by Bradley Parsons
Staff Writer
Jacksonville Area Legal Aid needs to fill seats at Thursday’s Breakfast of Champions to help fill a $300,000 gap in its budget.
JALA has sold 29 tables at $500 apiece for the breakfast, its largest annual fund raiser. Even if JALA surpasses last year’s mark of 47 tables, it won’t cure the legal services organization’s money ills. But the empty seats are symptomatic of a Northeast Florida legal market that doesn’t pull its weight when it comes to supporting legal services for the poor.
Some Jacksonville firms’ and attorneys’ contributions are notable. Spohrer, Wilner, Maxwell and Matthews; Hedrick, Denberry, Regan and Durant; Liles, Gavin, Constantino and George; and Terrell, Hogan have been strong supporters of JALA. The organization gave its Equal Justice Award last year to Rogers Towers after the firm pledged to match all of its attorneys’ contributions to JALA.
But taken as a whole, the Fourth Judicial District’s 3,300 lawyers fall far short of the level of support recommended by the Florida Supreme Court.
The Court recommends each attorney licensed by the Florida Bar contribute $350 or equivalent volunteer hours to organizations like JALA dedicated to providing legal services to the poor.
Last year, JALA received contributions from 167 attorneys practicing in the Fourth District. The 5 percent participation rate lags far behind markets like Tampa, where about 20 percent of attorneys contribute money or hours.
The lag in participation is partially JALA’s fault said Christa Figgins, the organization’s development director. She said JALA has done a bad job asking area firms for help.
“It’s our fault too. We haven’t gotten our message out there,” said Figgins. “I think attorneys don’t know a lot about what we do. They don’t realize the need that exists.”
In addition to pledging money, area attorneys have a variety of ways to contribute to JALA, said Figgins. Lawyers can help with client intake or serve as co-counsel on cases ranging from immigration and employment law to bankruptcy defense.
“Of course money is wonderful, and we definitely need it,” said Figgins. “But there are so many pro-bono opportunities. Participation doesn’t just mean writing a check.”
Figgins said JALA is changing the way it seeks help. For the first time, the organization will carve advertising funds out of its $3.8 million budget. Figgins has hosted focus groups to determine the perception of JALA in the legal community.
Jim Cobb, a partner at Peek, Cobb and Edwards, thinks more publicity will help. But he thinks it’s up to Jacksonville firms and their lawyers to bring local support up to recommended levels.
“It’s a strange situation. We’ve got all these lawyers, most people would probably tell you we’ve got too many lawyers,” said Cobb. “But there’s not enough of them doing the things that need to be done with respect to supporting legal aid.”
Among young attorneys, volunteerism often takes a back seat to fulfilling their firms’ billable hours requirements. Changing that mind set will require a commitment from the attorneys and the firms, said Cobb.
“You really can’t blame the young guys because they know the business now is focused on churning out those hours,” said Cobb. “They don’t feel any pressure to do it (contribute to JALA). If anything, the pressure goes in the opposite direction.”
Last year, the under performing contributions combined with state and federal funding cuts to hamstring JALA’s services. JALA was forced to suspend its predatory lending program until it received $400,000 in supplemental funding from the City.
Executive Director Michael Figgins said the City windfall took JALA from “sinking to treading water.” But it’s still not clear if that money will be available again this year.