HOW TO VOLUNTEER WITH LCA

LCA has, at any one time, a roster of over 250 attorneys, who have registered to provide legal services to LCA clients. These attorneys practice throughout the Chicago area and specialize in all the areas of legal service our clients need.

How Do I Become a Volunteer Attorney For LCA?

See the Volunteer Attorney Information Sheet. Fill that form out and send it to us. We will enter you into our volunteer attorney database.

How Do I Learn of Volunteer Opportunities?

On a regular basis, we send out lists of available matters on e-mail. These lists are broken down by subject area, and you will receive only the lists for the legal subject areas you have indicated. For example, if you sign up to provide services in the copyright, trademark and unfair competition areas, you will receive lists of clients needing help in those areas, and not in, say, real estate or immigration.

What Do I Do Next?

If there are matters you are interested in handling, call or e-mail us and we will provide further information, such as the client’s name, and other names required for you to clear any conflicts. The lists we send out show clients by file number, rather than name, to protect their privacy. If the matter is still available, we will write letters to you and the client introducing both of you. Then, it is up to the two of you to meet and go forward with the engagement, as you would with any other client.

What About Fees and Costs?

Most of our clients qualify for pro bono service, and our volunteers do not charge attorneys fees. If there are out of pocket expenses involved in your engagement, such as filing or registration fees, those are the responsibility of the client. Sometimes the clients can pay fees, see below regarding Expanded Referrals.

What is the Extent of the Engagement With the Client?

The client is referred to a volunteer attorney for a specific legal matter. You are not agreeing to represent the client in any other or further way, although you are certainly free to agree with the client to do so.

What About Clients Who Do Not Qualify for Pro Bono Services?

We frequently have clients who do not qualify for pro bono services, but who come to us for referrals to attorneys who are expert in the arts, entertainment, intellectual property and other fields, because the clients need guidance to find such counsel. These clients usually cannot afford full market rates, though some can. We handle these Expanded Referrals in much the same way as the pro bono referrals, although we indicate that the client can pay something. Once the connection has been made between the client and attorney, you make your own arrangements. We frequently have clients who are starting out with a project, which will, hopefully, produce money, but they have no funds at the start. These are typically film deals, music deals and the like. The attorney and client may wish to enter into an arrangement whereby the fees are paid when and if the project succeeds.

Are These Matters Transactional or Litigation?

We have both, but the great majority of our matters are transactional. Our clients need intellectual property advice and contracts of every nature. We also have real estate, general business organization, nonprofit management, immigration and many other types of matters. We do have many clients with disputes, usually over being paid for their goods and services, or the rights to some creative property. As with other clients, these can often be resolved short of litigation, but not always. We encourage clients and attorneys to make use of our Arts Mediation Service, which has been very successful.

After I Accept a Matter, What is LCA’s Role?

We have no role or involvement in the attorney-client relationship you have formed. We do not have to be kept advised of progress, although we are always prepared to give whatever assistance volunteer attorneys may need. We maintain a specialized library that many attorneys make use of. We do want to be advised when the matter is completed, and have a form for doing so. We also want to know how many hours you spend on volunteer matters so that we can gather and report the value of services we provide the arts community. Our funders want to know that.

What About Malpractice Insurance?

Due to the cost, LCA cannot provide malpractice insurance coverage for all of our hundreds of volunteer attorneys. However, your own insurance should cover your pro bono work. Please check to make sure of your coverage, and what steps you have to take to be sure of coverage.

Why Should I Volunteer for LCA?

Our profession strongly encourages attorneys to provide pro bono services. LCA provides a very interesting and convenient way for attorneys to satisfy this obligation. Most of our matters do not involve litigation, which is attractive to the many transactional lawyers. The matters themselves are usually not long-term. You will work with talented, interesting creative clients, many of whom, with your help, will go on to successful careers. You will learn, or sharpen, skills in the arts and entertainment areas. We also provide opportunities for volunteers to join boards of directors of arts organizations. Our volunteers enjoy and benefit from their work with us.