Legal Aid Volunteer Attorneys

The Erie County Bar Association (ECBA), in partnership with Northwestern Legal Services, takes pride in their commitment to pro bono representation for low-income people in Erie County. The Legal Aid Volunteer Attorney Program, or LAVA, has been recognized as a model for other pro bono projects around the county. Since its inception in 1982, well over 6,500 low-income clients have received free representation and counsel from members of the Erie County Bar Association. Last year alone (2003), LAVA attorneys closed more than 100 cases for indigent clients in Erie County, and donated more than 500 hours of legal work on their behalf.

In addition to the direct legal representation offered by the pro bono project, LAVA attorneys in the area of family law also serve as instructors for a pro se divorce clinic in Erie County. We are also proud of the fact that court reporters have volunteered their pro bono services to aid in the representation of eligible clients.

LAVA is a success because of the close cooperation between the ECBA and Northwestern Legal Services. A NWLS staff attorney who is also an ECBA member coordinates the LAVA program, and the NWLS Central Intake Unit screens potential clients for income and asset eligibility, case acceptance criteria, and conflicts of interest. The LAVA coordinator matches eligible clients with ECBA attorneys, and oversees the administrative details of the process from intake to case closing.

Since 1982, it is estimated that over 10,000 pro bono hours of legal representation and counsel have been given to impoverished individuals and families in Erie County by LAVA. Given an average range for attorneys fees in the region at about $100 to $125 an hour, this translates into over $1 million in free legal service to the poor and disadvantaged over the last two decades.

In addition to the pro bono representation in Erie, attorneys in other counties within the NWLS service area (such as Venango County) provide pro bono assistance on occasion. They are called on for help when a conflict of interest prevents NWLS from assisting a particular client, or when the type of case lies outside the program priorities and case acceptance framework.

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