Rethinking the public in lawyers' public service: Pro bono, strategic philanthropy, and the bottom line

Fordham Law Review

Volumn 77, Issue 4, 2009, Pages 1435-1452

  Rhode, Deborah L ^a,b  

^a Department of Law ^*

^b STANFORD LAW SCHOOL   (United States)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

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EID: 65349110545     PISSN: 0015704X     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: None     Document Type: Review

References (163)

1. Am. Bar Found., New Approaches to Access to Legal Services: Research, Practice, and Policy, RESEARCHING L., Summer 2005, at 6 [hereinafter New Approaches], available at http://www. americanbarfoundation.org/uploads/cms/documents/rlmoserfund.pdf (quoting Stephen Daniels, Senior Research Fellow, American Bar Foundation) (internal quotation marks omitted).
2. MODEL RULES OF PROF'L CONDUCT pmbl. (2007).
3. Nate Raymond, A Silver Lining, AM. LAW., July 2008, at 100, 102 (noting that contributions at American Lawyer 100 firms have more than doubled since 2000).
4. For other firms, see VAULT GUIDE TO LAW FIRM PRO BONO PROGRAMS (3d ed. 2007).
5. For an overview of the inadequacies, see generally DEBORAH L. RHODE, ACCESS TO JUSTICE (2004).
6. See C. DANIEL BATSON, THE ALTRUISM QUESTION: TOWARD A SOCIAL- PSYCHOLOGICAL ANSWER 6 (1991);
7. see also Robert B. Cialdini et al., Empathy-Based Helping: Is It Selflessly or Selfishly Motivated?, 52 J. PERSONALITY & SOC. PSYCHOL. 749, 756 (1987);
8. Reed Elizabeth Loder, Tending the Generous Heart: Mandatory Pro Bono and Moral Development, 14 GEO. J. LEGAL ETHICS 459, 467 (2001).
9. See generally Melvin J. Lerner, The Justice Motive in Human Relations and the Economic Model of Man: A Radical Analysis of Facts and Fictions, in COOPERATION AND HELPING BEHAVIOR: THEORIES AND RESEARCH 249 (Valerian J. Derlega & Janusz Grzelak eds., 1982).
10. See BATSON, supra note 5, at 3-4;
11. DAVID GAUTHIER, MORALS BY AGREEMENT 1-20 (1986);
12. DENNIS C. MUELLER, PUBLIC CHOICE 1-4 (1979);
13. James Andreoni, Impure Altruism and Donations to Public Goods: A Theory of Warm-Glow Giving, 100 ECON. J. 464, 464-77 (1990);
14. Robert A. Katz, Can Principal-Agent Models Help Explain Charitable Gifts and Organizations?, 2000 WIS. L. REV. 1, 14.
15. BERNARD WILLIAMS, MORALITY: AN INTRODUCTION TO ETHICS 71-72 (1972).
16. Jon Elster, Selfishness and Altruism, in BEYOND SELF-INTEREST 44, 44-52 (Jane J. Mansbridge ed., 1990).
17. See DEBORAH L. RHODE, PRO BONO IN PRINCIPLE AND IN PRACTICE 58-59 (2005);
18. see also CTR. ON PHILANTHROPY AT IND. UNIV. FOR BANK OF AM., THE 2008 BANK OF AMERICA STUDY OF HIGH-NET- WORTH PHILANTHROPY (2008);
19. ALLAN LUKS WITH PEGGY PAYNE, THE HEALING POWER OF DOING GOOD, at xi-xii, 16-18, 45-54, 60, 118-119 (2d ed. 2001);
20. John Wilson & Mark Musick, The Effects of Volunteering on the Volunteer, 62 LAW & CONTEMP. PROBS., Autumn 1999, at 141, 150-59.
21. RHODE, supra note 9, at 59;
22. see also LUKS WITH PAYNE, supra note 9, at 17-18, 118-19;
23. John M. Darly, Altruism and ProSocial Behavior Research: Reflections and Prospects, in PROSOCIAL BEHAVIOR 312 (Margaret Clark ed., 1991).
24. BATSON, supra note 5, at 59;
25. Loder, supra note 5, at 468;
26. Jane J. Mansbridge, On the Relation of Altruism and Self-interest, in BEYOND SELF-INTEREST, supra note 8, at 133, 136-37.
