1. About

Pro Bono

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Lawyers have a special obligation to the administration of justice. ArentFox Schiff believes that community service and pro bono public work are integral to the practice of law. Our priority is giving a voice to those who otherwise might not be heard.

Our Pro Bono Work

Providing pro bono services is a pillar of our profession. Gaps in the legal system must be addressed, even if it’s one matter at a time. To that end, ArentFox Schiff is proud to work with a number of leading nonprofit organizations that are advocating for a more equitable, inclusive, and just society.

Over the years, our work has ranged from supporting human rights and safeguarding civil liberties to aiding in fights against housing insecurity and racial injustice. These projects have contributed substantially to the health, welfare, and dignity of people in our community. If you are interested in partnering with us on an initiative, please do not hesitate to reach out.

Jon Bouker and Paula Ketcham
Pro Bono Committee Co-Chairs

Our Annual Numbers

  • 26,000 Pro Bono Hours
  • 550+ Lawyers Dedicated to Pro Bono
  • 40+ Legal Aid Groups Supported
Pro Bono Our Partners

Key Partnerships

  • Chicago Volunteer Legal Services This unique and trailblazing pro bono partnership to advance change, improve lives, and bring justice began in 1979 when Schiff Hardin adopted a CVLS neighborhood legal clinic in Rogers Park, a culturally vibrant, yet economically under-resourced community in Chicago. Our attorneys provide low-income residents access to legal assistance that helps protect their rights in landlord/tenant disputes, access government benefits, and mediate family law issues.
  • DC Affordable Law Firm The DCALF – a joint venture among ArentFox Schiff, Georgetown Law Center, and DLA Piper – selects six lawyers each year from Georgetown’s graduating class for a fellowship program that starts with an intensive three-month training by Georgetown professors, law firm practitioners, and legal service organizations in the District of Columbia. Following the training, fellows spend one year as lawyers with DCALF advising on family, housing, and immigration law matters.

Organizations We Support

At ArentFox Schiff, we take pride in offering pro bono services to over 100 renowned nonprofits, bridging legal gaps and fostering an equitable, inclusive society. Here are some of our valued partners:

  • Alliance for Children’s Rights
  • Amica Center for Immigration Rights
  • Black Swan Academy
  • Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation
  • Chicago Bar Foundation
  • Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights
  • Chicago Volunteer Legal Service
  • Children’s Law Center (DC)
  • Council for Court Excellence (DC)
  • DC Access to Justice Commission
  • DC Affordable Law Firm
  • DC Appleseed Awards Dinner
  • DC Bar Foundation
  • DC Bar Pro Bono Center
  • DC School of Law Foundation
  • Inner City Law Center
  • Kids in Need of Defense
  • Law Firm Antiracism Alliance
  • Lawndale Christian Leal Center
  • Lawyers Alliance for NY
  • Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area
  • Legal Aid Chicago
  • Legal Aid Society DC
  • Legal Counsel for the Elderly
  • Mass Appleseed
  • Metropolitan Family Services, Legal Aid Society
  • Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project
  • National Appleseed Foundation
  • National Health Law Program
  • National Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
  • Network for Victim Recovery of DC
  • New York Legal Assistance Group
  • Public Counsel
  • Public Interest Law Initiative
  • Read to a Child
  • Soul Trak Outdoors
  • Street Sense
  • Washington Council of Lawyers
  • Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs
  • Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless
  • Western Center on Law and PovertyOur History

Our History

Giving back is both a strong commitment and chosen responsibility of the firm. In the early years, our lawyers presided over the Illinois Constitutional Convention that wrote the 1870 Constitution and signed the Articles of Incorporation for the Chicago Bar Association. In 1939, name partner Albert E. Arent was one of four lawyers who launched the Civil Liberties section in the Criminal Division at the US Department of Justice – what would later become the Civil Rights Division. At the time, it was widely interpreted that the protection of civil liberties and the prevention of violence were primarily the responsibility of state and local governments.

Arent sought to change that. He prosecuted two cases to test whether the federal government had jurisdiction over loosely enforced civil rights laws. Arent was successful in both cases and helped usher in a new era for the federal government in seeking to protect the rights of all Americans.

This legacy of public service endures. Today, we are proud to help immigrants who face persecution of all kinds stay in the United States. Our Task Force Melmastya provides free legal assistance to Afghans trying to escape to the US. We have worked on matters ranging from death penalty cases to class actions on behalf of women farmers to representing youth faced with expulsion from school or criminal prosecution.

Our Work

AFS Center for Justice

The ArentFox Schiff Center for Justice, an independent, non-partisan organization, is dedicated to advancing civil rights, justice, and equal protection under the law.

First Step Act

In partnership with Buried Alive Project, ArentFox Schiff helped secure the release of Tony Lewis, who was serving a life sentence for a drug offense in Washington, DC. After spending nearly 34 years in prison, Lewis was released on March 20, 2023.

BOSS Clean Energy

ArentFox Schiff represented the Black Owners of Solar Services (BOSS) in securing a significant $6.3 million cooperative agreement awarded by the US Department of Energy (DOE).

Ivory Coast Asylum

ArentFox Schiff LLP secured a victory in its longest asylum case, representing Fécélé Nouko and her husband, Ake Kpata, Ivory Coast citizens who were politically and ethnically aligned with the losing faction in that country’s 2010-2011 civil war.

Kids in Need of Defense

In the firm’s first engagement with Kids In Need of Defense, the AFS team successfully argued guardianship for an indigenous, unaccompanied minor client from Honduras under her American godmother.

Sexual Harassment at Work

We represented a client in a matter involving sexual harassment, a hostile work environment, wrongful constructive discharge, and wage and hour violations against her former employer and physician.

CVLS Divorce Case

Through the Chicago Volunteer Legal Services (CVLS) clinic – which the firm has partnered with for more than 40 years - we represented a low-income client with four children in a contested divorce case that involved disputes related to child support.

Boston Housing Authority Cases

We represented a mother and three children in a dispute with the Boston Housing Authority (BHA).

Key Contacts

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