The Advocate - May 2012 - Idaho State Bar - Idaho.gov

My t h s aB o u t Pr o Bo n o se rv i C e s
Justice Jim Jones
Idaho Supreme Court
The preamble to the Idaho Rules of
Professional Conduct affirmatively states:
A lawyer should be mindful of deficiencies
in the administration of
justice and of the fact that the poor,
and sometimes persons who are not
poor, cannot afford adequate legal
assistance. Therefore, all lawyers
should devote professional time and
resources and use civic influence to
ensure equal access to our system
of justice for all those who because
of economic or social barriers cannot
afford or secure adequate legal
counsel.
Rule 6.1 goes on to say, “A lawyer
should aspire to
render at least 50
hours of pro bono
publico legal services
per year.”
Many lawyers
take their pro
bono responsibility
seriously and
fulfill their aspirational
target.
However, according
to the recent
Justice Jim Jones
membership survey conducted by the Bar,
a large majority of those who responded
to the survey simply are not doing their
part. According to the survey, 27.2% of
the 1,597 respondents performed no pro
bono service in 2010. The results indicate
that 10.5% performed 1-5 hours of pro
bono work, 10.7% did 6-10 hours, 17.5%
did 11-25 hours, 15.7% performed 26-49
hours and 18.5% did 50 hours or more.
We need to do better. We can do better.
The survey asked respondents to indicate
what measures might cause lawyers to be
more inclined to do pro bono work. The
responses from 1,380 participants indicated
a lack of knowledge of resources available
through the Idaho Volunteer Lawyer
Program (“IVLP”) and other entities committed
to the pro bono effort.
Myth #1: No malpractice coverage
Almost half of the respondents (48.8%)
indicated that more pro bono work might
be done if lawyers received free malpractice
coverage for work on pro bono cases.
The fact is that lawyers performing pro
bono work through IVLP are covered by
malpractice insurance for that work. The
malpractice carrier is ALPS and the policy
limits are $1,000,000.00. It is probably
also worth noting that in the roughly 30
years IVLP and its predecessor program
have been in existence, no pro bono client
has made a malpractice claim.
Myth #2: “Stuck” in a lengthy case
Half of the respondents (48.1%) indicated
that more pro bono work would be
performed if lawyers were able to work
on a particular task rather than accept
total representation of a client. This can
now be done. The Supreme Court recently
adopted a new rule ― I.R.C.P. 11(b)(5),
Limited Pro Bono Appearance — just for
this purpose. The rule, which went into effect
on January 1, 2012, reads:
11(b)(5). Limited Pro Bono Appearance.
In accordance with
Idaho Rule of Professional Conduct
1.2(c), an attorney may appear to
provide pro bono assistance to an
otherwise pro se party in one or
more individual proceedings in an
action. An attorney making a limited
pro bono appearance must file
and serve on the opposing party a
notice of limited appearance prior to
or simultaneous with the proceeding
or proceedings, specifying all matters
that are to be undertaken on behalf
of the party. The attorney shall
have no authority to act on behalf of
the party on any matter not specified
in the notice or any properly filed
and served amendment thereto. Service
on an attorney who has made a
The responses from
1,380 participants
indicated a lack of
knowledge of resources
available through
the Idaho Volunteer
Lawyer Program (“IVLP”)
and other entities
committed to the
pro bono effort.
limited appearance for a party shall
be valid only in connection with the
specific proceedings for which the
attorney has appeared, including
any hearing or trial at which the attorney
appeared and any subsequent
motions for presentation of orders.
Upon the conclusion of the matters
specified for the attorney’s limited
appearance, the attorney shall file a
notice of completion of limited appearance
with the court. Upon such
filing, the attorney’s role terminates
without the necessity of leave of the
court.
The Advocate • May 2012 65