The Public Interest Law Initiative (PILI) is among several organizations that received an American Bar Endowment grant this year.

A cornerstone of the Illinois legal community for over 42 years, PILI has gone through a profound evolution into a statewide direct legal services provider utilizing pro bono attorneys to assist the most vulnerable in Illinois, including veterans and their families, those living in remote rural areas of the state, and those who qualify for legal aid but are denied service by their local legal aid agency due to a conflict of interest. The evolution included doubling its caseload from 400 to 800 in one year due to extensive program and geographic expansion. The ABE grant will help build PILI’s organizational capacity by funding the technology infrastructure PILI needs to maximize pro bono delivery while ensuring the best and highest compliance with ethical rules and client management best practices. A new case management system will include functionality to effectively and efficiently serve clients, accurately conduct conflict checks and consolidate case and client data in one secure location. These critical enhancements will allow more focus on service provision to an ever-growing client population. The new system will also help PILI better understand and report service data and trends, which will assist in demonstrating impact and attracting new donors.

The 2020 Opportunity Grant recipients are:

• Advocates for Immigrants Rights (TN, MS, AR, LA)
• Capital Area Immigrants Rights Coalition (DC)
• Coast to Coast Legal Aid (FL)
• Community Law Program (FL)
• Connecticut Veterans Legal Center (CT)
• Loyola Law School Project for the Innocent (CA)
• Middle Georgia Justice (GA)
• North Carolina Equal Access to Justice Commission (NC)
• Pro Bono Net (for an OH-based project)
• Public Interest Law Initiative (IL)