36 | JUNE 15 • 2023 

continued on page 38

J

ewish Family Service’s 
Legal Referral Service, 
(LRS) now in its 
15th year of operation, 
continues to steadily and 
quietly provide 
top-notch pro 
bono attorneys 
and make 
a profound 
impact on the 
lives of many 
people in need. 
 Since its 
inception, the 
program has 
amassed an army of all-
volunteer attorneys who have 
assisted more than 2,000 
clients and provided over 
$10 million of pro bono legal 
services.
What began as a small list 
of civic-minded attorneys 
quickly grew to a formidable 
team of volunteers — “the 
largest virtual Jewish law 
firm in Michigan,” we boast 
— that spans the gamut from 
solo practitioners to many 
of the largest law firms in 
Michigan.
The key to its success — 
other than the extraordinary 
generosity and commitment 
of its talented attorneys — 
is its placement within the 
roster of services offered 
by JFS. The agency is not 
only able to assist clients 
with legal matters through 
LRS, but can also provide 
wraparound social services 
as well, making the program 

more attractive to volunteers.
“They contact you, stay in 
touch and serve as a resource 
to you if you need it,” says 
Howard Collens, a longtime 
volunteer attorney with the 
program.
The “ask” of the lawyers 
is also uniquely appealing 
for the volunteers. To fulfill 
one’s annual volunteer 
obligation, the program asks 
the attorney to handle just 
one “matter” per year, which 
could be a simple phone call, 
a one-time consultation, a 
review of a document or 
something lengthier. It’s 
entirely up to the attorney.

In reality, however, 
participating attorneys are 
happy to help and often 
offer to take on additional 
matters. The program’s 
staff pre-screens all matters 
and carefully limits the 
type of cases it accepts. 
The majority of cases are 
family law, bankruptcy, 
elder law and tenant-related 
matters. The client base 
has been historically 70% 
women, many of whom find 
themselves in a sudden dire 
situation and in urgent need 
of legal assistance. In many 
cases, a woman with no 
independent resources has 

been unexpectantly served 
with divorce papers. Sadly, 
40% of those cases involve 
domestic abuse. In such 
cases, a lawyer is assigned 
and immediately steps in 
and informs the husband’s 
attorney that going forward 
the wife will be represented 
pro bono by a seasoned 
attorney, which the JFS staff 
proudly describes as the 
“equalizer moment.”
The program has earned 
a stellar reputation in the 
community. The Michigan 
State Bar honored the 
program as one of its Access 
to Justice recipients, and 
the Oakland County Bar 
Association has provided 
financial support through 
grants for staff and 
community educational 
programming. 

COMMUNITY
COLLABORATIONS
LRS has formed strategic 
relationships with multiple 
organizations, particularly 
the Jewish Bar Association 
(JBAM), which has been 
helpful in promoting the 
program, partnering on 
community educational 
events and providing vol-
unteer attorneys. It collab-
orates with other legal aid 
groups and shelters, such 
as Lakeshore Legal Aid and 
HAVEN, Oakland County’s 
premiere program that 
assists victims of domestic 

JFS’ Legal Referral Service has an army of volunteers riding to the rescue.

Equalizers: ‘The Largest Virtual 
Jewish Law Firm in Michigan’

Perry Ohren, JFS CEO; Mark Picklo, member; Emily Croitori, supervisor 
of JFS Volunteer Services; Mark Jacobs, chair; Mara Moss, member; 
and Kelly Goldberg, coordinator

COURTESY OF JFS

Mark Jacobs
Special to the 
Jewish News

Legal Guide