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Feature TYLA Project

TYLA Helps To Provide Free CLE To Texas Lawyers
By: Kristy Blanchard, TYLA President

Providing legal aid to indigent Texans is a big job, so the Texas Young Lawyers Association (TYLA) and the Family Law Section of the State Bar are teaming up to help with this massive undertaking.  This effort will kick off Friday, July 26, 12:00 p.m. until 4:00 p.m., at the Belo Mansion in Dallas, when TYLA and the Family Law bar will provide the first joint FREE CLE titled “How to Do a Pro Bono Divorce.”  This session will provide 3.75 hours of FREE CLE (.5 of ethics) to lawyers from all practice areas and give them the tools to handle a pro bono divorce case. Attendees will learn how to file a divorce, how to deal with domestic violence, child and property issues, how to finalize the divorce and the ethics of pro bono.

In addition to veteran attorneys from all practice areas, the CLE is free to law students and those who recently completed law school but don’t have a job yet.  The hope is to provide law students who attend a chance to be paired with a practicing lawyer to help them handle a pro bono case.  This will allow the student the chance to get actual litigation experience and learn a skill while they are in law school. 

In 2011, 58,000 Texas families who qualified for free legal aid were not served due to an inability to connect them with attorneys. The vast majority of those families were experiencing divorce or other family law matters.  TYLA plans to hold these free CLEs across the State in an effort to help legal aid organizations address their caseloads needs and to ensure that the under-privileged have access to justice and a voice in the courts.

If you or your local affiliate are interested in helping to plan a CLE in your area, please contact Kristy Blanchard.