Pennsylvania Bar Association President C. Dale McClain recently announced the opening of the nomination period for the 22nd Annual Pro Bono Awards of the PBA Legal Services to the Public Committee. The committee also is accepting nominations for its Fifth Annual Judges Award and the Civil Legal Aid Attorney of the Year Award. These awards are presented to a judge and a legal services lawyer in recognition of their exceptional contributions to improve civil legal aid in the commonwealth.

Nominees for the awards must meet the following criteria:

• The lawyer or judge practices in Pennsylvania.
• The lawyer, other than a Civil Legal Aid Attorney of the Year nominee, is not employed by an organization that has the provision of free legal services to the poor as its primary purpose.
• The lawyer or judge has provided direct delivery of legal services in civil matters to a client or client group that does not have the resources to employ compensated counsel or who has worked to facilitate such efforts by other lawyers.
• The lawyer or judge has made an outstanding contribution to the provision of legal services to the indigent without charge.
• The lawyer or judge has made such contributions primarily through organized pro bono programs, lawyer referral service no-fee panels and legal services programs, or has worked with such organizations to improve the delivery of legal services to the poor.
• The lawyer's or judge's efforts have resulted in the increased access to legal services for low-income people.

The 2009 awards will be presented at the PBA Awards Breakfast on June 3 at the Hilton Pittsburgh. This year's nomination form, which can be completed electronically, is located on the PBA Pro Bono Web pages.

Questions should be directed to Pro Bono Coordinator David Keller Trevaskis by phone at 800-932-0311, Ext. 2236, or by e-mail to david.trevaskis@pabar.org.