27. David Rosenhan, The Natural Socialization of Altruistic Autonomy, in ALTRUISM AND HELPING BEHAVIOR: SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGICAL STUDIES OF SOME ANTECEDENTS AND CONSEQUENCES 251, 263-67 (Jacqueline Macaulay & Leonard Berkowitz eds., 1970).
28. PAUL BREST & HAL HARVEY, MONEY WELL SPENT: A STRATEGIC PLAN FOR SMART PHILANTHROPY 15-17 (2008);
29. Peter Frumkin, Inside Venture Philanthropy, in IN SEARCH OF THE NONPROFIT SECTOR 99 (Peter Frumkin & Jonathan B. Imber eds., 2004).
30. MODEL RULES OF PROF'L CONDUCT R. 6.1 (2007).
31. Id.
32. Id. The comment to the rule also allows firms to satisfy their lawyers' obligations collectively. Id. R. 6.1 cmt.
33. For the seven states, see American Bar Association, State-by-State Pro Bono Service Rules, http://www.abanet.org/legalservices/probono/ stateethicsrules.html (last visited Feb. 21, 2009).
34. See RHODE, supra note 9, at 19, 145-48.
35. See id. at 20.
36. American Bar Association (ABA) survey results finding that two-thirds of lawyers report doing some pro bono work are not inconsistent with this estimate, given that the average hourly contribution of lawyers who offered pro bono assistance needs to be adjusted for the numbers who did not, and for those whose contributions involved activities such as bar association service. See AM. BAR ASS'N STANDING COMM. ON PRO BONO & PUB. SERV., SUPPORTING JUSTICE: A REPORT ON THE PRO BONO WORK OF AMERICA'S LAWYERS 4 (2005), available at http://www.abanet.org/legalservices /probono/report.pdf.
37. Aric Press, In House, AM. LAW., July 2008, at 13;
38. Raymond, supra note 3, at 101 (commenting on Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP's revamp of its pro bono program under which "the average pro bono hours per lawyer rose to 69 last year, almost double its 2006 figure of 35.4").
39. Aric Press, Pro Bono 2007: Drawing the Line, AM. LAW., July 2007, at 119 ("We underline Pro Bono Institute's decision not to count hours spent on board service for nonprofits or general bar activities unrelated to performing legal services for poor persons or fulfilling civil or public rights.").
40. Carlyn Kolker, The Good Fight, AM. LAW., July 2006, at 105, 105-06, 126, 128;
41. see also Amanda Bronstad, Fees Paid in Pro Bono Cases Are Contested, NAT'L L.J., Feb. 4, 2008, at 4 (describing controversies over claims of $1 million, and $1.8 million in pro bono cases).
42. NANCY EISENBERG, ALTRUISTIC EMOTION, COGNITION, AND BEHAVIOR 30-57 (1986);
43. PETER FRUMKIN, STRATEGIC GIVING: THE ART AND SCIENCE OF PHILANTHROPY 256-57 (2006);
44. SAMUEL P. OLINER & PEARL M. OLINER, THE ALTRUISTIC PERSONALITY: RESCUERS OF JEWS IN NAZI EUROPE 113, 165-67, 173-75, 228 (1988);
45. RHODE, supra note 9, at 7;
46. E. Gil Cary & Mark Snyder, A Functional Analysis of Altruism and Prosocial Behavior, in PROSOCIAL BEHAVIOR, supra note 10, at 133;
47. Martin L. Hoffman, Empathy and Prosocial Activism, in SOCIAL AND MORAL VALUES: INDIVIDUAL AND SOCIETAL PERSPECTIVES 65, 65-85 (Nancy Eisenberg et al. eds., 1989);
48. Carrie Menkel-Meadow, The Causes of Cause Lawyering: Toward an Understanding of the Motivation and Commitment of Social Justice Lawyers, in CAUSE LAWYERING: POLITICAL COMMITMENTS AND PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES 31 (Austin Sarat & Stuart Scheingold eds., 1998).
49. On a scale of one to five, with five being most important, the motivations were: personal satisfaction (4.2); a sense of professional obligation (3.7); employer policies and encouragement (2.7); professional benefits such as contacts, training, and referrals (2.7); reputation and recognition (2.5); and trial experience (2.5). RHODE, supra note 9, at 131.
