serve. You may want to add a question addressing those of us who primarily work with poor in that capacity instead of just pro bono. I worked > 200 hours at the USO at DFW Airport providing support for our military and their families. I worked as a criminal prosecutor. I worked for two different firms - one a contingency-based plaintiffs' consumer class action firm; the other a debtor defense firm that has low flat rates. So, the majority of my clients were either not paying for our representation or were paying relatively low rates. I would encourage every attorney do it. I would enjoy seeing an incentive structure implemented (reduced CLE hours for example) for attorneys who volunteer x number of hours per year for legal aid organizations. I would have liked to do some pro bono work, but the owner of my firm did not entertain the idea of pro bono work or reduction of fees for the needy I would like to do more pro bono work, but am fearful that as a young attorney I will be asked by legal aid to either: a) participate in cases in a different field of law and perform badly, or b) be asked to work on cases that conflict with my government employment. I would like to find more opportunities going forward. I would like to see more Texas Supreme Court Judges helping the Poor rather that helping the rich I would say that at least 50% of my clients who are middle class cannot afford legal services. I have done work for a reduced rate, write off bills and done 10 year payment plans for clients to be able to afford legal services. I have clients that have been paying monthly in excess of five years. These are not who I consider poor people. These are people who cannot afford to pay for legal representation during a legal crisis. I, and other lawyers in this firm, provided non-legal services and money to charitable organizations. Such work should be included when counting lawyers' contributions. I'd like a legal help line for pro bono work. I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have much experience because I'm a stay home mom of preschoolers that were born during and right after law school. IF PEOPLE REQUESTING PRO BONO SERVICES HOW MUCH THEY EARN, THE PROGRAM(S) WILL BE ABUSED BY THOSE PERSONS TOO CHEAP TO PAY A LAWYER. If the Texas Bar sent out more volunteer information (ex: an email listing opportunities to volunteer in the Houston area in June...) it would increase the number of volunteers. If this was to make me feel guilty, it worked. Next year! Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

If you are working on a court appointed case it is already at a substantial discount. If you provide pro bono services do it from the heart but do it right. If you provide reduce fees you've done it from the heart but keep doing right. ILB I'm a public defender. All of the work that I do is free legal services to the poor. I'm a staff attorney for Legal Aid, so my clients do not pay for my services. Our office is funded through grants and donations. I'm an assistant public defender. Most of my services are provided at a reduced rate compared to what I'd charge and used to charge as a civil attorney. I'm disappointed that so small a contribution is made by lawyers in government services - assistant city and county attorneys and DA's. They can come volunteer nights and week end just like I can I'M NOT GOING TO PROVIDE FREE LEGAL SERVICES TO THE POOR. I AM POOR DUE TO THIS WORTHLESS LAW DEGREE AND BAR CARD THAT COST ME OVER $100K IN STUDENT LOANS. In a small rural community, there are more occasions for pro bono services. In most cases they can pay something; $20 to $100. They should be required to contribute something to the pro bono clinic. To many are just free loaders. In my experience, a great way to get lawyers involved in pro bono service is through an active local bar organization that is engaged in pro bono and other public service, providing many opportunities and making it easy for its members to participate. In my opinion the emphasis on pro bono legal work is overrated. In criminal cases indigents receive court appointed attorneys and seldom are required to reimburse the county. In civil matters the cases are almost universally family law matters, and the organizations chartered to provide "free" legal services have such stringent financial requirements that few qualify. I think more is done by "kind hearted" private practice attorneys than by organizations chartered to provide them. In our county we are required to be on the court appointment list and I am on five different lists. We provide our services for a set rate on each type of case. In this economic and legal environment it gets more and more difficult to dedicate the time and resources. Instead of reducing the hourly rate, we often just reduce the overall invoice, sometimes only requesting the client to just pay out of pocket costs and providing the rest of the services, or a substantial amount of the services, for free. It actually can be really hard to find opportunities to offer substantive help pro bono in an area I feel comfortable. If it was easier I'd like to do more It causes too many people to think they can get something for nothing and its value to the client is what they paid for it. It is an honor and more attorneys should do it. It is difficult for state attorneys to perform pro bono work. I try to find other ways to give to the profession. it is fun to help others...kind of like over tipping for a service... like a 50 dollar tip for a 30 dollar service It is getting harder and harder to be able to afford overhead while giving away fees. I would love to see tax concessions to offset overhead costs. As long as we can afford to help, we always will. It is not the obligation of attorneys to provide pro bono services any more than it is the obligation of plumbers to provide free plumbing for the poor. It is very important to provide pro bono services. Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

