FREE MCLE PROGRAMS from the Office of Legal Services

The State Bar Office of Legal Services has worked with legal aid advocates and the Practising Law Institute (PLI) to develop these training programs which are available on demand at the PLI website. Registration is free.

Advocating for Veterans - The Basics on Benefits, Discharge Upgrades and Cultural Competency 

Total MCLE Credits 6.25: Elimination of Bias 1.00; General 5.25

Family Law Series - The Basics: Pro Bono Representation in Low-Income Family Law Cases in California   

MCLE Credits, General 9.25

Protecting Domestic Violence Survivors and Their Children 

MCLE Credits: General 2.

Defending Unlawful Detainers: Training Pro Bono Attorneys to Help Families Avoid Homelessness   

MCLE Credits: Total Credits 6.25: Elimination of Bias 1.00; General 5.25. 

Protecting the Rights of Homeowners with Limited Scope Representation.  

MCLE Credits 3.25 General. 

Chapter 13 Bankruptcy: Its Value and How It Benefits Low-Income Debtors .  

MCLE Credits 6.25 General.  

State Bar Loren Miller and Pro Bono Awards - Call for Nominations! Deadline: March 15, 2012

The State Bar of California wants to know about members who performed extraordinary legal services to the poor last year.  Please nominate your colleagues for the 2012 Loren Miller Legal Services Award and the President's Pro Bono Service Awards.

The Loren Miller Legal Services Award recognizes a lifetime commitment to legal services and extending legal services to the poor. Previous award recipients include staff of legal services organizations (such as directors of litigation, executive directors and senior staff attorneys) and private bar attorneys. Repeat nominations are accepted and encouraged with updated information.  Please refer to the Loren Miller Guidelines for more information about the criteria, an electronic nomination form, instructions for electronic submission, and information about past awardees.

Please also consider submitting nominations for the President's Pro Bono Service Awards. Nominees include:

• California attorneys (solo, recently admitted, limited active practice, government, law firm, corporate, law school faculty)
• Teams of attorneys
• California offices of law firms
• Corporate or government legal departments
• Associations of California lawyers
• ABA or State Bar accredited law schools
• Law students enrolled at ABA or State Bar accredited law schools who did not receive any form of compensation, clinical or other academic credit for pro bono work

Up to nine awards may be given for the provision of outstanding pro bono legal services in calendar year 2011 (or 2010-2011 academic year for law school and law student nominations). Repeat nominations are accepted with updated information for calendar year 2011. Please refer to the Awards Guidelines for more information about the awards categories, criteria for selection, an electronic nomination form, and instructions for electronic submission, as well as information about the 2011 President's Pro Bono Service Awards recipients.  

The nomination deadline for both awards is March 15, 2012. Nominations will only be accepted electronically.  The 2012 awards will be presented at a reception in October 2012 during the State Bar Annual Meeting in Monterey.  If you have any questions about the awards, please contact Joilene Wood Grove, Chair, Awards Outreach, Standing Committee on the Delivery of Legal Services (SCDLS) atjgrove@wsgr.com  or the SCDLS Staff Liaison, Sharon Ngim, at sharon.ngim@calbar.ca.gov or 415-538-2267.