50. Id. at 131-32.
51. Robert Granfield, The Meaning of Pro Bono: Institutional Variations in Professional Obligations Among Lawyers, 41 LAW & SOC'Y REV. 113, 137 (2007) [hereinafter Granfield, The Meaning of Pro Bono];
52. Robert Granfield & Thomas Koenig, "It's Hard to Be a Human Being and a Lawyer": Young Attorneys and the Confrontation with Ethical Ambiguity in Legal Practice, 105 W. VA. L. REV. 495 (2003);
53. David B. Wilkins, Address: Doing Well by Doing Good?: The Role of Public Service in the Careers of Black Corporate Lawyers, 41 HOUS. L. REV. 1 (2004).
54. Marc Galanter, "Old and in the Way": The Coming Demographic Transformation of the Legal Profession and Its Implications for the Provision of Legal Services, 1999 WIS. L. REV. 1081;
55. Kathryn Alfisi, The Senior Lawyer Public Interest Project, WASH. LAW., Dec. 2006, at 30.
56. RHODE, supra note 9, at 131-32;
57. Granfield, The Meaning of Pro Bono, supra note 26, at 139;
58. Karen A. Lash, Pitching Pro Bono: Getting to First Base with the "Big Firm," MGMT. INFO. EXCHANGE J., Fall 2008, at 3, 7-8.
59. See, e.g., Sparks v. Parker, 368 So. 2d 528 (Ala. 1979), appeal dismissed, 444 U.S. 803 (1979) (requiring that an attorney provide services to an indigent without just compensation despite Alabama statute);
60. Mallard v. U.S. Dist. Court, 490 U.S. 296 (1989) (requiring attorney to represent indigent inmates despite his objections that he was not competent);
61. Family Div. Trial Lawyers v. Moultrie, 725 F. 2d 695 (D.C. Cir. 1984) (holding that requiring lawyers to represent indigent parents was not involuntary servitude).
62. For bar ethical codes see ABA CANONS OF ETHICS Canons 4, 12 (1908);
63. MODEL CODE OF PROF'L RESPONSIBILITY EC 2-25 (1980);
64. MODEL RULES OF PROF'L CONDUCT R. 6.1 (2007);
65. see also RHODE, supra note 9, at 3-12.
66. For arguments that pro bono requirements are a reasonable condition, see RHODE, supra note 9, at 3;
67. Michael Millemann, Mandatory Pro Bono in Civil Cases: A Partial Answer to the Right Question, 49 MD. L. REV. 18 (1990);
68. supra note 29.
69. For unmet needs, see RHODE, supra note 4, at 3.
70. Rebecca L. Sandefur, Lawyers' Pro Bono Service and American-Style Civil Legal Assistance, 41 LAW & SOC'Y REV. 79 (2007).
71. PETER D. HART & ASSOCS., A SURVEY OF ATTITUDES NATIONWIDE TOWARD LAWYERS AND THE LEGAL SYSTEM 18 (1993).
72. RHODE, supra note 9, at 30;
73. Scott L. Cummings, The Politics of Pro Bono, 52 UCLA L. REV. 1 (2005);
74. Granfield, The Meaning of Pro Bono, supra note 26, at 138.
75. See New Approaches, supra note 1, at 10 (quoting lawyers);
76. Brent Harris, Fulfilling the Promise of Law Firm Pro Bono (2008) (unpublished manuscript, on file with the Fordham Law Review).
77. RHODE, supra note 9, at 31
78. (quoting Taleott J. Franklin, Practical Pro Bono: How Public Source Can Enhance Your Practice, S.C. LAW., Feb. 1999, at 15, 18).
79. A First for Orrick: Stronger Pro Bono Scores Help the Firm Make Its A-List Debut, AM. LAW., July 2007, at 88;
80. Ben Hallman, Starting at the Top, AM. LAW., July 2007, at 92, 95;
81. Harris, supra note 35, at 29-30.
82. New Approaches, supra note 1, at 6 (quoting Stephen Daniels, ABF Senior Research Fellow).
83. S. Harris, NAT'L L.J., Oct. 22, 2007, at 23.
84. Harris, supra note 35, at 50 (quoting the pro bono coordinator of a New York law firm).
85. Id. (quoting the pro bono coordinator of a New York law firm);
86. see also Wilkins, supra note 26, at 77-78 (noting that young associates are often not closely supervised).
