This award recognizes a lawyer or law firm for the delivery of direct legal services, free of charge, to the poor or, in appropriate instances, to charitable organizations whose primary purpose is to provide other services to the poor. In addition to the Pro Bono Award, the KBA awards a number of Pro Bono Certificates of Appreciation to lawyers who meet the following criteria:

• Lawyers who are not employed full time by an organization that has as its primary purpose the provision of free legal services to the poor;
• Lawyers who, with no expectation of receiving a fee, have provided direct delivery of legal services in civil or criminal matters to a client or client group that does not have the resources to employ compensated counsel;
• Lawyers who have made a voluntary contribution of a significant portion of time to providing legal services to the poor without charge; and/or
• Lawyers whose voluntary contributions have resulted in increased access to legal services on the part of low– and moderate–income persons.

Past Recipients