H C B A P R E S I D E N T’ S M E S S A G E M a t t h e w H a l l – B a r n e s & T h o r n b u r g L L P
JointhehCBaVlaRTodayand supportourlocalVeterans
manypeoplethinktheVlaRisalistofprobonoattorneys. itisnot( althoughmanyattorneysagreetoworkprobono). Rather, itisa onestopresourceforveteransinneedoflegalassistance.
It has been an honor to serve as your President this year, and as my term concludes I want to promote something that got me involved in this organization to begin with— the Veterans Legal Assistance Registry. The VLAR, as it is affectionally known, is a list of local attorneys who have made a pledge to provide legal assistance to our veterans for reduced rates, low-bono, or pro-bono fee arrangements. And it shows a commitment of our organization to be aware of and address the needs of our community.
How did it begin? In 2014, when Ben Hill IV was HCBA President, he wanted to rebrand what is now HCBA’ s Military & Veterans Affairs Committee(“ MVAC”). He appointed former HCBA president Bob Nader as the committee chair. Nader, with the help of Judge Michael Scionti, sought to create a registry of local attorneys covering 17 areas of law who would be able to assist local veterans
and servicemembers who needed legal assistance. A noble concept, but who would be the attorneys? Well, we hit the streets to find them. We went to HCBA events and asked our friends if they would agree to support our military community. This was not a commitment to take pro bono cases, this was a commitment to support our military community. And our HCBA members responded.
Why is it important?
Many people think the VLAR is a list of pro bono attorneys. It is not( although many attorneys agree to work pro bono). Rather, it is a one stop resource for veterans in need of legal assistance.
The military community is somewhat transient. Most of the servicemembers at MacDill are not from Tampa. The same is true for a lot of the veterans in the area. They may not have the community roots to know where
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