RCBA Board of Directors 2006-2007 - Riverside County Bar ...

Public Service Law Corporationby Paulette SandlerAre you giving back? Whenwas the last time you volunteered andgave some legal advice to someone atthe Public Service Law Corporation? OrLatino Lawyers? Or Inland Counties LegalServices? Or any legal services organization,for that matter?The holiday season has always beenclosely associated with “giving back” to thecommunity. I for one am greatly appreciativethat I am fortunate enough to practicein a close-knit legal community, wheremany of my professional colleagues arealso people I consider my friends. We alsoimpact our clients’ lives on a daily basisthrough our practice of law. Unfortunately,the Inland Empire has a tremendous numberof persons who cannot afford to pay forlegal services but who have the greatestneed for legal services.The Public Service Law Corporation(PSLC) of the Riverside County BarAssociation provides legal services to thecommunity free of charge. We are currentlylooking for attorneys who are willingto give back to the community andvolunteer on a Tuesday or Thursday night.We are also looking for civil attorneys whocan volunteer their legal services on theirschedule. Instead of thinking of reasonswhy we just cannot seem to fit one moreitem into our busy schedules, start thinkingof how we can fit this invaluable houror two a month into our lives.We simply do not have enough attorneyvolunteers to meet the demand forlegal services. Volunteering one or twoevenings a month can make a tremendousThe Public Service Law Corporation, the RCBA's pro bono program, recentlyrecognized volunteer attorneys who have donated 50 hours or more assistinglow-income clients over the past year. The State Bar of California's Wiley ManuelAward was given to (left to right): Paulette Sandler, Jeffrey Bertram, RalphHekman, Greg Tuss, Katie Greene and Diana Renteria.difference in a person’s life. I think each one of us can relate from ourown personal experiences a situation where we made a significant andlasting experience on our client’s life. Those are perhaps the mostcherished of experiences in our practice of law.We are all spread too thin – business, family, etc. However, we allstrive to better ourselves and to improve the community that we livein. I don’t believe that you can make a greater impact on the communityin which you live than by giving back to those among us whocannot afford to pay for legal services. As practicing attorneys know,the legal system can be a complicated and an unfriendly environment.People completely unfamiliar with the legal system can feel simply lost.They are also at greater risk, because the most vulnerable among usoften cannot afford legal representation.In this season of need, I am asking that you volunteer some of yourtime and experience in exchange for the satisfaction of making a differencein another person’s life. Thank you!Paulette Sandler is a member of the PSLC Board of Directors.Riverside Lawyer, November 2006