87. Harris, supra note 35, at 49 (quoting the pro bono coordinator of a New York law firm).
88. Deborah L. Rhode, Public Interest Law: The Movement at Midlife, 60 STAN. L. REV. 2027, 2071 (2008).
89. Id. at 2072 (quoting Brian Stevenson, Director, Equal Justice Initiative).
90. For other research reviewing concerns about lack of expertise, see Cummings, supra note 34, at 143.
91. Rhode, supra note 43, at 2072 (quoting Mitch Kamin, Director, Bet Tzedek).
92. Other organizations did continuing legal education in areas where volunteers could provide adequate representation, such as school discipline cases. Id. (citing Janet Stotland, Education Law Project).
93. Id. (quoting Richard Rothschild, Western Center on Law and Poverty).
94. Id. (quoting Steven Bright, Southern Center for Human Rights);
95. accord id. at 2072 n.236 (Kaufman Atlantic Legal Foundation noting difficulties in relying on firms at '"crunch time'").
96. RHODE, supra note 9, at 148.
97. Id.
98. For ideological tilt, see id.
99. For the reluctance of firms to subsidize work that may conflict with client interests or values, see id. at 146;
100. Cummings, supra note 34, at 122;
101. Rhode, supra note 43, at 2073;
102. Norman W. Spaulding, The Prophet and the Bureaucrat: Positional Conflicts in Service Pro Bono Publico, 50 STAN. L. REV. 1395 (1998);
103. Wilkins, supra note 26, at 77.
104. Susan Cameron, unpublished paper 2 (Nov. 16, 2007) (unpublished manuscript, on file with author).
105. For disrespectful behavior by summer and junior associates, see Alana Nyguen Secret, Law Firm Pro Bono Programs for Summer Associates: More Harm than Good? 4 (2008) (unpublished manuscript, on file with author); Email from Brandon Vongsawad to Deborah L. Rhode, Professor of Law, Stanford Law School (Nov. 13, 2007) (on file with author).
106. Secret, supra note 52, at 4-5 (describing Jeffer Mangels's program).
107. RHODE, supra note 9, at 149.
108. Rhode, supra note 43, at 2071 (quoting John Bouman, Director, Shriver National Center on Poverty).
109. Other directors from Equal Rights Advocates and the Sierra Club expressed similar concerns. Id. at 2071 n.231.
110. Id. at 2071 (discussing concerns of Irma Herrera, Equal Rights Advocates, and Carl Pope, Sierra Club).
111. Id.
112. Lash, supra note 28, at 5 (quoting David Lash, O'Melveny & Myers).
113. Id. at 7 (quoting Susie Hoffman, Crowell & Moring).
114. Id. at 7-8 (quoting Cristin Zeisler, Mannatt, Phelps & Phillips).
115. Id.
116. See FRUMKIN, supra note 23, at 5-7.
117. Harris, supra note 35, at 24-25 (quoting Paul Saunders, member of the Pro Bono Committee at Cravath, Swaine & Moore).
118. Cynthia Dipasquale, Pro Bono Reporting Requirements Help Maryland Lawyers Measure Up, DAILY REC. (Balt.), Feb. 16, 2007.
119. See ASS'N OF THE BAR OF THE CITY OF N.Y. FUND, INC. ET AL., PUBLIC SERVICE IN A TIME OF CRISIS: A REPORT AND RETROSPECTIVE ON THE LEGAL COMMUNITY'S RESPONSE TO THE EVENTS OF SEPTEMBER 11, 2001, at 38 (2004), available at http://www.probono. net/library/item.54591-Public-Service-in-a-Time-of-Crisis;
120. FRUMKIN, supra note 23, at 334;
121. Deborah L. Rhode, Pro Bono in Times of Crisis; Looking Forward by Looking Back, 31 FORDHAM URB. L.J. 1011, 1018 (2004).
122. Rhode, supra note 43, at 2070.
123. BREST & HARVEY, supra note 13, at 7-15.
124. FRUMKIN, supra note 23, at 371.
125. Esther Lardent, President of the Pro Bono Inst., Comment at UCLA Conference on the Future of Pro Bono (Oct. 3, 2008) (on file with author).
126. Harris, supra note 35, at 6-9.
127. Recruiting efforts can also benefit from short-term public interest externships available to especially talented associates. Cummings, supra note 34, at 77-78;
128. see also New Approaches, supra note 1, at 10.
129. RHODE, supra note 9, 174-75;
130. Rhode, supra note 43, at 2070;
131. see also Ashby Jones, Law Firms Willing to Pay to Work for Nothing, WALL ST. J., June 19, 2007, at B1 (detailing financial implications of pro bono work).
