UNC School of Law Pro Bono Program receives nationwide recognition

The American Bar Association recently recognized the UNC School of Law Pro Bono Program as a 2024 Pro Bono Leader, making it the only law school in the U.S. to have received the recognition.

The acknowledgement is given to individual attorneys, law firms and other legal groups that answer 75 or more personalized legal questions through the ABA Free Legal Answers online platform, allowing qualified individuals to get free legal advice. UNC’s program provided answers to 133 questions in 2024. 

UNC’s Pro Bono Program, providing legal services for those unable to afford them since 1997, is led by Director of Pro Bono Initiatives Meghan Moran and the student Pro Bono Board. Students collaborate with supervising attorneys to provide legal services at no cost.

“The goal of the program is to use the resources and the talent and dedication of our students to help address unmet legal needs in our state and beyond,” Moran said.

Students are introduced to the Pro Bono Program early on, beginning at first-year orientation. School of Law Senior Associate Dean Kelly Podger Smith said the initiative is important because providing pro bono legal services is part of the professional responsibility of lawyers, so the program helps students build their legal skills. 

ABA’s online platform provides free legal advice for civil issues because in the U.S., legal representation is not guaranteed for civil cases. 

Moran said the platform is especially helpful for areas that are considered legal deserts, meaning there is less than one attorney per one thousand residents. Currently, 48 of 100 counties in North Carolina are considered legal deserts. 

There are multiple opportunities for students to take part in answering online questions, including Moran’s weekly Empower Hour. During the time period, students spend their lunch break working through a legal issue with Moran and drafting a response. 

In the last academic year, students provided over 5,000 hours of pro bono services, with their time valued at over $173,000. Additionally, in the graduating class of 2024, 97 percent of UNC law students participated in the program. 

Jessica di Lustro, student director of the Pro Bono Board, said the program is a part of the identity of UNC School of Law and is an integral part of the student experience. 

“Every year when we do Pro Bono Board interviews, we have people who say, ‘I came to UNC for the Pro Bono Program,’” di Lustro said.

In addition to answering legal questions online, the program provides hands-on legal services to different areas of North Carolina through off-campus clinics and trips students can take during school breaks. 

Over the 2024-25 winter break, students travelled to Cherokee, N.C., to assist with driver’s license restoration in partnership with Legal Aid of North Carolina and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians Legal Assistance Office.

Students recently spent spring break in Burnsville, N.C., and Boone, working with Legal Aid of North Carolina to provide disaster-related legal services.

“Pro bono is a way to take what we're learning in the classroom and what we're learning at internships and use it to really help serve North Carolina and serve the communities that we care about,” di Lustro said. “Especially UNC being the flagship law school in North Carolina, it's so important for us to do this work in North Carolina and in these communities.”

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