It needs to be required for attorneys, and all attorneys, even partners at firms. They should not pass it off to lower associates to do it. It ticks me off that the legal services corporation are a closed union that doesn't allow very experienced lawyers such as myself to join because my "experience" puts be out of line with the salary schedule. Need to start a non-union legal services corporation. I have made this point to the directors and the State Bar without even lip service It would be great if pro bono/reduced fee work could be incentivized through CLE discounts or even vouchers for retail (like Starbucks, Target, restaurants, etc.) It would nice if court appointed attorneys were treated with a little respect It's difficult for government lawyers to provide pro bono services. We can't have clients come to public offices. Time is also a consideration, in private practice you can dedicate some time during the day. As a government attorney you can't bc of the responsibility of committing all time to your employer. Gov't entities should be encouraged by the State Bar to let their attorney staff participate in pro bono programs. My agency does not ever mention pro bono opportunities. I work at the Texas *******************, we have a lot of lawyers there. It's important to me that certain of my charitable activities remain anonymous. I've often wondered why attorneys should be any more inclined or compelled to provide free legal services to the poor, than doctors, plumbers, HVAC repairmen and other licensed professionals may be. Just that sometimes, pro-bono work isn't necessarily restricted to "the poor," but can and should include work for people who, while perhaps not technically poor, still very much need the help, and may not be able to easily get it without your help... Keep them voluntary, never mandatory. Law practice is a ministry. Law schools need to do a better job of fostering pro bono - put pro bono hours on their transcripts. Specialization should require a pro bono commitment. Lawyers are struggling these days. I can barely pay my student loans and support my family. I am not ready to help anyone at this point. We need less lawyers and law schools. Legal services to the poor are extremely limited in rural areas. Other than court appointments for criminal or CPS matters, there are few legal services available to them. This burdens not only the poor, but the attorneys who practice in these areas as they are faced with the choice of spending an inordinate amount of time helping others and not getting paid; or turning these clients away. Unfortunately, it most often results in declining to represent those clients. Legitimate non-profits should be included in these questions. Let the recipients of the services know how much the services would have cost if the attorney were charging for them. I find a lot of time the people have no appreciation of the value of the services because they don't know what has been given to them. Make a statutory change allowing governmental employees to have up to X number of hours per year of administrative leave to conduct pro bono services -- under certain conditions. Just a thought. make it mandatory Make it tax deductible and everyone would do it. Make Judges start awarding attorney's fees to prevailing clients in paying cases which would allow the attorney to justifiably receive payment in the event his client could not afford to pay. It would certainly defray the costs. Make sure they are poor before you refer them. Mandated subsidy is unwarranted. Mandatory requirement Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

Many times clients fail to pay, and we end up completing their cases pro bono. That takes away from our ability to take on new cases pro bono. I believe those cases where clients fail to pay should be included. I just completed a two trial for a client who hasn't paid me since we began. He's broke, and I've made a conscious decision to continue helping him anyway. Many, many attorneys I know give free advice to disadvantaged people and no one ever knows. Much more than most members of the public would expect. Maybe provide basic forms for preparing wills. I'd like to help prepare wills for elderly and military but don't know where to start. More attorneys should give a few hours of their time for those less fortunate More family law attorneys need to help poor people so they don't end up pro se and making a mess of their lives. More lawyers should provide pro bono services. More pro bono efforts should be directed toward encouraging those seeking pro bono help to work out their disputes, if at all possible, without the assistance of a lawyer or burdening the legal system. It's easy to be self-righteous when it doesn't cost anything. More volunteers. More government money for legal aid lawyers to be hired. Most government attorneys are prohibited from practicing law for anybody else besides the government entity that they work for. Most government work is for those who cannot afford legal services. This survey ignores this reality. Most lawyers who practice family law provide pro bono legal advice/services to the poor. I do not pay their court cost or other expenses but will select a certain amount to assist through the year Most of my work ends up pro bono Most of the pro bono service was from clients who simply could not pay or could not finish paying and I preferred to resolve the matter rather than withdraw from the case. Most of the pro bono services were through the Elder Law Committee with the Houston Bar Association Most pro bono hours were for friends and relatives who could not afford an attorney. Much more public funding is needed! my charitable giving is not the State Bar's business My employment does not allow me to provide Pro Bono services. My entire practice consists of taking ad-litem appointments to represent children in CPS removal cases and representing land owner in tax foreclosure cases. I am 90% retired. My family law practice is dedicated to assisting low income families with competent legal services for free or half of the hourly rate of most attorneys in the field. My firm does not permit associates to work on pro bono matters. My firm provides very substantial pro bono services and I am a partner, so I provide indirect support My full-time job is to represent the indigent. I am not highly paid. I feel this survey is to make highly-paid big-firm attorneys look good. My parents run a charity for Guatemalan girls (Guatemalan Girls Life Project) . They set it up last year, and all my pro bono was helping them get going My position (federal judicial law clerk) does not allow me to represent anyone. My pro bono work has been as a CASA advocate.

