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律师事务所无偿提供法律援助渐成新趋势

Lawyers who offer free legal help for their clients are commonly called "pro¹ bono" lawyers.  In recent years, there has been a growing number of law firms in the United States that do pro bono work. Among the trend-setters is the city of Los Angeles.

为客户提供无偿法律援助的律师通常被称为公益律师。近几年，致力于公益服务的律师事务所数量激增。

A 65-year-old woman, who identified herself only as Linda, says she has been fighting for a year to get guardianship³ of her grandnephew, Michael.

这位女士以化名“琳达”接受了采访。65岁的她，一直在努力抗争，以期获得自己侄孙迈克尔的监护权。

”Because of the abuse that was occurring and the neglect, and I tried many times to get guardianship through the courts and to no avail,” says Linda of her ordeal⁴.

琳达说：“他遭受了虐待，而且被忽视。我尝试了很多次，希望通过法庭赢得监护权，但是都没有奏效。”

Then she found Bet Tzedek, an organization that provides free legal help to those who can’t afford a lawyer.  Bet Tzedek’s staff connected Linda with pro bono lawyers from a large law firm, and they represented her.  After a year of fighting, Linda won guardianship of Michael.

后来她找到了贝特·茨迪克，一家为贫困者提供法律援助的组织。贝特·茨迪克的员工帮助她联系了几位在大牌事务所就职的公益律师，他们为她出庭。在长达一年的抗争之后，琳达获得了迈克尔的监护权。

“I was kind of numb² for a while and until I said, my goodness it happened. It finally happened. Now he’s with me. Now I can go home and say to Michael, we have a home, Michael,” said Linda.

琳达说：“我当时有点惊呆了。后来才反应过来，我的天啊这居然发生了。终于可以了。现在，他和我在一起。现在我可以在回家后跟迈克尔说，我们到家了，迈克尔。”

A growing number of lawyers, many from prestigious⁵ law firms, offer free help for needy⁶ clients, says David Lash⁷, of the law firm O’Melveny & Myers.

美迈斯律师事务所的大卫·拉什说，公益律师的数量一直呈上升趋势，其中就包括许多就职于著名律师事务所的同行们。

“The last 10 years has seen a substantial growth in pro bono participation⁸ among lawyers,” says Lash.

拉什说：“在过去10年里，有大量的律师参与到了无偿公益服务中去。”

O’Melveny & Myers handles anything from corporate⁹ law to intellectual property law.  It also has a robust¹⁰ pro bono program worldwide.

美迈斯律师事务所的业务涉及方方面面，比如公司法和知识产权法等。同时他们在世界各地有着广泛的公益服务网络。

“The notion is burgeoning¹¹ and growing. We’re doing a lot of pro bono work through our office in London and Brussels and lawyers in our Hong Kong and Singapore and Beijing offices are getting more and more involved in pro bono pursuits,” says Lash.

拉什说：“这一新兴概念还处于成长期。我们正通过在伦敦和布鲁塞尔的办公室做着大量的公益工作。同时我们在香港、新加坡和北京的办事处也越来越多地参与到公益活动中去。”

Lash spends his workday talking to the community and organizations that offer free legal help to the needy.  He also reviews pro bono cases for his firm.

拉什每天工作的主要内容是与为穷人提供无偿法律援助的社区和组织进行沟通。他同时也会回顾整理自己事务所的公益援助案件。

His outreach efforts included a meeting with Bet Tzedek’s pro bono director, Diego Cartagena.  The topic: how to offer free legal help to the children coming to the United States from Central America.

这一天，他首先与贝特·茨迪克公益的董事迪亚戈·卡塔赫纳进行了会谈。题目是：如何向从中美洲入境美国的儿童提供无偿法律援助。

“We anticipate there will be hundreds of cases involving these children coming through the next few months,” said Cartagena.

茨迪克说：“我们预计下几个月将会有数百个涉及这类孩子的案件到来。”

After this meeting, Lash got on a conference call with lawyers and advocates in another state to give advice about legal issues with immigrants.  Then, he went off to speak to a new intern¹² about pro bono work.

会议结束之后，拉什与另一个州的倡议人和律师一起，参加了电话会议，为有关移民的法律问题提出建议。之后，他又向新实习生宣讲了公益工作的内容。

Lash says there are many reasons law firms offer free legal help.

拉什说，律师事务所提供无偿法律援助的原因是多方面的。

“In order to really maintain a competitive edge, major law firms really need to have vibrant¹³ pro bono programs. They’re invaluable¹⁴ ways to train young lawyers; they are great recruiting tools when we’re all interviewing at the top law schools,” says Lash.

茨迪克说：“为了保持竞争优势，主要的法律公司确实需要一个活跃的公益项目。这是训练年轻律师的宝贵的途径，也是在顶尖法律学校面试时，一个很好的招聘方法。”

Lash says giving people access to justice is what democracy is all about.

拉什说，使公正惠及全民是民主的根本所在。

“It’s a magnificent feeling to use your skills and your profession to touch somebody’s life in a really profound way,” says Lash.

拉什说：“用你的技能和专业知识来深刻地参与某人的生活，这种感觉真的棒极了。”

Linda, who got custody¹⁵ of Michael thanks to a pro bono lawyer, agrees.

琳达说：“他们让我们感觉到我们的特殊性，而不是感觉好像我们是一项任务。”

“They made us feel special. They didn’t make us feel like we were basically [recipients of] a handout¹⁶.”

琳达心中一种言语无法表达的感激之情油然而生。