PILI provides a variety of pro bono opportunities for lawyers, law students and legal professionals across the state of Illinois. While there is a robust legal aid and pro bono network in Cook County, there are far fewer resources outside of Chicago to help those in need in the remaining 101 counties of the state. We focus on filling gaps left by this lack of resources by working closely with existing legal aid programs, bar associations and other stakeholders to develop targeted pro bono opportunities to serve those who would not otherwise receive legal help.

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Currently, several of our pro bono opportunities are limited to a few locations, but we are always striving towards equal access to justice across Illinois and adding more opportunities. Learn more and volunteer:

• Illinois Free Legal Answers is a virtual legal clinic where low-income Illinois residents can submit a question online to ask a lawyer for help with a civil legal issue.
• Illinois Armed Forces Legal Aid Network (IL-AFLAN) is a statewide network that provides civil legal services across Illinois to veterans, active duty military and their spouses and dependents and as an IL-AFLAN member, PILI refers pro bono matters in the 101 counties outside of Cook County.
• Legal Help Within Reach recruits attorneys and law students from urban areas to volunteer at free legal clinics in rural and underserved communities.
• Self-Represented Litigant Help Desks utilize volunteers to meet with self-represented litigants for 30-minute appointments to help them understand and navigate the legal process, fill out forms and answer questions. Volunteer shifts are currently available at the Champaign, Macon, Madison, Peoria and Tazewell County Courthouses.
• Conflict of Interest Pro Bono Referral Panel provides a referral source for participating legal aid agencies to send potential clients who have been denied service due to a conflict of interest. Cases are currently being placed in the Third Judicial Circuit (Bond and Madison Counties), Sixth Judicial Circuit (DeWitt, Douglas, Champaign, Macon, Moultrie and Piatt Counties) and Tenth Judicial Circuit (Marshall, Peoria, Stark and Tazewell Counties).
• Legal Prep Community Law Clinic is a monthly community-based clinic at Legal Prep Charter Academies in the Garfield Park neighborhood of Chicago that is staffed by PILI Alumni volunteers.
• Illinois Pro Bono Research Alliance is a project that matches law students with attorneys in need of research assistance on pro bono legal matters. This program is open to private attorneys in addition to non-profits and legal aid organizations in need of research assistance on pro bono and legal aid cases.

Interested in learning about other ways to support PILI? Learn more here »

Please use the form below to register to volunteer for PILI's pro bono opportunities. If you have any questions, please contact us by email.