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

My Pro Bono work is to neighborhood Associations and Public interest Groups based on health, safety, and Environmental Protection. I volunteer in the Environmental arena since it is an area where I have substantial experience from my younger days. This includes all members of our community, rich, middle income, and the poor. Poor people are more likely to live in areas where there is more air and water pollution. This is an area ignored by most Legal Aid Programs. Additionally this is an area is shunned by corporate Attorneys and big firms because they do not want to go on record as opposing the Status Quo, either at the local Government Level or Federal Level. I also act as an Advocate opposing reduction in public parks that are continually being privatized and abused by Select Non-Profits. These public- Private Partnerships place restriction on entrance and substantial fees imposed for admission and that poor families cannot afford. Ostensibly they are denied access to many Public Parks where the land was donated for use as public Parks. This is particularly true in Dallas. My volunteer time with pro bono was largely a waste of time. Sometimes estate planning is not necessary. Also, contingency fees work for litigation with merit. My wife and I are Big Brothers/Big Sisters to two boys. Virtually all our time and most of our our charitable contributions are given to benefit our little brothers. My wife is an attorney who does a large amount of pro-bono work, and has not worked otherwise as an attorney for a number of years. The Texas Bar should recognize a new category of attorney, "Pro-Bono Practitioner" who would obtain such status by having more than 80% of their legal work be pro-bono or at substantially reduced rates for the poor. As a recognized Pro-Bono attorney, they should be exempt from the attorney tax, should be provided free or reduced bar dues, and should be admitted to CLE courses at the same rates as Judges (up to a certain maximum percentage of enrollees, on a first come, first served basis). Need more attorneys Need more help foe returning vets and disabled vets Need more mentors with skills. Need more volunteers!!! Need pro bono mentorship programs for interested lawyers to assist in areas outside their specialties. Need time Need to recruit more banks into the IOLTA State Bar program. Needs to be organized No pro bono for a truly poor client, but rendered pro bono services for several people with connections to me or my firm who could not afford legal services, though I would not consider them "poor." None. Mine mainly consisted of helping co-workers who were in an unsavory position. I told them I wasn't their lawyer, but their friend. And not giving any legal advice, but I did tell them what to do with great effect. Not all pro bono services are for the poor. They may also be for charitable purposes which were not asked about. Not enough lawyers provide pro bono services. The need is great. The probate courts throughout the state showed a great reluctance to accept affidavits of inability to pay when the client had zero cash but needed to establish title to real property or claim unclaimed property from the state. Ad litem fees make these probates unavailable to the poor. Once one gets outside of Harris County, the surrounding counties are woefully underserved

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2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

Only that I wish my federal agency would recognize the value of its attorneys providing pro bono legal services. Not only does it give the attorneys the opportunity to give back to the community, it also enhances their skills. In addition, it gives the government greater visibility and an effective recruiting tool. As it is now, if I want to perform pro bono legal services, I have to do it on my own time, request permission from my employer, and then have each case vetted by my employer for possible conflicts of interest. It's simply too much hassle. Ought to include a section to pro bono services to persons with disabilities. Our juvenile judge is too strict on appointing attorneys. A child must have a attorney by law and when the family meets the min income level there bills or not consider and they cannot afford to hire an attorney. Therefore lots of pro bono, not paid or partially paid work. Over rated! Paid for my own transportation and printing costs. Pass a rule that there is the presumption of no conflict of interest for governmental attorneys to provide pro bono legal services to the poor up to a set amount of hours per year (e.g., 40 hours). PB should be mandatory People with government paychecks should not decide atty rates Perhaps it is time for the Bar to consider mandatory pro bono services, much like CLE. The solution to legal services to the poor is not on line forms approved by the Supreme Court or legal services. In general, these forms are the worst public service effort I've seen in 30 years. Children's interests have been left behind in this scheme for many reasons - not the least of which is the difficulty in presiding as a judicial officer and providing oversight of the forms. The goal was worthy, result: more problems than solutions. Perhaps the State Bar could send out a emails to share pro bono opportunities in each city. Please don't require private law practitioners to do pro bono services - hard enough to collect from own clients. Please include "volunteer" that is legal related -public interest but not "legal services." I do not do pro bono, but I do a LOT of "volunteer" work that is related to law. Please make the question more inclusive to include free or reduced cost legal services for the public good. Previous employer (most of 2013) would not allow me to do pro bono work. New employer (since 9/13) will allow me to take court appointments and do some pro bono work. Pro bono and reduced cost services are the kinds of items that attorneys owe to the communities they serve. Pro bono benchmarks should be different for newer attorneys who don't have the capital and other resources to meet the suggested number of hours doing pro bono work. I know it's voluntary, but there are varying forms of recognition based almost solely from hours spent as opposed to how costly, precious, and valuable those hours were to the attorney. How pro bono services are viewed has really become an antiquated notion in today's market. In fact, I would go so far as to suggest that more established attorneys should be encouraged to spend their pro bono hours mentoring new attorneys. There are plenty of attorneys, myself included, who are not considered indigent by pedigree/education/reputation. But the reality is that the State Bar should reconsider who it should really be serving. Less emphasis on pro bono services and more on the severe unemployment, underemployment, and general lack of resources for attorneys who increasingly have to hang their own shingle. Probably got sidetracked there, but just a few thoughts... Pro bono includes charitable organizations beyond those that deal directly with the "poor." I did provide pro bono services; however, the "poor" rarely need help from an attorney that specializes in big corporate law. Pro bono is a sorry substitute for universal access to justice. Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

