The reporting period for 2023 has closed.
The 2023 Honor Society Cohorts are published at http://ncprobono.org/honorsociety.
More information can be found in the following press release: https://www.nccourts.gov/news/tag/press-release/nc-pro-bono-resource-center-announces-2023-pro-bono-honor-society-inductees
Honor Society certificates should be mailed no later than the beginning of July 2024.
For NC Attorneys:
Beginning in 2023, the NC Pro Bono Resource Center partnered with the North Carolina State Bar to implement a voluntary reporting category through the State Bar CLE annual reporting process, making it easier for lawyers to report their pro bono hours. You can review this video from the State Bar to learn more about this process. The deadline for attorneys to report through this process was May 10, 2024. Reporting for 2024 will open on January 1, 2025.
Attorneys have a professional responsibility to provide at least fifty (50) hours of pro bono service per year (NC Rule of Professional Conduct 6.1(a)).
Comment 12 of NC Rule 6.1, notes that, “Lawyers are encouraged to report pro bono legal services to Legal Aid of North Carolina, the North Carolina Equal Access to Justice Commission, or other similar agency as appropriate in order that such service might be recognized and serve as an inspiration to others.”
The North Carolina Supreme Court recognizes attorneys who voluntarily report at least 50 hours of pro bono service in a year, through the NC Pro Bono Honor Society. This recognition will be highlighted on the Pro Bono Resource Center website, the Administrative Office of the Courts’ website, and by a certificate signed by Chief Justice Paul Newby. By completing the questions below, you are reporting your pro bono hours for the preceding calendar year, which will be provided to the Pro Bono Resource Center for tracking and recognition. Please note that, while a minimum of 50 hours results in Honor Society Recognition, the Pro Bono Resource Center welcomes and encourages any number of hours to be reported.
Question:
How many total hours did you perform of pro bono service in the immediate past year?
You should be reporting in this section hours performed in accordance with Rule 6.1(a). https://www.ncbar.gov/for-lawyers/ethics/rules-of-professional-conduct/rule-61-voluntary-pro-bono-publico-service/
0 hours
1-10
11-20
21-40
41-50
50-100
100+
Links above: RULE 6.1(a) VOLUNTARY PRO BONO PUBLICO SERVICE
Every lawyer has a professional responsibility to provide legal services to those unable to pay. A lawyer should aspire to render at least (50) hours of pro bono publico legal services per year. In fulfilling this responsibility, the lawyer should:
(a) provide a substantial majority of the (50) hours of legal services without fee or expectation of fee to:
(1) persons of limited means;
(2) charitable, religious, civic, community, governmental and educational organizations in matters that are designed primarily to address the needs of persons of limited means; or
(3) individuals, groups or organizations seeking to secure or protect civil rights, civil liberties or public rights, or charitable, religious, civic, community, governmental and educational organizations in matters in furtherance of their organizational purposes, where the payment of standard legal fees would significantly deplete the organization’s economic resources or would be otherwise inappropriate.
For NC Paralegals:
All North Carolina paralegals, including NCCPs, can report their 2023 pro bono hours to the Pro Bono Resource Center directly through the Individual Paralegal Reporting Form. The deadline to report pro bono hours completed in 2023, was March 31, 2024. Reporting for 2024 will open on January 1, 2025.
More about pro bono reporting in North Carolina
North Carolina Rule of Professional Conduct 6.1 encourages North Carolina attorneys to engage in a variety of activities to increase access to justice:
– at least 50 hours each year of pro bono legal services to clients who are unable to pay, without fee or expectation of fee (this category solely leads to recognition through the North Carolina Pro Bono Honor Society);
– legal services provided at a substantially reduced fee;
– activities to improve the law, the legal system, or the legal profession;
– non-legal community service; and
– financial support to legal service providers.
For more information about the above activities included in Rule 6.1, please visit the Reporting Frequently Asked Questions.
Paralegal Reporting also collects information about the above activities. For guidance on paralegal legal services, refer to the North Carolina State Bar Paralegal Certification program.
Comment 12 suggests that lawyers should report information about those services “in order that such service might be recognized and serve as an inspiration to others.” Each year, the North Carolina Pro Bono Resource Center provides a venue for this voluntary reporting, joining 22 other states in collecting information about pro bono activities included in Rule 6.1.
There are four major reasons to report your pro bono legal service: (1) it’s a way to showcase attorney volunteerism in North Carolina – we want to share the good work being done by the legal profession in our state; (2) it’s an opportunity to encourage your peers to grow their pro bono involvement by sharing about your own engagement; (3) it’s a mechanism to identify areas to grow pro bono efforts in North Carolina; and (4) it’s an opportunity for recognition. Reporters may elect to opt out of recognition if preferred.
North Carolina licensed attorneys (or attorneys who provide services under North Carolina Pro Bono Practice Status) who report at least 50 hours of pro bono legal service in a year will be inducted into that year’s cohort of the North Carolina Attorney Pro Bono Honor Society and receive a certificate from the Supreme Court of North Carolina recognizing their achievement. Paralegals who report at least 50 hours of pro bono legal services in a year will be inducted into that year’s cohort of the North Carolina Paralegal Pro Bono Honor Society and receive a certificate from the North Carolina Pro Bono Resource Center recognizing their achievement. To view information about the North Carolina Pro Bono Honor Societies and each year’s cohort, view this page.