What is the Academy?
Through the collective efforts of the Chicago legal community, the Academy will strive to meet the core training and professional development needs of the approximately 300 legal aid attorneys who serve the more than 1 million low-income residents of the Chicago area.
The Academy will provide training mainly through two complimentary systems: (1) Coordinated Training, through which legal aid attorneys join already existing training programs at law firms and other organizations, where the subject matter is appropriate and space is available; and (2) Customized Training, through which firms, legal consultants, and others in the legal community create and present trainings customized for the legal aid community.
The Committee is creating a comprehensive, long-term system for providing needed training to legal aid attorneys. Most of this will be accomplished with pro bono contributions from firms, individual attorneys and experts, with input and collaboration from various stakeholders, including legal aid attorneys and management.
How will the Committee accomplish its goal of a comprehensive training program for legal aid attorneys?
Create a Curriculum. Professional development experts from firms, legal aid organizations, government agencies, local schools and other organizations are developing a curriculum (or roadmap) of the core training needs of legal aid attorneys and managers.
Coordinated Training with Firms and Other Organizations. Legal aid attorneys join already existing trainings at firms, the CBA and with other continuing legal education organizations where space allows and the subject matter is appropriate. Legal aid organizations further coordinate with one another to maximize attendance at available training. Coordinated Training will occur by posting available training opportunities on a secure, internet-based site through Illinois Legal Aid Online, which is currently in development.
Customized Training for Legal Aid. Experts from law firms, consultants, legal aid organizations, government agencies and local schools collectively create a series of customized trainings for legal aid attorneys, held on a rotating basis among the participating firms and organizations.
The Academy builds on the existing CBA/CBF program through which all Chicago-area legal aid attorneys have access to The Chicago Bar Association’s continuing legal education programs without cost and will supplement the already available substantive training that takes place at legal aid organizations.
Why was the Academy Created?
In 2006, The Chicago Bar Foundation and the Illinois Coalition for Equal Justice published Investing in Justice: A Framework for Effective Recruitment and Retention of Illinois Legal Aid Attorneys, which was the first in-depth exploration of the recruitment and retention of legal aid attorneys in Illinois.
The Study found that almost half of legal aid attorneys planned to leave their positions within the next three years, and an even higher percentage of attorneys with less than five years of experience.
While inordinately low salaries were a primary concern, a lack of training and professional development contributed significantly to legal aid attorneys leaving their positions.
One Key Recommendation of the Study: Stakeholders should provide regular skills training, such as trial skills, management, and time management training to enhance legal aid lawyers’ professional growth and to enable them to continue providing high quality legal services to their clients. In light of limited resources, stakeholders should explore partnerships between legal aid agencies, law firms, social service organizations, bar associations, funders, and other groups to provide needed training.
The Study also found that training and development on human resources and management issues was needed for supervising attorneys and staff leadership.
How was the Academy created?
Led by The Chicago Bar Foundation, the Advisory Committee on Training and Professional Development in Legal Aid consists of attorney training and professional development experts, firm leaders, representatives of legal aid organizations, and other interested parties. The purpose of the Committee is to create a coordinated system to provide legal aid attorneys and managers with training over the long term, in response to the recommendations of the Investing in Justice study.
