Now that the charges have been dropped against the police officers in the Freddie Gray case, how can you not conclude that the justice system utterly failed? Which, naturally, raises another question: Is there a better way? Actually, there is: ...

Tagged with: Joe Surkiewicz

  How can pro bono attorneys make a difference in the lives of young patients with neurodevelopmental and other disorders of the brain? For Jennifer Brennan, it was by helping an 11-year-old girl with a major brain injury hospitalized at ...

Tagged with: Joe Surkiewicz

Low-income people struggling with the loss of their homes to foreclosure are not only scared and confused. They are also vulnerable to predators. “It’s because foreclosure proceedings are in the public record,” said Christina Ochoa, a staff attorney in the ...

Tagged with: Joe Surkiewicz

What’s worse than getting a notice of deficiency letter from the IRS? Getting that letter and being poor. Which is why the University of Baltimore School of Law created the Tax Clinic, where student attorneys represent low-income taxpayers in disputes ...

Tagged with: Joe Surkiewicz

On Dec. 7, the Maryland Legal Services Corp. will recognize and honor a group of people (and one private firm) for their above-the-call-of-duty contributions in helping low-income Marylanders with their civil legal problems. The envelopes, please. Lawrence D. Coppel of ...

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Is there a new face to pro bono in Maryland? According to Sharon E. Goldsmith, the executive director of the Pro Bono Resource Center of Maryland, the answer is a resounding yes. “When I started doing this many years ago, ...

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For lawyers committed to increasing access to justice and eager to give back to their communities, taking a pro bono case is the obvious way to go. But how should a legal nonprofit thank the lawyers who use their time ...

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As a clinician working on Kennedy Krieger Institute’s neurobehavioral unit more than a decade ago, Maureen van Stone saw the critical importance of advocating for children with intellectual and developmental disabilities and severe problem behaviors. So van Stone, now director ...

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Since its founding in 1981, the Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service has assisted more than 70,000 low-income clients with legal help, ranging from foreclosure prevention and debtor assistance to tax assistance and family law matters.

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For the last six years, the Veterans Legal Assistance Conference and Training has provided a doorway for private attorneys who want to help low-income veterans overcome legal hurdles to obtaining their disability benefits. This year, however, the June 5 conference ...

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