Pro bono is about more than just providing legal services. Other activities should be included, such as bar service and other community service. These all take time and money away from my practice and benefit the community. Pro Bono is more than "to the poor" - I provided free legal services to two 501(c)(30 charities. Pro bono is not just for the poor. Non-profits should be included in your definition of pro bono. Pro bono is not the only reason to celebrate a lawyer's contributions. Especially, when their FIRM is paying them. Pro bono service consideration should not be limited to "the poor." For example, I provided pro bono service to charitable and religious organizations which might benefit the poor, but not directly to poor individuals. Pro bono service should always be voluntary. I am very concerned about shifting governmental and charitable responsibility on to private practitioners. Pro bono service should be required of all Texas Lawyers on a stair step scale. The longer that you have been in practice the more you should provide to those less fortunate. I would suggest 15 hours per year to those first licensed to a cap of 50 hours per year to those licensed 10 years of more. Lawyers have a social responsibility that goes with our profession if it is to remain a profession and not just a "business". Pro bono services are grossly under-measured in Texas -- we all do far more than we report. Pro bono services are not just for the poor. Can be for worthy causes. Pro Bono services are probably easier if you have an office, otherwise it is not. Pro Bono services don't pay very well. Pro bono services is an ethical obligation as we all know, however, when people are gifted and have special training like trial attorneys we need to teach by doing and share by knowing there's enough money for all who are willing to step outside one's comfort zones and learn from mistakes. Mistakes hurt, but after the sting....sit and contemplate on why, how and when and who. Pro bono services should include representation of 501 c 3 charitable organizations which do not necessarily assist the poor. Pro bono services should never be made mandatory. Pro bono services should not just be for the poor. I provide a LOT of pro bono work for nonprofit organizations. But, because y'all apparently only think the poor are worthy of pro bono, my hours don't count. I'm not about to commit malpractice by doing pro bono work in an area that is not my expertise. The definition of what constitutes pro bono should be expanded. 501c3's are worthy just as much as the poor!!! Pro Bono services were the most rewarding work. Most people need help and are too afaid to ask because of cost. pro bono should also include help to non-profits Pro Bono should also include the many charitable organizations on which members of the bar serve, often times precisely because we are lawyers. Pro bono should be required similar to CLE. pro bono should include charitable org. not limited to poor Pro bono through attorney volunteer services by large firms is a waste because I found persons being served through false statements that cannot be challenged and large firms use bully tactics to pick on defendants by grossly over-litigating matters and refusing to resolve cases through ADR. They have no concept of litigating matters in lower courts and have an unrealistic opinion as to the value of their cases. Defendants of modest means are thereby harassed into settlements without regard to the value or validity of the so called indigent's claims. The system is a joke that mars the reputation of those that seek to provide services to the poor at a modest or free basis. Pro bono time should be credited toward occupation taxes, fees Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

