Directory
Duke University School of Law
Duke University School of Law
Law School Pro Bono Programs
Contact Information
D.J. Dore
Director of Pro Bono
[email protected]
919-613-7008
Category Type
Formal Voluntary Pro Bono Program Characterized by Administrative Support for Student Group Projects
Description of Programs
Duke Law Pro Bono Program Pro bono service is a key component in the leadership development of Duke Law students. See https://law.duke.edu/publicinterest/probono/ The ultimate goal of the Duke Law School Pro Bono Program, created in 1991, is to help shape law students into lawyers who are committed to public service - whether that commitment is made by working full-time in a non-profit or governmental organization or by devoting time in their careers to pro bono work and other important civic and community activities. The Pro Bono Program offers students experiential learning opportunities through volunteer pro bono work with non-profits, government agencies, private firms, and Duke Law faculty. Under the supervision of licensed attorneys, students contribute to public service, develop their legal and professional skills, build relationships important to their future careers, and work to address unmet legal needs. Opportunities are promoted and facilitated through individual counseling, the Project's website, an annual retreat, presentations at orientation, an open house, a weekly newsletter, and the work of student leaders of pro bono group projects. Students can receive assistance designing their own project or may choose from a wide variety of issue areas. Most opportunities are open to all J.D. and LL.M. students with options to fit personal interests and time commitments. Student Pro Bono Groups Student Pro Bono Groups are student-run organizations supported by the Office of Public Interest and Pro Bono offering a broad array of projects serving the Durham community and beyond. Student groups work under the supervision of licensed attorneys with legal skills ranging in scope from brief research to in-depth client interviewing, investigation, and document drafting. Students are encouraged to explore different interests and may participate in more than one group. Individual Pro Bono Projects Individual Pro Bono Projects are direct placements with non-profit legal service organizations, government agencies, and private firms engaged in pro bono practice. Students in the past have gained experience in a wide variety of pro bono practice areas including arts and intellectual property, domestic violence, and employment law. Students may also create their own individual project to help address an unmet need Semester Break Pro Bono Trips Semester Break Pro Bono Trips allow Duke Law students to partner with legal services organizations to provide high-impact legal work to underserved areas of North Carolina and across the United States not usually accessible while classes are in session. The Office of Public Interest & Pro Bono organizes trips during the fall and spring semester breaks and provides funding for student participation. Interest meeting dates will be announced at the beginning of each semester along with application information and deadlines. Selected students will be required to attend training prior to the trip. Single or Multi-day Projects In addition to the opportunities noted above, periodic single or multi-day projects are offered each semester either through the Office of Public Interest and Pro Bono, under the supervision of Duke Law clinical faculty, or in partnership with outside organizations. Program Oversight and Coordination The Pro Bono program is managed by a Director of Pro Bono, a licensed attorney. The director works closely with student groups to ensure they comply with relevant ethics rules and are appropriately supervised when they partner with outside organizations. The director also supervises some of the projects. Other projects are supervised by clinical faculty.
Location of Programs
The Office of Public Interest and Pro Bono is a center operating independently but collaboratively with many other departments at Duke Law School to provide pro bono service opportunities, public interest activities, counseling, career enhancement and leadership development to the student body.
Staffing/Management/Oversight
The pro bono program is managed by a Director of Pro Bono, a licensed attorney. The director works closely with student groups to ensure they comply with relevant ethics rules and are appropriately supervised when they partner with outside organizations. The director also supervises some of the projects. Other projects are supervised by clinical faculty.
Funding
The Pro Bono Project is part of the budget of the Office of Public Interest and Pro Bono.
Faculty and Administrative Pro Bono
N/a
Awards/Recognition
Duke Law recognizes student pro bono service through a variety of awards and programs. Annual Pro Bono Competition: To encourage first year JD students and international LLM students to engage in pro bono, the Office of Public Interest and Pro Bono awards lunch to the section with the highest percentage of students who have completed and logged at least two hours of pro bono (training hours do not count). 50 Hours Pint Glass (JDs, LLMs): Students who have completed and logged at least 50 hours of pro bono earn a special "Do What You Love" pint glass. Hours from clinics and externships do not count. Graduation Recognition: 1. Pro Bono All-Stars (JDs, LLMs): Up to 10 graduating students are awarded this highest honor for exceptional demonstrated commitment to pro bono service throughout their time in law school. 2. 50 Hours of Service (JDs, LLMs): Graduating students who have completed and logged at least 50 hours of service over the course of their degree program are recognized. 3. Three Years of Service (JDs):Graduating JDs who have completed and logged pro bono during each of their three academic years (June 1 - May 31) are recognized. Summer work does not count 4. NC State Bar Award (JDs): PIPB selects one graduating JD student to receive the North Carolina State Bar Pro Bono Student Award, which is presented at a ceremony in the fall following graduation.
