Volunteers Needed for Law Week April 28 - May 2

The Young Lawyers Division of the Philadelphia Bar Association seeks volunteers for Law Week events. Law Week is a series of programs that place Philadelphia lawyers of any age and law students in the community to educate the city's youth and public about the law through direct interaction.

Some of our Law Week activities include:

Lawyer in the Classroom — Volunteer lawyers and law students will visit different schools throughout the week to address students' concerns about the law and the legal issues that affect them as they enter adulthood and answer questions about the legal profession. If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Kelly Gastley or Josh Ryan.

Legal Advice Live! — A free, daylong ask-a-lawyer event spanning across Philadelphia. On Wednesday, April 30, dozens of Philadelphia attorneys will gather on Independence Mall to provide free, in-person legal advice from noon to 2 p.m. in Center City. Attorneys will provide answers to legal questions on a broad range of topics, including landlord/tenant law, divorce and child custody matters, wills and estate planning, real estate law and employment law. If you would like to volunteer, please contact Abbie DuFrayne.

Also on Wednesday, April 30, volunteer attorneys will go into the community and give free legal advice at select Free Library of Philadelphia branches. Volunteers are needed at the South Philadelphia Branch at Broad and Morris Streets and the Tacony Branch at Torresdale Ave. and Knorr Street from 1 to 3 p.m. To volunteer contact Abbie DuFrayne.

Legal Line — As part of Legal Advice Live! on Wednesday, April 30, from 5 to 8 p.m., area residents can call lawyers at 215-238-6333 and have their legal questions answered free and confidentially. The lawyers will staff a phone bank at the headquarters of the Philadelphia Bar Association, 1101 Market St., 11th floor. If you would like to volunteer for Legal Line (either April 30 or a future date), please contact Stephanie Mensing.

The Trials of Goldilocks and the Big Bad Wolf — On Thursday, May 1 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., volunteer attorneys will use the facts of the well-known fairytales, Goldilocks and The Three Little Pigs, as the basis for criminal trials. Volunteers act as prosecutors, defense attorneys and witnesses in the criminal trials, which include opening statements, examinations and cross-examinations of witnesses, closing arguments, and instructions to the juries. At the conclusion of each trial, the students are given the role of the jury and determine whether the Big Bad Wolf or Goldilocks are guilty of a crime. To volunteer please contact Heather Herrington.

Lawyer for a Day - Volunteer attorneys, law students and judges pair with high school students and take them into the courts to learn more about the process of the judicial system as well as the role lawyers, judges and juries play in our community. Several city courtrooms will be open to allow the participants to observe proceedings. This program starts at 8:30 a.m. on Friday, May 2 at the Philadelphia Bar Association, and all participants are invited back to the Association’s 11th floor Conference Center at noon for a concluding lunch, which includes a keynote by a guest speaker. If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Carey Chopko or Corey Davis.

If you would like to volunteer or know of someone who can, please contact us or forward this information to them. With your help, we look forward to a week of successful events.

Put Together a Contacts List! by Stacy West Clark

Hi Happy Lawyers! This month’s marketing tip is: Put Together a Contacts List!

Yes, that’s right. Not a holiday card list. A working, growing and active "Contacts List." You will use it for a plethora of marketing activities. Every lawyer — no matter their age — should have a list that includes everyone they know professionally, socially, academically, community and more — complete with e-mail and work addresses.

Why?

We know from the experts that you need to have your name in front of a person five to seven times a year for them to think about you for work. An up-to-date contacts list can help you accomplish this.

Who should be on the list?

-Classmates — elementary, middle, high school, college and law school

-Girl or Boy Scout friends

-Sorority/fraternity friends

-Friends from your childhood summers

-Camp friends

-Relatives — all of your significant other’s and your own

People you have bought services from:

-Physicians

-Dentists

-Car salesperson

-Interior designer

-Real Estate agent

-Broker

-Insurance agent

-Personal trainer

-Pharmacist

-Accountants

-Architects, Builders, Engineers

-Therapists

-Coaches/Instructors

-People on Bar committees on which you are a member

-Everyone you know in other law firms

-Reporters you know

-People you know from attending cultural events, like the symphony, ballet, etc.

-Local elected officials you know

-Chamber of Commerce members (if you are a member)

-Local business owners in your community

-Anyone you exercise or play a sport with (golf, tennis)

-Anyone at your club, service organization or community association

-Your neighbors

-Anyone you sit next to at a community or charity event

-Anyone you sit next to at a dinner party or gathering

-People you are friendly with at your church or synagogue

-Former teachers or professors

-Everyone who attends a speech or meeting you give/host

You may be able to get your class lists and information on CD if you contact the alumni office.

Next month, I will tell you how to use the list once you have it on your computer. Stay tuned, and start gathering the names!

Stacy West Clark, Esq. is President of Stacy Clark Marketing LLC, a firm dedicated to helping lawyers and law firms grow their business. She can be reached at stacyclarkmarketing.com.

Stacy is on the Steering Committee of the Delaware Valley Law Firm Marketing Group, a free group that holds monthly lunch programs (for free!!) on important marketing topics. If you would like to receive invitations to upcoming events, please e-mail Stacy or go to dvlawmarketing.org.