Bucks Writs - Summer 2019 - 13

services to Legal Aid of Southeastern PA and other nonprofit
legal aid programs.
"There is a significant gap between the need for pro bono
legal services for the most vulnerable and the availability of
those services in the community," Disciplinary Board Chair
Doug Leonard said. "Creating this opportunity for retired
attorneys will provide a valuable service while bolstering
our efforts to provide access to justice for all." Attorneys
seeking emeritus status must be retired and complete
six hours of continuing legal education within one year
prior to applying for the program. Those accepted into
the program must fulfill continuing legal education
requirements including six hours of substantive law,
practice and procedure and two hours of ethics, professionalism or substance abuse.
The PA Disciplinary Board outlines some of the parameters:
"After a retired attorney transfers to emeritus status,
the attorney will be eligible to provide pro bono services
only through an eligible legal aid organization, a not-forprofit organization that provides legal services. In order to
commence working for a legal aid organization, the emeritus
attorney is required to submit an eligible legal aid organization form to the Disciplinary Board for approval of each
organization for which the attorney expects to perform pro
bono services. An emeritus attorney is able to volunteer with
multiple legal aid organizations, as long as the attorney files
the legal aid forms. Among other pieces of information, the
form requests a description of the legal services performed
by the organization and the nature of the duties expected
to be performed by the emeritus attorney. The supervising
attorney of the organization must verify that the organization
has malpractice insurance to cover the emeritus attorney and
that the organization will provide training and support to the
emeritus attorney.
Full details on the program, including annual renewal,
CLE credit requirements and more, are available at:
https://www.padisciplinaryboard.org/for-attorneys/resources
(scroll to Emeritus Attorneys section). For more
information on emeritus status, call 717-231-3380
or email atty.registration@pacourts.us. 

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SUMMER 2019
https://www.padisciplinaryboard.org/for-attorneys/resources
Bucks Writs - Summer 2019

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