BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 2684 Page 1 Date of Hearing: May 1, 2012 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY Mike Feuer, Chair AB 2684 (Judiciary) - As Introduced: March 12, 2012 As Proposed to be Amended SUBJECT : PRO BONO LEGAL SERVICES KEY ISSUE : SHOULD PRO BONO SERVICES AND SUPPORT OF NONPROFIT LEGAL AID GROUPS REPRESENTING INDIGENT PARTIES BE PROMOTED BY ALLOWING RECOVERY OF COURT INTERPRETER COSTS AND RECOGNIZING THE FINANCIAL DONATIONS OF LAWYERS TOWARD THEIR PRO BONO GOALS? FISCAL EFFECT : As currently in print this bill is keyed non-fiscal. SYNOPSIS This bill seeks to promote pro bono legal services and support of nonprofit legal aid for indigent persons needing assistance with civil matters. It would facilitate direct provision of pro bono services by allowing recovery of court interpreter costs for pro bono attorneys when they provide assistance to indigent parties in cases referred by a nonprofit legal aid organization, just as these costs are currently recoverable when the matter is handled by the legal aid organization itself as the result of the Committee's related measure last year. The bill would also encourage financial support of nonprofit legal aid organizations by recognizing that these contributions may be an element helping to satisfy the pro bono obligations of state contractors. The bill has no known opposition. SUMMARY : Promotes pro bono legal services and support of nonprofit legal aid for indigent persons needing assistance with civil matters. Specifically, this bill : 1)Allows recovery of court interpreter costs for pro bono attorneys when they provide assistance to indigent parties in cases referred by a nonprofit legal aid organization, just as these costs are currently recoverable when the matter is handled by the legal aid organization itself. 2)Recognizes that financial support of nonprofit legal aid AB 2684 Page 2 organizations may be an element helping to satisfy the pro bono obligations of state contractors. EXISTING LAW : 1)Provides that specified items are allowable as costs to a prevailing party in a civil matter, including court interpreter fees for a qualified court interpreter authorized by the court for an indigent person represented by a qualified legal services project. (Code of Civil Procedure section 1033.5.) 2)Provides that a contract with the state for legal services that exceeds $50,000 shall include a certification by the contracting law firm that the firm agrees to make a good faith effort to provide, during the duration of the contract, a minimum number of hours of pro bono legal services, during each year of the contract. (Bus. & Prof. Code section 6072.) 3)Provides that a lawyer may fulfill his or her pro bono goals in part by providing financial support to organizations providing free legal services to persons of limited means equal to, at minimum, the approximate value of the hours of pro bono legal service that he or she would otherwise have provided. (Bus. & Prof. Code section 6073.) COMMENTS : This bill follows up on last year's AB 1403, the Committee's bill to facilitate the provision of court interpreters when they are determined to be necessary for indigent parties in civil matters. AB 1403 allowed indigent parties to recover the cost of court interpreters when they are the prevailing party and are represented without charge by a qualified nonprofit legal services organization. This bill would simply allow for the same cost recovery when the matter is handled by a pro bono attorney affiliated with a qualified legal services organization. Only cases that are not considered to be fee generating would be covered. Doing so would also help to expand access to interpreter services at a time when court budget cuts are a significant obstacle to court-provided interpreters. Despite budget limitations, our courts must increasingly serve a growing number of parties who need assistance with English, a time-consuming process that frequently causes significant delays in court proceedings for all court users. Making professional interpreters more widely AB 2684 Page 3 available will assist the court in handling matters expeditiously while limiting the need to rely on court interpreters and other court personnel. As proposed to be amended the bill would further promote pro bono support by counting the financial contributions to nonprofit legal aid groups made by lawyers and law firms who are state contractors. Under existing law, contracts for legal services of more than $50,000 must include a certification that the contracting firm will make a good faith effort to provide direct pro bono services during the period of the contract. (Bus. & Prof. Code section 6072.) A separate provision of existing law recognizes that lawyers can help to meet their pro bono goals by making financial contributions to legal aid organizations in addition to or in lieu of providing direct pro bono services. (Bus. & Prof. Code section 6073.) This bill more explicitly links these provisions by recognizing that financial contributions to legal aid organizations can help to meet a state contractor's pro bono goals. As this Committee has frequently observed with alarum, legal aid organizations have been significantly crippled by the decimation of funding in recent years, compounded by sharp increases in need as the result of the economic recession. While the state has long suffered from a wide "justice gap" between the legal needs of poor people and the resources available to address those needs, conditions have deteriorated markedly since 2008. This bill endeavors to mitigate the problem by encouraging state legal services contractors to make financial contributions to nonprofit legal aid organizations because doing so would be recognized as a factor in meeting their existing pro bono goals. Author's Amendments to Further Promote Pro Bono Support. To further promote the provision of legal services to indigent parties, the author proposes the following beneficial amendments: 6072. (a) A contract with the state for legal services that exceeds fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) shall include a certification by the contracting law firm that the firm agrees to make a good faith effort to provide, during the duration of the contract, a minimum number of hours of pro bono legal services, or an equivalent amount of financial contributions to qualified legal services projects and support centers, as defined in section 6213, during each year of the contract equal AB 2684 Page 4 to the lesser of either (1) 30 multiplied by the number of full-time attorneys in the firm's offices in the state, with the number of hours prorated on an actual day basis for any contract period of less than a full year or (2) 10 percent of its contract with the state. "Ten percent of the contract" shall mean the number of hours equal to 10 percent of the contract amount divided by the average billing rate of the firm. (b) Failure to make a good faith effort may be cause for nonrenewal of a state contract for legal services, and may be taken into account when determining the award of future contracts with the state for legal services. If a firm fails to provide the hours of pro bono legal services set forth in its certification, the following factors shall be considered in determining whether the firm made a good faith effort: (1) The actual number of hours of pro bono legal services or financial contributions provided by the firm during the term of the contract. (2) The firm's efforts to obtain pro bono legal work from legal services programs, pro bono programs, and other relevant communities or groups. (3) The firm's history of providing pro bono legal services or financial contributions , or other activities of the firm that evidence a good faith effort to provide pro bono legal services or financial contributions , such as the adoption of a pro bono policy or the creation of a pro bono committee. (4) The types of pro bono legal services provided, including the quantity and complexity of cases as well as the nature of the relief sought. (5) The extent to which the failure to provide the hours of pro bono legal services or financial contributions set forth in the certification is the result of extenuating circumstances unforeseen at the time of the certification. REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION : Support Legal Aid Association of California OneJustice Opposition None on file AB 2684 Page 5 Analysis Prepared by : Kevin G. Baker / JUD. / (916) 319-2334