The Association of Corporate Counsel and Legal Aid of East Tennessee are partnering on a virtual event that will create and identify pro bono opportunities for in-house counsel and other legal staff in the Chattanooga area. LAET pro bono attorneys Caitlin Torney of Knoxville, Mary Frances of Chattanooga and Development Director Suzanne Wisdom will share and discuss ways you can offer volunteer pro bono services that will match your interests and abilities. The event will take place on Oct. 12 at noon EDT. Join the meeting via this Zoom link.

The TBA Young Lawyers Division is joining forces with Vanderbilt University Law School and the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services to host a virtual TN Free Legal Answers clinic on Wednesday at 12:30 p.m. CDT. Law students will be paired with volunteer lawyers in Zoom breakout rooms to answer questions submitted on the TN Free Legal Answers website. Volunteers may select the questions they want to answer. Email YLD Access to Justice Coordinator Alix Rogers with Legal Aid of Middle Tennessee & the Cumberlands to sign up.

Housing advocates warn that a surge in eviction cases is imminent and while emergency rental assistance programs may help some who are struggling to keep up with rent and other bills, many individuals need legal support. The Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee & the Cumberlands (LAS) is offering training for attorneys interested in volunteering to help tenants facing eviction in both urban and rural areas. The one-hour live webcast will take place Oct. 5 at noon CDT and will cover the application process for the Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) and how to access funds through the Tennessee Housing and Development Agency (THDA). Presenters include LAS attorneys Amelia Miller Luna, Katie Ovalle and Linda Blackwelder. Learn more about the CLE and register here. Contact Trent Craig at LAS with questions.  

This month, Tennessee lawyers are joining colleagues across the country to increase meaningful access to justice and commitment to pro bono work. Now in its 13th year, Tennessee’s statewide Celebrate Pro Bono Month initiative brings together legal services providers with bar associations, law schools, law firms and individual volunteers to offer free services to those unable to afford a lawyer. The month of October is an opportunity to focus attention on the significant need for pro bono services as well as a time to celebrate the outstanding work of those in the legal community who volunteer their services throughout the year. Events, including virtual and remote opportunities to volunteer, will be promoted in TBA Today, via social media and on the TBA website. If you have information about an event please share it with TBA.

The Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands will hold three clinics next week. On Tuesday, the group will hold a phone clinic at 2 p.m. CDT to provide general advice. The first 15 callers will be accepted. On Wednesday, LAS will hold a clinic specifically for veterans from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. CDT at Operation Stand Down, 1125 12th Ave. S. Nashville 37203. Finally, next Saturday, a general advice clinic will be held from 8:30-10:30 a.m. CDT at the McHugh Clinic, 2005 12th Ave. S., Nashville, TN 37204. To volunteer for any of these clinics, contact Kendra Cheek, 615-780-7131. See all October clinics.

October is Celebrate Pro Bono Month and the Tennessee access to justice community is planning events throughout the month. As a kick-off, Tennessee Supreme Court Chief Justice Roger Page will share a thoughtful message about pro bono service while Russell Fowler, director of litigation and advocacy at Legal Aid of East Tennessee, will educate and entertain about the history of access to justice and its relevance today at a virtual presentation Sept. 30 at noon CST. Learn more and register here. Events in October, including opportunities to volunteer, will be promoted in TBA Today, via social media and on the TBA website. If you have information about an event, please share it with the TBA. 

The ABA Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service announced the focus for October's National Celebration of Pro Bono will be "Moving Forward in a Post-Pandemic World." The 2021 event will center on the legal needs of vulnerable communities resulting from the pandemic as well as recognizing the efforts of pro bono attorneys during the pandemic. Celebrate Pro Bono is an opportunity to connect pro bono providers and attorneys across the nation and to highlight some of the most common legal issues impacting communities, including evictions, housing injustice, racial disparities, and challenges to accessing legal service. The TBA will work with our state's legal service providers and others in the access to justice community to support and promote pro bono and celebratory events throughout the month of October. 

The Tennessee Faith and Justice Alliance will conclude its fourth annual Pro Bono & Faith Days with a virtual training for those in East Tennessee tomorrow at 2 p.m. EDT. The program will feature a panel discussion around the intersection of faith, pro bono and racial justice; legal resource trainings; and virtual legal clinic information. Panelists include Executive Director of the Knoxville Police Advisory & Review Committee Lakenya Middlebrook, East Tennessee State University’s Vice President for Equity and Inclusion Dr. Keith Johnson and more. Registration for the event is required.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created a host of unforeseen civil legal needs for many, including some of Tennessee’s most vulnerable residents. Legal Aid Society Executive Director DarKenya Waller highlights those hardships and the “tidal wave” of legal needs that is on the horizon in a new op-ed for the Tennessean. Waller points to the free legal clinics, legal consultations and court hearings being held virtually and over the phone as evidence of how LAS attorneys have successfully adapted to the current environment. “The snowball effect of economic hardships encountered during the COVID-19 pandemic will be long term, and Legal Aid Society is here to help restore our economy and the lives of so many,” Waller writes. “Increased support will ensure that civil legal groups can effectively assist low-income Tennesseans through this period of recession and the years of recovery to come.”

The Tennessee Faith & Justice Alliance will hold the second of three virtual training programs tomorrow at 1 p.m. CDT for lawyers and faith and community leaders in Middle Tennessee. The program will feature a panel discussion around the intersection of faith, pro bono and racial justice; legal resource trainings; and virtual legal clinic information. Panelists include Juvenile Judge Sheila Calloway, Middle Tennessee State University political science professor Dr. Sekou Franklin, Nashville Metro Council At-Large Rep. Zulfat Suara, and Andrae Crismon with the Legal Aid Society. The event is free but registration is required.