Pro Bono Experiences

Service to the community is a core obligation of practicing attorneys and a value the University of Arkansas School of Law seeks to instill in its students. Through our pro bono program, we offer opportunities for service and recognize students who engage in substantial service.

Reasons to Serve

  • Gain insights into the law and legal practice
  • Build relationships with lawyers, community organizations and fellow law students
  • Experience the satisfaction of using the law to make a meaningful difference in the lives of others
  • Become eligible for a notation on your law school transcript and medallion to be worn at graduation for providing at least 50 hours or 100+ of pro bono work combined during the second semester of your first year, second and third year
  • Get an early start on meeting your ethical obligation to do pro bono
  • Academic distinction: students who provide at least 50 hours of pro bono work and those with 100 hours or more will be eligible for notations of such service on their law school transcripts

Comments from students who have participated in the program:

Katie Rose Martin

It is our duty to the community to do pro bono work. If we have the ability to help others, who need it most, we should.

I have been in a place where I needed help, and if I can be that person for others, I will do so if at all possible.

The pro bono work I have done has helped me to grow as a person, as well as being able to relate to the material I was learning in class.

The pro bono work I have done has given real-world application to the material learned in class.

Kelley Boyd

I participated in an expungement clinic that really opened my eyes. While I had previously advocated to restore voting rights to the formerly incarcerated and to prevent employers from asking about an applicant's criminal record prior to offering a person a job, it was a profound experience to learn that an hour or two of my time could help someone to seal their record and to make a significant difference in the employment prospects for them. . It was a privilege to do that work and I look forward to continuing to do it as a law student and eventually as a practicing lawyer.

Pro bono work is where I found the motivation to continue to go to law school because it reinforced the value and importance of the education I was receiving.