FROM A NEWS RELEASE SENT TO THE KDBC 4 NEWSROOM:
Partnering with established legal service organizations, the El Paso Bar Association will host the firstever Access to Justice Fair on Saturday, October 31, from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm at the Valle Verde campus of El Paso Community College. The fair is free and open to the public, providing an opportunity to expand assistance to those in El Paso who cannot afford legal representation. Anyone with questions about the fair may call the Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid office at 915-585-5100.
"Through events like this, we, as attorneys, celebrate the achievement of pro bono work to theunderserved and elevate ourselves to a higher level of service to the community in which we practice, we live, and strive to improve," said El Paso Bar Association President Carlos Eduardo Cárdenas.
Throughout the day, the Access to Justice Fair will offer presentations on important topics such as consumer protection, workers' rights, family, landlord/tenant, immigration, child support enforcement, protective orders, juvenile rights, disability rights, social security, living wills, predatory lending and unemployment compensation. Attendees can also consult with private attorneys on an individual basis, while video presentations will run through the day in the lobby of the Valle Verde campus Student Services Center. All of these activities are absolutely free of charge and open to anyone.
Local legal service organizations taking part in the Access to Justice Fair include Advocacy, Inc., Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid, Diocesan Migrant and Refugee Services, Las Americas and the Paso del Norte Civil Rights Project. Participants also include José Rodríguez and the County Attorney's Office, the District Attorney's Office, local attorneys and staff from the Texas Attorney General's Office, and the El Paso County Domestic Relations Office.
Representatives from the Texas Young Lawyers Association, the American Board of Trial Advocates, the El Paso Women's Bar Association, the El Paso Paralegal Association, the Mexican-American Bar Association of El Paso, and El Paso Young Lawyers Association are also contributing their support to this event. Statewide, this initiative is being supported by the State Bar of Texas, the Texas Access to Justice Commission and the Texas Access to Justice Foundation.
The Access to Justice Fair takes place during the American Bar Association's National Pro-BonoCelebration, October 25-31. This national celebration puts the spotlight on the many ways attorneys are providing legal services to the poor, truly proving that America is a nation of "justice for all." In tandem with the Access to Justice Fair and other legal aid initiatives, Texas Supreme Court Justice Harriet O'Neill will be the special guest at the El Paso Bar Association meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 13, addressing the need for greater pro bono work by attorneys and recognizing El Paso attorney Scott Vogelmeier with the Cy Pres: Impact on Justice Award for his contribution to Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid. O'Neill will also honor two El Paso-area Prime Partner Banks-First Savings Bank and BBVA Compass-for their commitment to increasing funding for legal aid by paying higher interest rates on IOLTA (interest on lawyers' trust accounts).
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