Columbus School of Law

A Catholic institution located in Washington, D.C., the Columbus School of Law has a unique mission of service. As a result, the law school aspires to instill in its students the value of individual lives and a commitment to providing for vulnerable citizens. The student-run Legal Services Society was officially created during the 2006-07 academic year with a mission to form, through hands-on experience, a socially conscious network of students, faculty, and alumni at the Columbus School of Law.

The Pro Bono Challenge component of the Legal Services Society provides a structure through which students can recognize their responsibilities of service. The Pro Bono Challenge is dedicated to promoting pro bono legal work within the law school and throughout the legal community. Through the Challenge, students commit to completing a minimum of 30 hours of pro bono work. The Pro Bono Challenge is open to all class years and students have their entire three or four years at the Columbus School of Law to complete their work. In order to count towards the commitment, the student must be engaged primarily in law-related work on behalf of low-income or underrepresented populations and the work must be substantially legal in nature. Academic credit or financial compensation for the work cannot be received. The work must be performed under the supervision of an attorney and may be local, national, or international in scope. Work at a law firm qualifies as long as the work is on a pro bono case, is uncompensated, and academic credit is not being received.

Legal Services Society students have returned to the Gulf Coast region of Biloxi, Mississippi for three years running to assist the victims of Hurricane Katrina with the lingering social, medical and legal problems left in the wake of the historic storm.

Click for more information on their pro bono projects in 2008 and 2009.