Pro bono work by lawyers sought

Proposed Ohio law would offer tax deductions for volunteers

As a former assistant prosecutor and past president of the Lake County Bar Association, state Rep. John M. Rogers has witnessed the need for attorneys to volunteer certain legal services for impoverished people.

Rogers, D-Mentor-on-the-Lake, recently testified in Columbus to discuss his bipartisan legislation to encourage more Ohio lawyers to conduct pro bono legal work.

House Bill 232, joint-sponsored by state Rep. Jeffery Rezabek, RClayton, would offer a maximum $10,000 annual tax deduction to incentivize lawyers and law firms to donate their time and skills to low-income clients.

“I worked on the legislation for three years,” said Rogers. “A lot of times, the working poor do not have the resources to protect their interests. As a lawyer, that concerns me. Most of the work I do now is pro bono. The amount of time and the effort is significant. On one hand, we are helping the community. On the other, you’re taking away (a lawyer’s) business.”

Thousands of Ohio attorneys each year already volunteer hours of their time through a legal aid entity, but Rogers said more help is needed.

“Because of limited resources, many legal aid entities have to turn away a vast amount of lowincome individuals seeking help with important

legal matters,” said Rogers. “I believe it is important that we continue to support pro bono entities and expand access for those who need legal representation.”

Lake County Domestic Relations Judge Colleen Falkowski called the tax deduction for pro bono work an innovative idea.

Falkowski received the

Ohio Legal Assistance Foundation Presidential Award for Pro Bono Service in 2015.

The judge was recognized for creating a quarterly legal clinic that helps people who cannot afford an attorney by providing legal advice and information from pro bono attorneys; assistance with filing court papers from a court clerk, and information about available resources from a mental health professional.

“Representative Rogers

came a few times to our quarterly legal clinic and saw how well it works,” Falkowski said. “We’re very lucky. Our clinic is thriving and we have a great core of volunteer attorneys. That is a big sacrifice on their part, but they do it because they’re good people. This legislation recognizes the value of a law firm or a lawyer’s office as a business entity. They receive the benefit of the tax deduction, but become known throughout the community for volunteerism.

A lot of law firms are small businesses. They have overhead, they have this, they have that. This bill helps recognize it. I think the tax incentive is an approach that maybe the business community will welcome.”

Falkowski added that the opioid crisis is leading to a glut of grandparents having to go to domestic and juvenile court over custody matters.

“From what I’ve seen first-hand, most of those

grandparents would benefit from having an attorney help them,” she said. “A lot of these families have income, but a lot of it goes to rent and utilities.”

Patrick Perotti, a partner at Dworken & Bernstein Co. in Painesville, said his law firm has always done a lot of pro bono work.

“Somebody has to help these people,” said Perotti. “That’s why we got our law degrees. It wasn’t to win cases. It was to get justice. The big firms do pro bono

work because they can afford it. It’s the tiny firms — the solo practitioners — that it’s a trade off between maybe being able to give a small group of people bonuses or doing pro bono work. I think this legislation is a very good idea. Anything to give people a chance to help others is always a good thing.”

If passed, House Bill 232 would cease to be in effect after six years, unless further action was taken to extend it.

Rogers