Biglaw, Public Interest

Join A Group Of Biglaw Associates Giving Public Interest Law A Boost

An exciting opportunity to put your Biglaw money and skills to good use.

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Decorative Scales of Justice in the CourtroomLast week, ATL gave a signal boost to a new organization aiming to get Biglaw associates much more involved in supporting public interest law. A Non-Sequiturs post noted that “Skadden associate Corey Laplante started a grant foundation to support legal aid and litigation-related nonprofits — and he wants your help.” This new effort deserves a closer look: what exactly is this foundation, and how can you — or at least those of you who happen to be Biglaw associates — help?

The Associates’ Committee, as the foundation is called, has a clear mission: according to its website, it wants “to support organizations at the cutting edge of public interest advocacy” and “to encourage philanthropy and civic engagement among young corporate lawyers.” And its model is designed to support both prongs of this mission. Here’s how it works:

An associate at either a Biglaw firm or a “select litigation boutique” may pay an annual contribution of $1000 to become a member of the Associates’ Committee. This contribution goes into a pot that funds the grants awarded by the foundation. But Associates’ Committee members have a broader role to play than that of an open wallet.

Indeed, members are deeply involved in the entire grant process: in order to apply for a grant from the Associates’ Committee, an eligible organization must first find a member to serve as that organization’s sponsor. Each member may only sponsor one organization for a grant, so there is a decent chance that a strong relationship will form between sponsors and organizations.

Another incentive for building that relationship is that members may champion their sponsored organizations to other members. The Associates’ Committee wants its process to be “interactive and democratic,” and it encourages members to lobby other members for support.

The foundation will accept applications from March 15 through June 15, after which the foundation’s board of directors will narrow the field to 15.

Public interest organizations, take note: this isn’t your ordinary grant application. Here’s what the Associates’ Committee asks of you:

Sponsored

Each applicant will be required to submit one 60-second video shot on a smart phone. In the video, you must tell us what your organization does, how much funding you seek ($25,000, $50,000 or $75,000), and how you will use it. You may also submit up to three links that will allow viewers to learn more about your organization and why its work is important.

It’s only if you’re selected as a finalist that you even have to submit a budget and, presumably, other more traditional grant-application fodder.

Then comes voting. Votes are allocated among members in a way designed to encourage members to drum up additional support for the Associates’ Committee: each member begins with one vote, gets one additional vote for each new member she recruits, and gets ten additional votes if she convinces her law firm to match all its associates’ contributions (UPDATE: These incentives do not apply to Laplante or other Board members, however, as they are each limited to one vote). The applications with the most votes will be funded, until the year’s funding runs out.

What does this mean for Biglaw associates? Contribute before March 15 and join in! The Associates’ Committee plans perks for its members: happy hours, speaking engagements, an annual gala in each of the foundation’s major cities, plus, of course, “many friendships and professional bonds.” If you’re not sure about something, the Associates’ Committee’s “join” page has a form for you to send your questions to Corey Laplante. But note that, at least according to the foundation’s website, well over 100 associates have already signed up as members. Your peers have already done some vetting and found the Associates’ Committee to be a worthy investment. (Though I suppose it should be noted that, according to the Associates’ Committee website, the foundation has applied for 501(c)(3) status but can’t yet promise that this fee will be tax deductible.)

And what does this mean for public interest organizations? Well, you have a shot at a $25,000, $50,000, or $75,000 grant — not too shabby. That is, if you fall on this list of causes the foundation supports, which includes “general access to civil legal aid,” as well as litigation involving any of the following: “access to education,” “homelessness prevention,” “civil liberties,” “veterans’ rights,” “campaign finance reform,” “environmental justice & conservation,” “gun violence prevention,” “women’s health & reproductive rights,” “immigration reform,” “criminal justice reform,” “human rights,” “voting rights,” and “domestic violence prevention.” All in all, that’s a pretty broad swath of causes. And with the foundation’s membership rolls at 100 and growing, rest assured there’s some money in the pot. So go ahead and think about applying for funds.

Sponsored

And finally, kudos to Mr. Laplante for spearheading this innovative effort to match up Biglaw associates, and their skills and resources, with public interest organizations that are out there fighting the good fight.

Now, seriously, go sign up!

Sam Wright is a dyed-in-the-wool, bleeding-heart public interest lawyer who has spent his career exclusively in nonprofits and government. If you have ideas, questions, kudos, or complaints about his column or public interest law in general, send him an email at PublicInterestATL@gmail.com.

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