This book explores the aspirational principles and actual practices concerning lawyers' pro bono service. It begins from the premise that both the profession and the public have much to gain from reducing the gap between ideals and institutions. To that end, the book provides the first broad-scale study of the factors that influence American lawyers' pro bono work, including an original empirical survey of over 3,000 lawyers. Attention is focused on the workplace factors and law school experiences that encourage charitable public interest activities. The book also includes the first comparative study of public service by looking at volunteer work by other professionals and by lawyers in other countries.
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Deborah L. Rhode is the Ernest W. McFarland Professor of Law and Director of the Keck Center on Legal Ethics and the Legal Profession at the Stanford Law School. She has written and edited fourteen previous books, including The Difference "Difference" Makes: Women and Leadership (Stanford, 2003).