Frequently Asked Questions

If you need legal help, please go to LawHelpCA.org for legal resources.

A pro bono portal is a website where legal services organizations post opportunities and volunteers find opportunities they are interested in.

There is no cost to use the Portal. The portal is free for both organizations posting opportunities and for volunteers.

If you are with an organization or entity already registered with the portal, you may need to reach out to the administrator for your organization – most likely your pro bono coordinator. They can invite you from their “My People” page in the portal. If you are a volunteer unaffiliated with an organization or entity or prefer to register independently of your entity, go to the Registration page and fill out the form.

You do not have to be an attorney to volunteer through the portal. In addition to attorney opportunities, there are opportunities for paralegals, undergraduate students, law students, law school graduates, and other professionals.

There are opportunities on the portal for:

• Cases
• Clinics
• Intake / Hotline
• Community Education / Training
• Research or Translation Project

There are opportunities on the portal for the following legal issues:

• Adoption, Child Custody, and Visitation
• Advance Healthcare Directives and Power of Attorney
• Civil and Human Rights
• Consumer Issues and Bankruptcy
• Criminal Law
• Disability Law
• Disaster Preparation/Relief
• Divorce/Separation and Child Support
• Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, and Stalking
• Education
• Elder Abuse
• Employment
• Estates
• Expungement
• Guardianship and Conservatorship
• Health Care
• Housing
• Immigration
• Military and Veterans
• Name and Gender Change
• Probate
• Public Benefits
• Small Business/Nonprofit
• Tax Law
• Wills
• Wills, Estates, and Probate

The portal itself does not provide training, but training may be provided by the legal services organization that is hosting the volunteer opportunity. You can find training resources on the Pro Bono Training Institute website.

The portal does not provide malpractice insurance and does not verify that volunteers have malpractice insurance. It is the responsibility of the opportunity host entity and the volunteer to confirm that the volunteer has all required malpractice and/or other necessary insurance coverage, either independently or through the opportunity host entity.

Use the contact form and one of our team members will respond to your question.