The Colorado Lawyer February 2005 Vol. 34, No. 2 [Page 25]

Departments
Access to Justice
New Rule Authorizes CLE Credit For Pro Bono Representation
by JoAnn Vogt

JoAnn Vogt, Denver, is a judge on the Colorado Court of Appeals and chair of the Access to Justice Commission.

The Colorado Access to Justice Commission was created in 2003 and charged with addressing barriers facing persons seeking access to our state’s civil justice system.1 Since its inception, the Commission has focused primarily on what it views as the greatest of these barriers, namely, the economic barrier.

Nearly fifty years ago, in Griffin v. Illinois, the U.S. Supreme Court observed: "There can be no equal justice where the kind of trial a man gets depends on the amount of money he has."2 On a slightly less lofty level, the perceived relationship between money and justice is reflected in the famous New Yorker cartoon in which a well-heeled lawyer peers over his desk and inquires of a somewhat shabby client, "You have a pretty good case, Mr. Pitkin. How much justice can you afford?"

Recent articles in The Colorado Lawyer have described the effect of cuts in funding for the legal services programs that have traditionally provided civil legal assistance to low-income individuals in Colorado.3 For example, Colorado Legal Services has suffered a 17 percent loss of funding since 2002, resulting in staff cuts, an office closure, and an 11 percent reduction in clients served.4

As funding for legal services programs declines, responsibility for meeting the need for legal representation for the poor falls, increasingly, on volunteers. Many lawyers are extraordinarily generous in contributing their time and resources to help address this need. That commitment, however, is by no means uniform. Moreover, although good statistics for Colorado are not available, there is general agreement that the overall contribution of unpaid lawyer services does not come close to ensuring legal representation for those who need a lawyer, but cannot afford one.5

As one of many efforts currently under way to address the need for increased volunteer representation of low-income persons, the Colorado Supreme Court has adopted a new rule. C.R.C.P. Rule 260.8 permits Colorado lawyers to receive continuing legal education ("CLE") credits for providing pro bono legal representation in civil legal matters or for mentoring another lawyer or law student who provides such representation.6

C.R.C.P. 260.8, effective January 1, 2005, is the product of a joint effort of several individual bar members. The proposed rule was endorsed by the Colorado Bar Association, the Denver Bar Association, Metro Volunteer Lawyers, the Colorado Access to Justice Commission, the University of Denver College of Law, and the University of Colorado School of Law. The rule is modeled after similar rules in Wyoming, Delaware, New York, Tennessee, and Washington that appear to have significantly increased the provision of pro bono representation in civil cases in those states. It is not a "mandatory pro bono" rule but, rather, one that is designed to create additional incentives for lawyers to comply with their professional responsibilities—which include a goal of fifty hours per year of pro bono services.7

On completion of the pro bono representation or mentoring, the lawyer fills out a form seeking CLE credit and submits it to the assigning entity, which in turn verifies that the lawyer is entitled to such credit. The entity then submits the form to the Colorado Board of Continuing Legal and Judicial Education.8

The Colorado Constitution guarantees that "courts of justice shall be open to every person and a speedy remedy afforded for every injury to person, property or character."9 For many of our neediest citizens, the courthouse door is still closed. For every pro bono case a lawyer takes, that door opens a little wider.

9. Colo. Const. art. II, § 6.