An Oak Park-founded group that helps attorneys get involved in pro-bono legal aid work is celebrating a decade-and-a-half of operation.
Pro Bono Network, founded in 2011 in Oak Park attorney Donna Peel’s home, will celebrate its 15th anniversary with an event on Sunday, Feb. 1 at the Oak Park Conservatory. Since its founding, Pro Bono Network has partnered with more than 20 community organizations and legal aid agencies, recruited and supported hundreds of volunteer attorneys and translators, and provided over 36,000 hours of free legal assistance in critical areas including family law, elder law, immigration, and community law initiatives, the group said in a news release about the event.
Peel and fellow Oak Park attorneys Heena Musabji and Sheila Winkelman Pont founded the group when they recognized the need to help attorneys in all stages of their careers overcome barriers to get involved in legal aid work serving low-income people.
“When I first imagined PBN in 2011, I was trying to solve a disconnect I saw very clearly. I knew many women — often at home with young children — who had law degrees and wanted to volunteer but found it impractical or even impossible to do so,” said Peel. “Commute times, training schedules, lack of malpractice insurance, uncertainty about how to get started, and the need for backup all created real barriers. At the same time, during the housing crisis, I read that people were waiting over a year for a pro bono attorney. There was a clear mismatch between available legal talent and unmet legal need.”
Next month’s event will celebrate the group’s steady evolution.
“We started Pro Bono Network because we, as lawyers on a break from our careers, wanted to find a way to give back. What we didn’t anticipate was just how many other attorneys were searching for the same opportunity,” said Winkelman Pont. “What started as a small group of 10, working on just two projects, has grown into a thriving network spanning four program areas and delivering critical legal services in 20 different projects.”
The event will run from 12 to 1:30 p.m. Feb. 1, according to the group.