Alternative Winter or Spring Break Projects
The Office of Public Interest and Pro Bono partners with outside organizations to host fall and spring break trips to help with unmet legal needs. Some of the trips are staffed by Duke administrators or faculty members. Other opportunities come through placement of students with outside organizations.
Law School Public Interest Programs
Contact Information
Stella Boswell
Associate Dean of Public Interest and Pro Bono
[email protected]
919-613-8530
Certificate/Curriculum Programs
https://law.duke.edu/publicinterest/public-interest-certificate/
Public Interest Centers
The Office of Public Interest and Pro Bono is one of several centers focused on public interest initiatives. Other centers concentrate on specific topic areas and include: the Bolch Judicial Institute; the Center for Criminal Justice and Professional Responsibility; the Center for Firearms Law; the Center for Innovation Policy at Duke Law; the Center for Institutional and Organizational Performance; the Center for International and Comparative Law; the Center for Law, Economics, and Public Policy; the Center on Law, Ethics, and National Security; the Center of Law, Race, and Policy; the Wilson Center for Science and Justice; the Center for Sports Law and Policy; the Center for the Study of the Public Domain; the Horvitz Program in Constitutional and Public Law; the Duke Center on Law and Technology; the Center on Risk in Science and Society; and the Duke Initiative for Science and Society.
PI Career Support Center
The Office of Public Interest and Pro Bono offers comprehensive career advising, support, and funding for students and alumni interested in government and public interest (GPI) positions. It works in close partnership with the Career and Professional Development Center to help students take the right steps to lead to their desired short- and long-term career goals. The office has two specialized career counselors. Working with faculty, student groups, and others, the office hosts educational programs and community-building events throughout the year to bring GPI-focused students together, and to inform the wider student body about GPI careers and opportunities. The office also administers Duke Law School funding to support public interest internships and post-graduate work, including guaranteed summer funding, short-term post-graduate funding, and yearlong fellowships. Funding is also available for interview travel support and approved conferences.
Loan Repayment Assistance Programs (LRAP)
Duke Law has a long-standing tradition of supporting students and graduates who commit to public service careers. The Loan Repayment Assistance Program program greatly reduces the degree to which financing the cost of a legal education limits career options and opens the door to public service careers by providing a path for total loan forgiveness. Under the plan, graduates who earn $65,000 or less could have all loan payments covered by LRAP during the entire 10-year period necessary to qualify for the federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program, which forgives remaining loan debt after 10 years in a qualifying public service position. Graduates making between $65,000 and $90,000 are also invited to participate in LRAP, and receive generous assistance on a sliding scale.
Fellowships
Duke Law is pleased to offer funding support to graduates pursuing public interest positions, including year-long paid fellowships, short terms fellowships to assist graduates awaiting bar results and permanent positions, grants to help defray the costs of bar study, and loan repayment assistance for graduates in public interest or public service work. Farrin Fellowship The Farrin Fellowship, supported by Duke Law Graduate James Farrin ’90 and the law firm bearing his name, is a year-long post-graduate fellowship open to graduating students each class year. Fellows work with a host organization, typically a 501(c)(3), doing domestic legal work. Duke Law provides the fellow’s salary and benefits for a year. Fellowships doing legal work for low income or indigent clients, particularly work that benefits individuals or groups that have historically faced discrimination, are preferred, as are fellowships serving clients in the Carolinas. Keller Fellowship The Keller Fellowship, named to honor John Keller, class of 1987, for his work for over thirty-five years with Legal Aid of NC, is open to graduating students each year. The fellowship was initially funded by members of the Class of 1987. Fellows work with a host organization doing domestic legal work in the United States. Duke Law provides the fellow’s salary and benefits for a year. Fellowships doing civil legal work for low-income or indigent clients, particularly work that addresses issues related to eliminating poverty, are preferred. Gideon's Promise Duke Law School is part of the Law School Partnership Program that works with Gideon’s Promise, a nonprofit public defender organization whose mission is to transform the criminal justice system. Through the program, Duke Law will provide up to one year of funding for a recent graduate working in a public defender office with the understanding that the office will then hire the graduate. The graduate will be a participant in Gideon’s Promise 3-year CORE 101 program and learn client-centered values, legal skills critical to indigent defense, and build community with a cohort of public defenders nationwide. Bridge to Practice The Bridge to Practice Fellowship program offers paid, post-graduate fellowships with public interest, government and other legal employers for graduating Duke Law students. Created in Spring 2008, the program was designed to assist graduates seeking employment in sectors that do not typically hire until after bar passage. The program also is open to graduating students who have not secured long-term employment by graduation. The goal of the program is to provide graduating students with meaningful, full-time work experiences that will serve as a springboard to long-term positions in the graduate’s desired sector and location. https://law.duke.edu/publicinterest/careers
July 24, 2024