Texas Bar Blog | By Guest Blogger
The Texas Access to Justice Commission, in conjunction with the General Counsel Forum, raised $71,026 for civil legal aid during the 3rd Annual Charity Golf Classic held November 20 in San Antonio. This year’s event exceeded the amount raised during last year’s tournament and is more than double the amount raised in the inaugural tournament. The proceeds will be donated to the Texas Access to Justice Foundation.
Legal aid organizations funded by the Texas Access to Justice Foundation help more than 100,000 low-income Texas families each year. Many need help with critical civil legal issues impacting their very existence such as securing safety for victims of domestic abuse, obtaining medical care for veterans and the elderly, and helping families maintain their housing. Due to a lack of resources, only about 20 percent of the civil legal needs of low-income and poor Texans are being met.
The Commission also presented Dell with the annual Magna Stella Pro Bono Award during the General Counsel Forum Magna Stella Awards dinner. The Magna Stella Pro Bono Award recognizes corporate legal departments that promote pro bono legal services within their company and within the corporate community at large.
Dell Legal has a strong culture of helping those in need through pro bono legal services. The program was started about 10 years ago and is one of the oldest programs in Texas. Dell attorneys provide an average of 865 pro bono hours per year. They assist many organizations, including American Gateways, Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas, Texas Access to Justice Commission, Texas Legal Services Center, BiGAUSTIN, the Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program and the Austin Bar Association Veteran’s Legal Advice Clinic. From staffing a monthly legal aid clinic, helping parents of special needs children, teaching a monthly class on basic business law, or assisting unrepresented veterans or their family members who have filed appeals at the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, the Dell Legal team goes above and beyond. Dell lawyers truly are Champions of Justice and pro bono.
Continuing the tradition of prior General Counsel, Dell Legal’s new General Counsel, Rich Rothberg, has issued a challenge to all Dell attorneys to provide pro bono legal services. Dell Legal is always looking for new opportunities (local and global) to expand their efforts and serve the community.
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The Texas Access to Justice Commission was created in 2001 by the Supreme Court of Texas to develop and implement policy initiatives designed to expand access to and enhance the quality of justice in civil legal matters for low-income Texans. The Commission has created several initiatives to increase resources and awareness of legal aid. For more information, please visit www.TexasATJ.org.
The Texas Access to Justice Foundation (www.teajf.org), created by the Supreme Court of Texas in 1984, is the primary state-based funding source for the provision of civil legal aid in Texas. The organization is committed to the vision that all Texans will have equal access to justice, regardless of their income. The Foundation administers a variety of funding sources, which are earmarked to assist nonprofit organizations in providing legal aid to approximately 100,000 Texas families each year.
Photos provided by the Texas Access to Justice Commission.