Pro Bono Work MUST remain voluntary Pro bono work should come from a person's good will and should not be made mandatory. It is morally wrong to force someone to work even if it is for a good cause. Pro bono work should not be mandatory or expected. Provide a method whereby we can switch to Pro Bono after taken case on a fee basis; e.g. later find out that they don't have the resources to complete the case to closure. Provide a Pro Bono handbook for lawyers who wish to provide such services highlighting the typical pro bono requested services. Provide loan forgiveness for attorneys to do pro bono work. Provide more attorney support on those cases that become difficult to manage. Many times, people pass on pro bono cases because they don't feel competent to handle them; and the time to bring them to resolution is sometimes longer than the time required with paying clients. Provide more free training, and understand that some of us aren't in an economic position to give any pro bono Provide some type of malpractice insurance that would allow attorneys to accept cases outside of their comfort zone. Provided considerable pro bono services to low income people, but I would not consider them poor. Provided legal services to a non-profit pro bono Provided pro bono work for client who is not poor. Client was involved in extremely costly and protracted litigation and firm provided pro bono services due to personal support of issues relating to the case. Provided services prior to state employment because I had more free time. Providing an exemption for the attorney tax for those attys whose main practice is pro bono. Recognize that solos and smaller firms often provide virtual (or practically so) pro bono services on a large percentage of their legal work. Reduced rates need to be counted as pro bono. I find it necessary to charge some amount, just so that "pro se" cases will respect my time. But if I am charging $50 per hour, instead of $300, that needs to be seen as a charitable act. It does not even cover my overhead. Reporting them is our total reward; no more due us in the hereafter. Representing adults and children in CPS cases is essentially pro bono. Most counties do not pay for the hours driving to visit children, even as far away as Houston or Corsicana or Beaumont.... Require all attys to at least take 1 case. Right out of my back pocket pro bono. Why don't you do more to help struggling attorneys pay back student loan debt they will never be able to repay? SBOT should design a voluntary Pro Bono form that can be accessed on-line or copied, designed to track hours as they accrue that are for (1) legal attorney services and (2) legal costs and expenses, that the attorney provided (a) free or (b)for a substantially reduced from actual cost amount for each pro-bono client or low income client, in each category (civil, criminal, etc.). Also, the survey above fails to consider a MAJOR factor: Population of the county or city in which the services were given. Our office is in a small, rural city and county. Many people are suffering in this economy and cannot even afford ANY legal fees. They cannot afford groceries or house notes or gas to get to work! We "country lawyers" tend not to pay for official "legal services to the poor" because we give so much time and money to help these folks, some of whom do not even have a home at all. The current "pro bono" concept is very unrealistic in the "real world" out here, just one county out of Travis County. Most organized legal services serve big city dwellers, not our folks. Your pro bono program people need to come to rural Texas locales and meet actual attorneys in small private practices and they will learn something significant. In Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

my practice, I have never had any grievances filed against me and am respected for taking poverty/disability cases no one else will touch. It is at quite a cost to me and my family, but we feel good about it because we still have a home, 3 cars, and eat regular meals and can clothe ourselves. Thanks for this opportunity to bring some reality to the pro-bono concept.

SBOT should provide one-year post-grad fellowships for new attorneys to work in nonprofit/government positions. Starting a legal career with service will lead to more service over the years. More lawyers should be working toward the public good, but there are simply not enough funded positions. Seems everyone thinks that lawyers should be able to work free, or pro-bono as they are learning this term. With the advent of public defenders' offices it is getting harder and harder to be retained on a criminal case. I choose the people and cases that I know cannot pay but need help or have a family member that needs help. Seems the Bar is more interested in "showing how good we are" by reporting pro bono hours than the quality of pro bono representation. Should be mandatory Should include work for non-profit organizations such as state colleges and universities; community centers; rape crisis centers; battered women shelters; etc. Since I am now retired, it was extremely difficult to meet without an office Since I do not directly practice law, I would be interested in more opportunities to learn representation of needy populations in conjunction with a commitment to take on pro bono cases. Some individuals, such as I, provide pro bono services to charities. Perhaps in future years you could inquire about that work. Otherwise you may have a skewed picture of pro bono services provided. Some pro-bono services may assist or benefit the poor but are not qualified under the language above, such as dedicating a time to help a museum where a good number of the patrons are poor kids. Some category for that type of work should be available to prevent some of us from looking like non-caring slackards when the truth it, we spend a lot of pro-bono time and expense which does benefit this class, as well as a broader class of citizens. Also, there is no definition of "poor" in this material from what I see. Tnx. Sometimes the people that receive free legal services don't appreciate them. If the fees are reduced, then it is usually appreciated. State Bar has to recognize that the business of law has changed. Supreme Court lives in a vacuum that no practitioner works in. Economic downtown, combined with legislative reforms the past several years, as well as the Supreme Court's rules modifications have had effect of limiting one's access to court system, which in turn has caused lawyers to retreat from practicing litigation. This has led to decreased compensation, decreased fund-raising, and more congestion as overall numbers of attorneys practicing in Texas has not decreased, but their practice areas have diminished. In spite of all this, the Supreme Court and the State Bar advocate providing free legal services. Query: Who is going to pay for this? If you take away our livelihoods, how are we in any kind of financial position to help the poor? In what strange world does the State Bar work in? Your expectations are unreasonable given the restrictions placed upon trial attorneys. State Bar should consider Pro Bono works as a means to me CLE Requirements. State bar should mandatorily assign 1-3 cases to each Texas atty per year. stop endorsing the competing with legal zoom for automated form assembly, especially by posting links; advocate for a means test since many solos work for lower hourly or flat fee rates....this has and will continue to eat into the hours that are dedicated to these programs by those who do not take huge writeoffs like big firms for this purpose... Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

