Several thousand Ohio lawyers donated their time and volunteered their expertise to those in need across Ohio. The Ohio Legal Assistance Foundation and the Ohio Supreme Court announced today the results from attorneys who voluntarily reported their pro bono activities.

More than 4,300 attorneys reported their pro bono activities during 2015, performing about 76,300 hours of volunteer legal services to Ohioans who couldn’t afford an attorney. Using an hourly rate of $135, it’s estimated that the pro bono services in 2015 was valued at $10.3 million.

Participating attorneys also reported about $406,000 in financial contributions to organizations that provide legal services to low-income Ohioans – a little more than $300 on average per attorney who reported financial contributions.

Since 2007, the court has asked attorneys to report their pro bono activities to learn the extent and nature of pro bono work in Ohio. The foundation’s Pro Bono and Communications Director Jane Taylor said the information is used to identify gaps in the delivery of legal services in order to strengthen the network of legal services available to Ohioans in need.

“We were excited that the number of attorneys who voluntarily reported their pro bono work more than doubled from last year,” Taylor said. “I believe these results reflect the Court’s continuing emphasis on access to justice for all and its strong commitment to ensuring that every Ohioan can get legal help, regardless of income.”

Attorneys are encouraged to perform pro bono work and may be eligible to receive up to six hours of continuing legal education credits each biennial compliance period for performing pro bono legal services on behalf of recognized organizations.

Read the voluntary pro bono reporting report.

PDF files may be viewed, printed, and searched using the free Acrobat^® Reader
Acrobat Reader is a trademark of Adobe Systems Incorporated.