 On Tuesday, April 12, first lady Michelle Obama announced “Joining Forces,” an initiative to support the unique challenges faced by troops and military Families.
Legal Focus Area- Through Mobilizing Legal Communities, Army OneSource is enlisting the assistance of law firms and professional associations across the country to get the word out and connect Service Members and their Families with legal services and assistance they desperately need. Opportunities to participate include working within the framework of existing programs that have partnered with the Armed Forces.
Legal difficulties of Service Members also affect the ability of our Military Force to carry out its missions. These issues consume considerable amounts of time of Military leadership and negatively affect the morale and overall operational readiness of individual Units. Legal issues also involve Family Members left behind at home, who have to take on additional responsibilities such as handling legal matters.
Army OneSource is proud to announce a community outreach effort to raise awareness of the unique legal challenges faced by our Service Members and their Families as a result of deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan. This effort is in response to the rising national concern regarding the growing number of Service Members who are struggling with legal issues such as divorce and other civil court matters. In addition to legal issues, Service Members and their Families often need assistance for more routine legal matters, such as drawing up wills and addressing custody issues.
Objective: To increase awareness regarding the legal concerns of Soldiers and Families among the civilian legal communities and to increase the usage of pro bono organizations
The plan of action: Raise awareness in legal communities and engage legal professionals in participating exemplary programs
|
The ABA Home Front includes an Information Center, which includes basic written guides geared towards public education of the law for Service members and their Families; Directory of Programs, which includes contact information and descriptions of programs and services that can potentially provide legal assistance to Military Families; and Military Pro Bono Center, where attorneys can volunteer to provide pro bono representation to Military Families through the ABA Military Pro Bono Project, or attorneys can join the new Operation Stand-By, which is an expansion of the Project, to be available to receive calls or emails from military legal assistance attorneys in need of guidance on state-specific legal information relating to the volunteer attorneys’ areas of expertise.
 |
|
LAMP fosters the continued growth of the Military legal assistance programs, promotes the delivery of legal services to Military Personnel and their Family Members and to persons accompanying the Armed Forces outside the United States, on their personal legal affairs; and maintain close liaison with the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security (with respect to the U.S. Coast Guard), the Military Services, bar associations, and appropriate committees of the Association to enhance the scope, quality, and delivery of free or affordable legal services to eligible legal assistance clients. A state-by-state listing of the efforts of bar associations to assist deployed and mobilized personnel is accessible from the LAMP website.
 |
|
ABA YLD is the home for young lawyers. With over 150,000 members and 300 affiliated groups, the ABA YLD is the largest young lawyer organization in the world. The Division is committed to assuring it is best able to represent the newest members of the profession, ensuring that it reflects the society it serves, and providing young lawyers and young lawyer organizations with the tools and opportunities for professional and personal success.
|
In response to First Lady Michelle Obama’s call to support military families as a part of her new Joining Forces initiative, in May 2011, the American Bar Association (ABA) launched a new web-based legal resource center for military families, ABA Home Front. ABA Home Front is comprised of three primary elements:
- Military Pro Bono Center, where attorneys can volunteer to provide pro bono representation to Military Families through the ABA Military Pro Bono Project, or join the new Consultation Center to be available to receive calls or emails from military legal assistance (i.e. JAG) attorneys in need of guidance on state-specific legal information relating to the volunteer attorneys’ areas of expertise.
- Directory of Programs, which includes contact information and descriptions of programs and services that can provide assistance to Military Families.
- Information Center, which includes basic written guides geared towards public education of the law for S Service Members and their families.
In May of 2011, the El Paso Lawyers for Patriots (EPLP) held a two-day conference aimed to prepare legal professionals to better address the legal needs of the military community. The conference was presented by the Texas Lawyers for Texas Veterans, El Paso Lawyers for Patriots, Army OneSource, State Bar of Texas and the El Paso Bar Association, Military Law Section of the State Bar of Texas, El Paso Family Law Bar Association and the El Paso County Domestic Relations Office.
|
