Nevada lawyers providing pro bono can help people resolve a variety of legal troubles. The lawyers may help save a family home from foreclosure due to a job layoff or medical catastrophe, protect a child from abuse or neglect, or defend against consumer fraud or the financial abuse of a senior.

Lawyers can offer pro bono legal services through a collection of nonprofit agencies: Legal Aid of Southern Nevada, Nevada Legal Services, Northern Nevada Legal Aid, Southern Nevada Senior Law Program and Volunteer Attorneys for Rural Nevadans.

Areas of critical need include child advocacy and family law, domestic violence victim advocacy, elder assistance and consumer exploitation.

Access to Justice reports many benefits for lawyers who volunteer pro bono.

“Providing pro bono through legal aid provides a quality experience for lawyers,” said Brad Lewis, director for the Access to Justice Commission. “Whether it’s volunteering for an Ask-a-Lawyer seminar or taking on a case, Nevada lawyers can build skills to make them a better lawyer while earning continuing legal education (CLE) credits throughout the process. But the biggest benefit we hear most from lawyers is that it feels great to help someone. Unrecognized by most, is that legal help keeps people employed, helps keep kids in school, something everyone wants.”

Lawyers working with Nevada’s legal aid providers change Nevadans’ lives for the better. Other legal aid help includes securing benefits for eligible veterans, and pairing children with legal guardians or adoptive families.

But the community need for legal representation is far greater than the number of pro bono volunteer hours.

“76% of legal needs are going unmet,” added Lewis. “Legal aid helped 40,648 struggling families in 2021, though there were over 100,000 legal issues that did not receive professional legal representation because of a lack of pro bono volunteers to help on these cases.”

To learn more about volunteering pro bono or donating, please visit www.nvbar.org/probono.