A relative told me over the wekend a story that is worth repeating. Apparently there are some very large firms who have advised their new hires that they do not have enought work for them. Instead of turning them away, they are paying the new hires their full salaries and shipping them off to non-profits to do pro-bono work until the firms’ business level increases and they can keep these new lawyers busy. This is a true win/win situation. New hires gain experience which will help them and the firm. The firm builds goodwill with both the employees and the community. The non-profits gain valuable manpower in times of need.
I have no verification of this story. Perhaps the firms can reply and tell us who they are, and what charities they support. They should be commended.
We could all take a lesson from the story. Even solo practitioners are affected by the economic downturn, and should consider this option. Do something worthwhile instead of waiting for the phone to ring. And we do not have to limit our contribution to these non-profits to merely contributing law-related time. Heck — build a house, serve soup, read to kids, mentor. You just may find a reward you were not expecting.

“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” – – Norman Mac Ewan