The City Bar Justice Center provides an opportunity for attorneys and paralegals to provide assistance to New York’s most underserved individuals through our in-house pro bono legal projects. For more detailed information on the individual projects and for contact information, please click on the link to the project in which you are interested. If you would like to volunteer, please fill out the volunteer form and indicate which projects you are interested in.

Immigrant Justice
• Immigrant Women and Children Project
• Refugee Assistance Project
Economic Justice
• Lawyers' Foreclosure Intervention Network
• Veterans Assistance Project
• Pro Bono Consumer Bankruptcy Project
• The Elder Law Project
• Legal Clinic for the Homeless
• Neighborhood Entrepreneur Law Project
• Cancer Advocacy Project
Family Justice
• Uncontested Divorce Project
• Contested Divorce Clinic

CITY-WIDE VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES THROUGH THE CITY BAR JUSTICE CENTER’S PUBLIC SERVICE NETWORK

Our Public Service Network serves as a clearinghouse for additional pro bono opportunities throughout New York City and develops innovative legal and non-legal placements for attorneys seeking public interest volunteer work. To find more information and learn about available opportunities through the Network please click on the link.

CITY BAR JUSTICE CENTER Fact Sheet for Pro Bono CLE Credit

The City Bar Justice Center is an Approved Pro Bono CLE Provider. As an approved provider, it may award pro bono CLE Credit to New York attorneys who perform uncompensated legal service for clients unable to afford counsel in New York.

Which CITY BAR JUSTICE CENTER programs are eligible?
Attorneys who volunteer in the CITY BAR JUSTICE CENTER programs listed on the reverse side of this sheet are eligible for pro bono CLE credit.

How much CLE credit may I earn?
Attorneys may earn one (1) CLE credit for every six (6) 50-minute hours (300 minutes) of eligible pro bono legal service. A maximum of six (6) pro bono CLE credit hours may be earned during any one reporting cycle. (A reporting cycle is the two-year cycle governed by the attorney's biennial attorney registration period.)

The CLE credit will be in the area of "skills" as defined by 22 NYCRR 1500.2. Attorneys may use these "skills" credits in their current reporting cycle or may use these credits as carry-over credits into the next biennial reporting cycle. The maximum number of carry-over credits, regardless of source, is six (6).

Newly admitted attorneys may earn CLE credit for pro bono work "solely for the purpose of carrying over pro bono CLE credit to the following biennial reporting cycle in partial fulfillment of the requirements for experienced attorneys." Newly admitted attorneys may not apply pro bono CLE credit to meet their minimum CLE requirements as set forth in 22 NYCRR 1500.12(a).

What do I need to do to get CLE credit for my pro bono activities sponsored by the CITY BAR JUSTICE CENTER?

Attorneys who perform eligible pro bono activities sponsored by the CITY BAR JUSTICE CENTER must:

1. Keep time records of their participation and retain those time records for a period of four (4) years; and
2. Complete the Affirmation of Pro Bono Services ("the affirmation form") provided by the CITY BAR JUSTICE CENTER, describing the services provided and stating the number of hours of pro bono legal service performed. The affirmation must be submitted to the CITY BAR JUSTICE CENTER.

Once the CITY BAR JUSTICE CENTER receives your affirmation form, it will provide you with a "Letter of Participation." The Letter will include the date(s) of your assignment, the name of the pro bono CLE program, your name, the number of hours of pro bono service you provided, and the number of pro bono CLE credit hours earned. The Letter of Participation is your "proof" that you have earned the CLE pro bono credits and you should keep it with the time records of your participation for the requisite period of four (4) years.

Programs Eligible for CLE Credit

The following programs are eligible for CLE credit:

Neighborhood Entrepreneur Law Project
Pro Bono Consumer Bankruptcy Project
Legal Clinic for the Homeless
Women and Children's Self-Sufficiency Project
Refugee Assistance Project
Immigrant Women and Children's Project
Cancer Advocacy Project
Elder Law Project
Uncontested Divorce Clinic
Contested Divorce Clinic
City Bar Public Service Network
Monday Night Law Advisory Workshop

AFFIRMATION OF PRO BONO SERVICES FORM

A Guide for Lawyers in New York City

Pro Bono Opportunities Guide Searchable Guide to Pro Bono Service Opportunities in New York City and throughout New York State in a single online version. This easy to use format is searchable by county, subject area, and population served.

Pro Bono Opportunities, A Guide for Lawyers in New York City ( PDF file ) is now available on line. The City Bar Justice Center acknowledges the generous support of the for printing and production services. The guide provides detailed information on over 80 organizations citywide seeking volunteer lawyers, law students and paralegals.