“Why is it that nobody asks the mechanics in town whether they repair cars pro bono – and the same with grocers or any other business or profession in town. People expect that they have to pay the grocer or the doctor or the air conditioning repairman, or the plumber or carpenter or whoever provides them with a service; and yet they will often ask the lawyers, “Do you do pro bono?”
“It’s not so much a complaint as it is a genuine curiosity, why nobody else is asked this question. It may be as simple as the fact that lawyers do occasionally provide services or advice for free, especially for those in genuine need, and some states even require the lawyers to do a certain number of hours of “pro bono.”
“There are quite a few lawyers who do a fair amount of work for free … or for very little money, just by virtue of the fact that many people are truly hurting financially and cannot otherwise afford to pay the going rate – or even a greatly reduced rate, for the representation; and on that note, most lawyers can certainly understand this reality and the financial plight of many families.”
“The perplexing issue that can be a little disconcerting, however, is the attitude of some of the folks making the “pro bono” inquiry. Some inquiring minds appear to have a presumptuous spirit of expectation, and therein lies the rub. Christ Himself said,”the laborer is worthy of his wages.” (Luke 10:7)
“Most of us wouldn’t think to ask the mechanic if he would replace the brakes or rebuild the motor or otherwise repair our vehicle for free, and yet we’ll ask the lawyer to overhaul a fairly significant problem in our personal lives – something arguably more important than our vehicle’s repair condition.”
“For what its worth, we love helping the folks who do NOT have that presumptuous spirit of expectation, those people who have a sweet spirit, and a gentle, kind, humble and appreciative humility and respect for another’s time. Bottom line:
“Please feel free to call me anytime and tell me of your problem or concerns, and if I can offer any decent and informative, free advice, I am more than happy and even privileged to be of help. Should you need for me to get more involved in proactively representing your interests (beyond listening and advising you preliminarily), we would then need to agree on a fair and reasonable fee for that representation.”
“I truly hope that you can hear my heart in all this – that I would LOVE to be of help, even if this means only on the phone providing you with hopefully some good information or advice!”
Fort Lauderdale Lawyer John Contini can be reached at (954) 766-8810.
