The New Jersey State Bar Association is seeking volunteers to participate in the Military Legal Assistance Program. The NJSBA, through its Military Law and Veterans' Affairs Committee, in conjunction with McCarter & English, L.L.P., has established this pro bono program to provide assistance to New Jersey residents who have served overseas as active duty members of reserve components of the armed forces after September 11, 2001.
As many as 3,000 New Jersey residents serving in the armed forces reserves have been deployed overseas in Iraq or Afghanistan. These individuals are now in the process of returning to New Jersey. Many of them will be or have been adversely affected by reason of their status, change of status, or long deployment. Therefore, there is an anticipated need for legal assistance for these military personnel in civil matters.
The Military Legal Assistance Program has been created to assist such military personnel with their legal needs. The Program offers assistance in three areas:
- Family Law
- Employment Law
- Debtor-Creditor Law.
The NJSBA will have initial contact with all individuals seeking assistance from the Program. An individual seeking assistance must contact the Program through a toll free hotline. NJSBA staff will record contact information for each caller and the nature of his or her legal issue. NJSBA Staff will then forward intake forms of eligible individuals to a volunteer. Eligible military personnel who contact the Program will be referred to volunteers who are able to assist them with their specific legal issues. Volunteers are requested to contact an individual who has requested assistance within forty-eight hours of receiving a referral. Volunteers who accept a case through the Program must agree to handle such case from inception to resolution, without compensation or reimbursement for expenses.
Please volunteer to assist members of the reserve components of our armed forces with the Program. If you are an attorney and would like to volunteer with the Military Legal Assistance Program, kindly fill out volunteer contact form and pledge and return it to:
D. Todd Sidor, Esq.
Director of Judicial Administration
New Jersey State Bar Association
One Constitution Square
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
732-249-2815 (fax)
732-937-7544 (phone)
tsidor@njsba.com
