CLE: Volunteering At The Jefferson Parish Self-Help Desk

Wednesday, July 13, 2016
10:30 AM 12:00 PM 10:30 12:00

Louisiana Bar Center, Founders Room 601 Saint Charles Avenue New Orleans, LA, 70130 United States (map)

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Join The Pro Bono Project on Wednesday, July 13, 2016, from 10:30 am to noon at the Louisiana Bar Center, 601 St. Charles Avenue, Founders Room, this CLE will provide the basic ins and outs of volunteering at the Jefferson Parish Self-Help Desk. One (1) CLE credit.

TRAINING PANEL:
Linton Carney, JD, The Pro Bono Project
Robin Roper, The Pro Bono Project

Please register before July 12, 2016 by close of business by sending an email to Linton Carney with your name, Louisiana Bar number and email address or download the registration form.

Background (Also see last month's story at: JPSHRC)

In April, The Project took over management of the Jefferson Parish Self Help Resource Center (self-help desk). We have reached out to some of our partner firms to provide volunteers, and have gotten a favorable response for many of you.

By way of background, the Self Help Resource Center at 24th JDC helps people fill out court-approved family law forms, like petitions for 103 divorces based on living separate and apart and custody petitions, and provides information about court procedures so the individuals can maneuver the system by themselves. The pleadings come with steps for the litigants to follow, although many of the customers can’t follow them very well.

While there are no income guidelines for receiving help, the service is designed primarily for Jefferson Parish residents who don’t have the means to secure a private attorney but are not financially eligible for free services through public interest providers.

Volunteers provide legal information, not legal advice, so you don’t have to bea lawyer to volunteer. The customers sign forms stating that they are only receiving information and that there is no attorney-client relationship being established. This service can be an excellent way for paralegals to get involved with pro bono work.

Hours are 10-noon on Tuesday and Thursday at the Jefferson Courthouse in Gretna, 200 Derbigny Street, Room 2001 on the second floor. Parking is available in the adjacent garage, and the Court comps you as a juror!