Pro Bono Program
Michigan Law has a long tradition of serving the public in a variety of ways. That's part of our heritage as a public school, and it stretches back to our beginnings in 1859. To celebrate Michigan Law's 150 years of producing lawyers committed to public service, we launched the Voluntary Pro Bono Pledge in Fall 2009. We ask students to voluntarily commit to performing 50 hours of pro bono service while enrolled at Michigan Law.
The Pledge allows students to connect their developing knowledge to the world outside the Law School. In this way, they gain valuable legal skills while helping an organization in our community meet the needs of underrepresented individuals. In traditional Michigan fashion, our projects range from those that provide legal assistance to local residents to projects that spotlight events across the nation and around the globe.
Pro Bono Credit for Summer Volunteer Work
Students doing pro bono work over the summer, that is, not for credit or money, can count some or all of those hours toward the pledge. For questions about what work does or does not count and how to log those hours, visit this FAQ.
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Step One–Take the Pledge
Step Two–Share Your Interests
Complete the Student Interest Survey to help us know what types of projects you might be interested in and be automatically added to our pro bono listserv to keep apprised of pro bono news.
Step Three–Find a Pro Bono Project
Visit the Pro Bono Project Listings to find a project that suits your interests. If there is nothing there that interests you now, please check back, as new projects are added regularly.
Step Four–Get Started on Your Project
To get started on your project, find the "interest contact" within the project listing and email him or her to introduce yourself (i.e. My name is Amy Sankaran, and I am a 2L at Michigan Law School who is very interested in x project) and provide your contact information (phone and email).
You and the organization will work out the exact details of your assignment, timing, etc. If you don't hear back from the organization within 5 business days, please email lawprobono@umich.edu.
Step Five–Make Your Hours Count
Log your hours in the Student Hours Tracking Database. When your project is complete, or at the end of the school year, please submit a Student Evaluation.
If you have any questions at all about your project(s), please contact lawprobono@umich.edu before contacting the organization directly; it may be that the Pro Bono Manager already knows the answer to your question.
Also, many questions about the Pro Bono Program generally are addressed in our Student FAQ.
Finally, Amy Sankaran is available to meet if you would like to talk about whether a particular project is a good fit for you. You can make an appointment online.
If you are a nonprofit organization or a government agency seeking more information, please contact Amy Sankaran at lawprobono@umich.edu.
If your organization is interested in law student assistance, please follow these three steps:
Step One–Create Your Organization's Account
To create an account you will need to create a friend account, entering the email address that you would like to use for your organization's account. An automatic email will be generated and sent to the email account you provide. Open the email and click on "Create friend account." Then re-enter your email address and create a password for your account. (If you have any questions about friend accounts, you will find more information here.) If you already have a University of Michigan login (a umich.edu email address), you are welcome to skip this step and use your umich email address for your organization's account instead.
Step Two–Register your Organization
Go to the Organization and Project Registration page and use the email address and password that you just created to log in. Then, click on "Add Organization Information." Please enter your organization's information and then click "Save."
Step Three–Create your Project(s)
Go to the Organization and Project Registration page, log in using your friend account, click on "Add New Project Here," and fill in the form with a project; please click "Save" to submit the project to our office. If the project meets the criteria above, we will approve it, and it will be added to the online student database, where students will be able to select your project.
Please note that there is no guarantee that students will select your project. For more information, visit our Organization FAQ.
If you are an individual seeking legal assistance, please note that Michigan Law students cannot provide direct legal advice or services to members of the general public. Since they are not yet lawyers, Michigan Law students must be supervised by a licensed attorney working for, or on behalf of, an organization screened and approved by the Office of Student Affairs.
For assistance in locating an attorney, please visit the Michigan State Bar's website regarding Michigan's various legal aid programs or the Michigan State Bar's Lawyer Referral Service.