Programs
The Pro Bono Project
The Pro Bono Project matches volunteer lawyers with community and nonprofit organizations throughout Maryland on legal matters ranging from acquiring property to zoning appeals.
Pro Bono Legal Services
The Pro Bono Project helps improve the safety, quality of life and economic vitality of neighborhoods in Maryland by addressing a wide range of legal issues on behalf of community and nonprofit organizations. The types of legal matters addressed through the Pro Bono Project include:
Forming, reviving, or maintaining a nonprofit organization, including bylaws, incorporation, and tax-exemption (501(c)(3)) applications;
- Leasing real estate;
- Transferring real property;
- Zoning appeals;
- Drafting and negotiating contracts;
- Employment issues;
- Copyright and trademark issues;
- Drug nuisance abatement;
- Liquor license protests; and
- Much, much more!
Becoming a Pro Bono Project Client
To apply for legal assistance from the Community Law Center, please complete and submit an application along with the nonrefundable $100.00 application fee and all requested information. If your organization would like help applying for tax-exempt status please also submit the Supplement for Tax Exemption Application.
Once received, the Pro Bono Project staff review the applications and may contact client organizations for additional information. Once a client is accepted by the Community Law Center, the Pro Bono Project staff matches the organization with an appropriate volunteer attorney. Finding a match generally takes three to four weeks after all information has been submitted. Due to the volunteer nature of the Pro Bono Project, the Community Law Center cannot guarantee placement of all cases. However, the Pro Bono Project has a long history of successfully matching the overwhelming majority of applicant clients with pro bono attorneys.
Once a match is made with a pro bono attorney, the client organization will directly work with that attorney on the legal issue at hand. During the course of representation, however, the Pro Bono Project staff maintains contact with the client and volunteer attorney to provide assistance when necessary.
Beyond the nonrefundable $100 application fee, no fees are charged for the volunteer attorney's time, but clients are responsible for direct expenses (filing fees, postage, copying expenses, etc.) related to their cases.
Community organizations and nonprofits are encouraged to purchase the Community Law Center's manual "How to Start a Nonprofit Organization in Maryland" to get their organization started as well as to keep their organization running efficiently and effectively. Community associations are also encouraged to purchase the Community Law Center's manual "Revitalizing Baltimore's Neighborhoods: Legal Tools for Community Associations" for in-depth information on strategies community associations can use to make their neighborhood a place everyone would want to call home!
Volunteering as a Pro Bono Attorney
The Pro Bono Project's success relies on our network of hundreds of volunteer attorneys. Attorneys wishing to volunteer should complete an Attorney Registration Form. The information provided on this form helps us match attorneys with clients seeking representation for legal issues in their areas of interest or specialization and assures that volunteer attorneys are covered under our professional liability insurance.
