Corporate Pro Bono Summit Held in DFW
Monday, November 21
- Organization: Texas Access to Justice Commission, Corporate Counsel Comittee
Over 20 attorneys and paralegals participated in the event, held at Southwest Airlines. Charles Matthews, General Counsel of ExxonMobil, thanked the participants for attending, and he provided an update of the Committee's efforts to recognize and increase pro bono work that corporate volunteers contribute. Jeff Walker, The Bombay Company, served as moderator for the seminar.
Mickey Braden, director of the non-profit organization Wheels To Success, explained how pro bono attorneys have help his organization with various tax and planning issues. Texas C-Bar facilitated the participation of the pro bono volunteers. (Visit www.texascbar.org/)
Sara Hewitt, Managing Attorney of Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program,a joint project of the Dallas Bar Association and Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas, reminded participants how valuable their work is to clients. She and pro bono coordinators from DVAP and LANWT attended to answer questions about various pro bono opportunities in the DFW area. (Visit www.dallasbar.org/dvap/)
Rebecca Greenan, SMU School of Law, gave an overview of the history of legal services in the U.S., and she outlined the professional and ethical responsibilities for attorneys to engage in pro bono work.
Peggy Montgomery (ExxonMobil), Maryann Walsh (member of ACC-DFW Pro Bono Committee), Anne Shuttee (Electronic Data Systems Corp), and Francis Leos Martinez (Director of Texas C-Bar) shared their experiences in a panel discussion. They suggested policies, procedures, and partnerships that corporate legal departments can adopt to establish and maintain successful pro bono programs.
Participants also watched two videos, including a disaster relief one narrated by Supreme Court Justice Harriet O'Neill, that describe the need for legal services for low-income Texans.
The Corporate Counsel Committee plans to host similar summits in Austin and San Antonio in early 2006.
For more information, please contact sschoppa@texasbar.com.