Stop flooding TX with lawyers and I can pay off my damn loans and offer more free services! Take family matters through Texas Legal Aid and receive no compensation Tarrant County District Clerk files a contest to every Pauper's Affidavit which creates additional (unnecessary) court time. If the attorney certifies itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a pro bono and then we get to help the client justify it? Really??? Tax rebates for attorneys who provide free legal services to qualified individuals or groups Taxing lawyers for pro bono services actually discourages pro bono services. The feeling is it has already been paid for. Legal Aid needs to be expanded like Medicare or Medicaid so that citizens can access lawyers at a discounted or subsidized rate. Legal services are just as important as medical services, at times, much more important. Technically my social security law practice is pro bono, unless I get a case remanded from federal court, then I am paid by the SSA. Client never pays. Texas currently has too many lawyers and too many law schools. Texas also does little to discourage the unauthorized practice of law. I suspect if most lawyers were not poor themselves they would be devote more time to providing pro bono services. Additionally, if legal services for the poor are as essential as medical care, all tax payers should pay to make such services available. The above are strictly "guesstimates" as I do not keep records on them The appreciation by these clients is worth more than any fee. Besides, we owe our efforts for the poor to each of them, personally, and to the community, as our neighbors. The Attorney General's office and role should be better funded and expanded for the family IV-D Courts The bar should count work done for charitable organizations, not just be tied to the stereotypical pro bono classifications The Bar should require a certain number of pro bono hours as a condition of practicing law. The CJP program in San Antonio has done an excellent job of reducing the load on Legal Aide for divorces and probate matters. I try to participate every year. The criminal side of service delivery is fairly well done through court appointed attorneys but the civil side does very little. the answer is to provide affordable services to the poor who get access to lawyers for civil matters at discount prices The definition of pro bono should include do for free that is not for the poor. There are lots of organizations and middle class and rich folk who need help and answers that I do work for. The El Paso model for providing criminal defense and pro bono divorce support works very well. The excess supply of lawyers in Texas and other states has so thoroughly depressed fees that pro bono services are no longer needed. All but the most dysfunctional vagrants can now afford attorneys, while many attorneys now qualify for pro bono services. If the powers-that-be at the State Bar of Texas want to serve some useful purpose, they should concentrate on alleviating the high unemployment and free-falling incomes of Texas attorneys rather than worrying about pro bono services. The lack of malpractice insurance for a government attorney is a barrier to providing pro bono services. The legal market is terrible and it's time the bar admitted it publicly. People considering law school need to know the facts about the real job market. I have been getting the transactional work that I can while looking for full time employment for the last eighteen months. After submitting around 200 job applications I have been on only 5 interviews. I earned a joint degree JD/MBA and I am licensed to practice law in three jurisdictions. I am top **% of my law class and I have a 4.0 MBA GPA. The legal profession does not get the credit it deserves for providing services either free or at reduced rates for those unable to afford full rates. Thanks for making the above inquiries. Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

The Legal Services Corporation should provide more legal services to the poor and infirm. Local bar associations have no hope of keeping up with the needs of the poor and infirm--there are simply too many of them and too few of us. Legal services for the poor and infirm are as just as urgent as medical care for the poor and infirm. We should provide both. The legislature should raise filing fees to pay for representation of the poor. The Loser Pays Law needs to be addressed and if possible, repealed. This law makes it almost impossible to recommend taking action on behalf of plaintiff employees in state court. I must explain that in addition to expenses, they could be forced to pay the defendant's fees. When you add this to very conservative courts that side with the employer 90% of the time, I often try to recommend other solutions to those without funds to avoid this problem. I disagree with those who say the law if "not a big deal." The objects of my charity are church and family related, which receive approximately 20% of my net profit. I cannot afford any more charity. The only reason lawyers do pro bono work is because their big law firms make them do it. We small firm operators get stiffed by our clients way too often and end up having done the work for free anyway. So if the question is actually - How many clients did you perform legal services for where you did not get paid for your services, the answer would be - A LOT. The problem is once the word gets out you help the poor they inundate your offices and staff. I was able to help since recovering from an injury and living on another income source but will NOT provide so much service this year. The qualifier "the poor" makes it difficult to answer this question, as all of my pro bono services have been for two non-profit organizations, neither of which is "poor" or dedicated to serve "the poor." the quality of our governmental pro bono is excellent but the funds provided are insufficient as well as the no. of attorneys The questions do not captured the hundreds of hours devoted to organizations serving the needs of children from distressed environments and/or building better citizens -- some of which tape legal/regulatory knowledge and skills. The requirement is now so onerous to meet...attorneys just kept trying. The rural Texas panhandle desperately needs legal services. The San Antonio Bar Association is very hostile toward providing services to the poor in civil cases It makes a pretense of being helpful sometimes by providing help to pro se poor divorce plaintiffs and defendants But it resists doing anything else for fear that attorneys may lose some business if other attorneys provide free services to the poor. So I believe the State Bar should work to make in mandatory that each local bar establish an organization within the local bar organization itself, that would provide legal services for the poor in all types of cases. The State Bar of Texas has numerous pro bono services that they provide and i would encourage everyone to participate in a service that you interested in to help the poor. The State Bar should consider revising rules to allow certain government employees the limited ability to provide legal services to public interest organizations (i.e. allowing state appellate court staff attorneys the ability to draft briefs or participate in amicus advocacy on behalf of groups in the administrative immigration system or something analogous), or, at the very least, provide suggestions for public service opportunities for those of us that would like to engage in some sort of pro bono activities.