132. Michael Aneiro, Room to Improve, AM. LAW., July 2006, at 100, 102 (providing examples).
133. Harris, supra note 35, at 27, 45.
134. I am indebted for this example to presentations at a conference on the future of pro bono at UCLA Law School on October 4, 2008.
135. Vivia Chen, Rise of the Right, AM. LAW., July 1, 2007, at 114, 115, 116.
136. Id. at 116 (quoting Jeffrey Trachtman, Chair of Pro Bono Committee, Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP).
137. RHODE, supra note 9, at 150.
138. For examples of how law firms have bolstered their pro bono programs, see Aneiro, supra note 73, at 100.
139. Harris, supra note 35, at 21 ("Hours rose nearly a hundred percent after the 'managing partner took every opportunity at firm retreats and in other speeches to emphasize the importance of pro bono work.'" (quoting Scott Edelman, Chair of the Pro Bono Committee at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP in Los Angeles)).
140. Daphne Eviatar, Pro Bono Pros, AM. LAW., July 2008, at 104.
141. Hallman, supra note 37 at 93, 94 (quoting Steven Schulman, former pro bono counsel at Latham & Watkins LLP).
142. See Aneiro, supra note 73, at 100, 102, 103 (describing Sullivan & Cromwell's dinner and Milbank Tweed's gift of iPods).
143. See Siobhan Morrissey, Helping the Helpers, A.B.A. J., Jan. 2008, at 64 (describing online National Pro Bono Opportunities Guide developed by the ABA and Pro Bono Net).
144. Since Florida has required reporting of pro bono work, the number of lawyers providing assistance to the poor has increased by 35%; the number of hours has increased by 160%, and financial contributions have increased by 243%. STANDING COMM. ON PRO BONO LEGAL SERV., REPORT TO THE SUPREME COURT OF FLORIDA, THE FLORIDA BAR, AND THE FLORIDA BAR FOUNDATION ON THE VOLUNTARY PRO BONO ATTORNEY PLAN 3 (2006).
145. AM. BAR ASS'N COMM'N ON RENAISSANCE OF IDEALISM IN THE LEGAL PROFESSION, RENAISSANCE OF IDEALISM IN THE LEGAL PROFESSION: FINAL REPORT (2006), available at http://www.abanet.org/renaissance/downloads/finalreport.pdf.
146. Building a Better Legal Profession, a national student organization, grades firms on their diversity and pro bono records. See Building a Better Legal Profession, About Us, http://www.betterlegalprofession.org/mission. php (last visited Feb. 21, 2009).
147. The Pro Bono Institute's challenge to corporate counsel now has seventy-five participants who agree to consider outside law firm's pro bono records when allocating legal work. Eviatar, supra note 80, at 106;
148. see also Adam Liptak, In Students' Eyes, Look-Alike Lawyers Don't Make the Grade, N.Y. TIMES, Oct. 29, 2007, at A10.
149. RHODE, supra note 9, at 167-69;
150. Wilkins, supra note 26, at 83-84.
151. Morrissey, supra note 83 (discussing Standard 2.12).
152. See BREST & HARVEY, supra note 13, at 15 (quoting Albert Einstein).
153. For the difficulty of finding metrics and increasing transparency in many philanthropic areas, see FRUMKIN, supra note 23, at 55-57;
154. Paul Brest, Strategic Philanthropy and its Malcontents, in MORAL LEADERSHIP: THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF POWER, JUDGMENT, AND POLICY 229, 237 (Deborah L. Rhode ed., 2006);
155. Bruce Sievers, Ethics and Philanthropy, in MORAL LEADERSHIP: THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF POWER, JUDGMENT, AND POLICY, supra, at 249, 253;
156. Jon Gertner, For Good, Measure, N.Y. TIMES, Mar. 9, 2008, § 6 (Magazine), at 62.
157. See BREST & HARVEY, supra note 13, at 141-64
158. Dennis Jacobs, Chief Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, Pro Bono for Fun and Profit, Speech Before the Rochester Federalist Society, Rochester, N.Y. (Oct. 6, 2008), available at http://www.fed-soc.org/ doclib/20081023-DJProBonoSpeech.pdf.
159. Id.
160. Id.
161. Brest, supra note 90, at 247.
162. Rhode, supra note 43, at 2057.
163. STEVEN M. TELES, THE RISE OF THE CONSERVATIVE LEGAL MOVEMENT 20, 271-73 (2008).