On June 12, 2007, representatives from corporate legal departments and law firms across Tennessee gathered at Music City Sheraton for the First Annual Corporate Counsel Pro Bono Initiative Reception and Dinner. Sponsored by the Tennessee Bar Association and the Association of Corporate Counsel, the event was designed to raise awareness and money and to demonstrate corporate counsel support for the access to justice community.

In just its first year, the event raised almost $72,000 with over 20 corporations and law firms buying sponsorships. Representatives from pro bono and access to justice organizations from around the state were present to network with, and to provide information to, corporate counsel about pro bono opportunities in their communities.

One of the attendees, Suzanne Spell, Senior Counsel, Eastman Chemical Company, said “the evening’s speakers issued convincing – and often witty – calls to all of us to do more to provide access to justice.  We left the reception challenged by the speakers, inspired by the group’s energy, and delighted by the new connections we formed with each other.”

To follow-up the success of the First Annual Corporate Counsel Pro Bono Initiative Reception and Dinner, sponsors will host a number of events across the state in the late summer and early fall of 2007, including informational luncheons, breakfast events, as well as service opportunities specifically designed for corporate counsel in different communities around the state.

The funds raised from this First Annual Corporate Counsel Pro Bono Initiative Reception and Dinner have been deposited with the Tennessee Legal Community Foundation, the nonprofit arm of the TBA, for distribution to access to justice organizations across the state enabling them to develop pro bono projects for corporate and in-house legal counsel.

Developed by Corporate Pro Bono
A global partnership project of the Pro Bono Institute and the Association of Corporate Counsel
www.cpbo.org