Pro Bono Initiative

April 5, 2012 – Mississippi Volunteer Lawyer Project Clinic

Volunteer law students and attorneys, in partnership with Mississippi Volunteer Lawyer Project, served clients who would not otherwise have representation. Students interviewed and advised clients and drafted pleadings under the supervision of attorneys and Professor Bell. Matters included family law and guardianship.

  

February 10, 2012 – Child Support Modification Event

The Pro Bono Program Child Support Project hosted its second interview day on campus on Friday, February 10. This project links students with volunteer attorneys to assist child support payors in modification actions. Students handle a case from interview to court under the supervision of Professor Deborah Bell and a volunteer attorney.

  

November 4, 2011 – High School Education Project

The Pro Bono Initiative designed an entertaining and informative presentation for seniors at Oxford High School. Law students acted out a courtroom drama involving a landlord/tenant issue. The law students also provided information and precautions to the seniors before they rent their first apartment or house. The project was featured on MPB on November 7. The story can be found here.

October 6, 2011 – MVLP/Pro Bono Initiative Joint Project

Volunteer law students and attorneys, in partnership with Mississippi Volunteer Lawyer Project, served over thirty clients who would not otherwise have representation. Students interviewed and advised clients and drafted pleadings under the supervision of attorneys and Professor Bell. Matters included family law, guardianship, and employments.

September 29, 2011 – Child Support Modification Training

The Pro Bono Initiative launched a new family law project Friday, with a two-hour training program focusing on child support modification. Throughout the year, the Initiative will link students with volunteer attorneys to assist child support payors in modification actions. Students will be able to handle a case from interview to court under the supervision of Professor Deborah Bell and a volunteer attorney.

 

September 21, 2011 – Greenville

Student volunteers traveled to Greenville on September 21, where they, along with the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyer Project, assisted twenty-nine pro se litigants and MVLP clients in family law matters in the Washington County Chancery Court. Students gained first-hand litigation experience by interviewing litigants in the courthouse, identifying problems with their pleadings, and drafting pleadings on the spot. Cases included divorce, property division, custody, child support, guardianship, and termination of parental rights.

 

September 12, 2011 – Pro Se Subcommittee Presentation

On September 12, Prof. Bell’s Poverty Law class made a presentation to the Mississippi Access to Justice Commission Pro Se Committee. Members of the class are working to develop internet based, interactive self-help forms to assist litigants who wish to represent themselves, initially, in certain family law and domestic violence matters. At this meeting they demonstrated interactive websites and forms that self-represented litigants use in other states.

August 31, 2011 – Tupelo

The UM Law School Pro Bono Initiative hosted its first event of the year. The Tupelo event allowed students and alumni to gain hands-on experience in interviewing and counseling clients and drafting pleadings, while providing invaluable assistance to persons who could not otherwise afford an attorney.