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

The State Bar should offer free training/CLE and mentoring to attorneys in the areas of law where pro bono legal services are most needed. As an in-house transactional attorney, I desire to provide more pro-bono legal services to consumers/individuals on their personal legal problems, but I find that I am very hesitant to take on new projects from the Volunteer Legal Services folks because my in-house transactional legal skills don't translate well to the areas of law that are necessary to handle most of the legal problems faced by VLS's clients. I would love it if attorneys who are experts in the areas of law that are most applicable to the problems being faced by VLS's clients would offer their time, on a "pro bono basis", to provide training to attorneys who desire to learn those areas of law so that they can assist VLS's clients in the areas of law that are most critical to VLS's client's legal issues. Because my legal experience is 100% as an in-house transactional attorney, I am scared to take on most consumer/individual pro bono matters, but would willingly do so if I could receive free training from other attorneys who are experts in those practice areas. And, encouraging such experts to offer free mentoring to guys like me who want to help but just don't have much relevant experience would be invaluable (i.e., the ability to call them up and ask questions when I run into something that I am unsure about). The State Bar should offer more CLE credit for lawyers who do pro bono work or service for the poor and free CLE The Supreme Court should not endorse any source of pro-bono divorce forms. The system is broken. IOLTA grants are given to entities that do not effectively provide services in our area. The tax payers shouldn't be subsidizing free legal work through the Texas AG's office for family law matters when the AG's client have funds to hire a private lawyer. The Texas Bar does a great job promoting pro bono services. There are many Government lawyers that would be willing to participate, however a Statewide Pro Bono "Board" would help overcome institutional impediments. There are other ways to provide support for the poor other than those listed. Also, as a government attorney I am limited because I cannot use any government resources for any pro bono work. There do not seem to be many opportunities for pro bono services to assist the poor for transactional attorneys. There is a strong need in rural Texas for pro bono or reduced-rate services but very few available due to low population density. There is non-profit legal work to entities that provide services to the poor that does not appear to be covered in this survey. While I understand that legal services to the poor are necessary and important, the Bar's emphasis on this area to the exclusion of other services to the poor (health, education and welfare) seems to fail to comprehend the magnitude of the needs of the less privileged. There should be a mandatory minimum number of hours of pro bono work each attorney in Texas should complete. I would love to do a pro bono case but, my firm does not allow it. There should be an expanded definition of "the poor" for purposes of legal services. Legal services are so costly that many "middle class" persons (say, household income of $60K - $75K) get no legal representation on environmental or employment or civil rights matters, because persons in that income bracket simply cannot afford to pay $10-$15K for the luxury (or "right") of vindicating an attack on their dignities or aesthetic values. They are lambs like the true poor, just with better living conditions.

