The Mountain Area Volunteer Lawyers Program

The Mountain Area Volunteers Lawyers (MAVL) Program Celebrates 25 Years of Exemplary Pro Bono Service!

Pro Bono Publico (pro bo'no pub'liko):
Latin for the public good or welfare.
Refers to private attorneys and others who provide free (or reduced fees) representation and/or other services to low-income people.

Pisgah Legal Services is only able to improve the lives of more than 9,000 low-income people annually because of the generous pro bono contributions of our panel of volunteer lawyers through the Mountain Area Volunteer Lawyers (MAVL) Program. 

MAVL is a pro bono referral program made up of more than 280 active private attorneys who volunteer their services to help meet the need for civil law representation of low-income residents of Buncombe, Henderson, Madison, Polk, Rutherford and Transylvania Counties.

MAVL was formed twenty-five years ago in 1983 under the sponsorship of the North Carolina Bar Association and in cooperation with Pisgah Legal Services (PLS).The program  is governed by an Advisory Board consisting of private attorneys from each county and client eligible representatives.

Since its inception, MAVL attorneys have handled more than 10,000 pro bono cases, contributing in excess of 30,000 volunteer hours.  In 2008, volunteer MAVL attorneys donated more than 3,163 professional hours to help PLS clients meet their basic needs, a service modestly valued at $474,450.

For more information or to join MAVL, contact Jennifer Foster, at jennifer@pisgahlegal.org or 210-3440 or click here.