Opt-Law has provided FREE LEGAL SERVICES for numerous clients in areas/matters like: Litigation, Employment, Land/Real Estate, Intellectual Property, Company Registration or Deregistration, Taxation, Dispute Resolutions and among others. Out of such experience, Opt-Law  witnessed the following advantages for providing free legal services:

A. Assisting in Filling Some of the Gaps in the Availability of Legal Services and Representation;

B.  Lawyers Obtaining Skills, Training and Experience;

C.  Recruitment and Retention of Lawyers;

D. Free Marketing and Publicity regarding the Free Legal Services (Pro bono) Program; and

E.  Building Relationships with Members of the Global Legal Community;

These are the advantages Opt-Law has witnessed as a result for providing Free Legal Services (Probono) program:

•  Assisting in Filling Some of the Gaps in the Availability of Legal Services and Representation

To date, many people around the world are still stranded with unsolved legal issues because they cannot afford Lawyers due to the gap between legal needs of the most disadvantaged in the society ability to find legal services.

Opt-Law’s well-organized pro bono program has enhanced its lawyers’ ability to fill the gaps between the legal needs of the most disadvantaged in society (and those nonprofits who try to help them) and their ability to find legal services. It has also enhanced Opt-Law’s lawyers’ ability to fill in other gaps, such as when nonprofits or public interest law groups cannot afford legal services, and need legal help to handle matters effectively on behalf of public interest litigants or anyone needing legal service but cannot afford it or can only partially afford it.

• Lawyers Obtaining Skills, Training and Experience

Opt-Law’s Free Legal Services (Pro bono) practice has represented a way in which the junior Lawyer/s have enhanced skills and help build a professional network. Normally, new lawyers generally fill secondary roles in their firms’ litigation or transactional practice. Opt-Law’s Free Legal Services (Pro bono) work has enabled new associates to draft court filings, or contracts, prepare legal arguments, and appear in numerous administrative or court hearings.  Additionally, Opt-Law Lawyers frequently developed communication, deliberation, and negotiation skills. Matters provided an opportunity for direct client contact or close interaction with adversaries, court officials, and other Lawyers. Opt-Law Free Legal Services (Pro bono) work generally gives Lawyers more responsibility and prepare them for the tough decision-making they will encounter throughout their careers. In summary, Opt-Law Free Legal Services work is an effective way for its young Lawyers to accelerate their development from law school graduates to skilled Lawyers.

• Recruitment and Retention of Attorneys

Another benefit that Opt-Law Free Legal Services (pro bono) work has offered is in recruiting new Lawyers and retaining existing Lawyers.

Finding and retaining qualified Lawyers can be difficult in a competitive legal market.  Opt-Law’s strong institutionalized Free Legal Services (pro bono) practice helped distinguish Opt-Law from its competitors. Experience has shown that more junior lawyers tend to be more willing to devote greater portions of their time to Free Legal Services (pro bono) legal work than more experienced lawyers, and accordingly, many of the highest quality young lawyers prefer working at law firms where they will be able to do fulfilling Free Legal Services pro bono work. Moreover, many young Lawyers equate the quality of a firm’s pro bono practice with its overall merit and values.

Opt-Law’s effective Free Legal Service (pro bono) program has materially helped in Opt-Law’s retaining of valued Lawyers. Free Legal Services (Pro bono) practice presents an attractive alternative to billable casework and can produce a sense of accomplishment (both for the public good and for one’s professional development) that associates may not find in much of their first few years of work for commercial clients.  Opt-Law’s participation in a well-organized Free Legal Services (pro bono) program improved morale while generating a sense of pride and loyalty. This benefit typically extends well beyond junior associates to more senior Lawyers and support staff.

•  Free Marketing and Publicity regarding the Free Legal Services (Pro bono) Program

Opt-Law’s Free Legal Services (pro bono) work has resulted in helpful publicity. For example,  there are several clients that contacted Opt-Law for Free Legal Service and later contacted Opt-Law for business matters.

 Opt-Law has included references to its Free Legal Services pro bono programs on its website or in newsletters sent to clients. Opt-Law’s Free Legal Services Director and the firm’s marketing group have considered how best to market externally the Opt-Law’s Free Legal Services program. Opt-Law’s Free Legal Services partnerships with recognizable institutions (sometimes including in-house lawyers), its providing pro bono services in important matters of public interest, and its receipt of pro bono awards or positive media recognition has helped attract new clients (as well as new Lawyers). Opt-Law thus can distinguish itself from competitors. Overall, Opt-Law’s successfully run and appropriately publicized Free Legal Services (pro bono) programs has improved its image in the community, media, and other authoritative bodies, as well as among its current and prospective clients and its current and prospective Lawyers and support staff.

Media publicity has also benefited society by informing and awakening the public’s consciousness about the public interest, and in particular instances of injustice, social need, or areas of the legal system requiring reform. This has improved the image of Lawyers in the community and led to changes that enhance trust in the legal system overall.

• Building Relationships with Members of the Global Legal Community

Opt-Law’s Free Legal Services engagement has helped it build relationships with other practitioners around the world through collaboration on multi-jurisdictional projects. Several Free Legal Services offered such opportunities.

“Don’t be stranded with a legal issue because you can’t afford legal services, contact your lawyer for free legal services (Probono)”