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

There should be some way for attorneys to offer services at a greatly reduced rate or pro bono with financial assistance from the State Bar of Texas. Many people do not qualify for free services, such as they are, from any source despite great need, particularly in protection of children in the system. It is a shameful situation and Lawrence Tribe does NOT have solutions. We in this state are schizophrenic about how we approach pro se representation and our "concern" for the best interests of children, representing gross contradictions, which the "rulers" and "luminaries" of the State Bar of Texas float above the real problems existent in our Bar. The messages are so mixed as to be useless. These are very rough figures. I have not gone back to audit 2013 for accuracy. It's very likely that I am under-reporting the number of hours spent working at a reduced rate on unsolicited court appointed cases. These questions are a little hard to answer for one who (like me) works for private public-interest firm that principally works on behalf of poor people. They are overwhelming. They cause problems when righteous people get righteous and forget that poverty is not a defense. They should be voluntary, not mandatory. Forcing someone to work for free, even if wellmeaning, amounts to involuntary servitude. They should not be required They tend to be the ones who complain the most. This section doesn't account for nonprofit or public interest that do this full time This survey doesn't take into consideration nonprofit law firms which is what I run. To increase the number of attorneys participating in pro bono legal services, the bar in general needs to do a better job making it easier for them to participate. I recruit many who want to help, but fear practicing in an area with which they are unfamiliar. Too much emphasis is placed on pro bono by the Bar. More emphasis needs to be placed on legal reform. Unbundled legal services and limited scope representation, such as the collaborative dispute resolution process Unfortunately, many cases end up as Pro Bono but I cannot just through mom and the baby to the wolf's Unfortunately, there is no funding source to cover expenses for citation by publication in a SAPCR pro bono matter. VA Hospital Legal Clinic through Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program is a terrific program for veterans. Volunteer for Dispute Resolution Center in Kerrville Volunteered to judge local colleges for their legal training - moot court and moot trial teams Wage as a contract attorney insufficient to allow Pro Bono work or contributions. Was finishing up private practice work knowing I was not going to get paid We all need to support and do more, including me. We all probably need to do more We are restricted by our government position to providing or representing others in legal situations. We aren't allowed to here at the City, or I would. I don't understand why we can't. I could at the state. We have a very specialized practice and are not allowed to do any outside legal work. We have provided pro bono legal services to non-profit organizations, but not directly to the poor We Lawyers all need to do more---the need is overwhelming.

Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

We might consider a voluntary appointment bureau We need a third year law student journeymen program that will give better access to services. We need full funding for legal services. Legal services is funded today at rates below 1995 funding. We need resources to assist in the cost of depositions and other discovery We need to "teach" lawyers how to effectively unbundle services and provide brief services. We need to better emphasize, recognize and reward those who provide pro bono services. We need to do it for most of the Family Law matters- divorce, post-divorce. We need to increase funding for legal services corporation-funded organizations, as well as for other public interest legal organizations. We should not be taxed by the Bar Association in the name of pro bono. What about not for profits that do not include the poor? I would add that category as well please. When evaluating what I may not have contributed from my practice in the form of work/time, please consider the response to question 1 When I was in private practice my pro bono experience was very negative. While I did not personally participate in pro bono services, my firm dedicated thousands of hours and dollars in doing so. While I didn't provide pro-bono services to the poor, I am an active member of the Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee, which requires a substantial amount of time. While small firms (e.g., firms with less than 10 attorneys) and solos truly make up the Texas State Bar, it would be more beneficial to see this class actually represented in the Texas State Bar vice the standard large firms. While some firms may be different, I do not participate in pro bono services because my firm's billing requirement is relatively high and my firm does not recognize pro bono efforts in determining whether you have met your required hours to be eligible for a raise or bonus. Who can afford to do pro bono work in this legal economy? Why are your questions limited to "the poor." What about the under-served or under-represented? will continue Wish I did more. Wish I had more time! I have participated in the past but work just gets so busy... Wish my firm gave credit for pro bono. They do not which makes it difficult to set aside billable work for pro bono. With law school debt, slow pay by clients, trying to raise a family, I don't have the energy or resources to provide free legal services. Without complete protection from malpractice liability I will not provide any free or reduced services. I don't practice regularly, have no support staff, and won't assume risk and can't manage extra work. Work with government agencies (Dept. of Justice, U.S. Attorney's Offices) to set up local pro bono service opportunities and training in Dallas/Fort Worth. Would like to have done more. Would like to see a program for government attorneys. Right now our approval process for pro bono work is horrendous. Yes, define pro bono more broadly. Many of us that are not primarily litigators spend lots of time for non-profit institutions, which is within the spirit of pro bono and should be counted. From each according to his means . . . Yes. Under the American Prosecution Act, prosecutors cannot practice law outside their employment with the government agency. Change that so we can do pro bono work. Invariance Dynamics Consulting

2013 State Bar of Texas Attorney Survey: Pro Bono Report

YOU ASSESS THE PROBLEM, THE NEED FOR THE SERVICE, YOUR ABILITY TO HELP AND THE CLIENT'S ABILITY TO PAY -- THEN YOU DO WHAT IS RIGHT. You may want to include a category to include work for non-profits such as churches. I did a substantial amount of work for mine. You should define what pro bono is and isn't. Client need to be low-income under the federal poverty guidelines; there should be no expectation of any fee recovery or compensation of any kind. It is also not pro bono when clients stop paying or contingency fee cases. You should ask if they are volunteering thru a legal aid or pro bono program. Young attorneys, with families, who work at small firms, with massive student loan debt, are simply not in a position to perform substantial pro bono work.

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