Mission Statement: MVLS removes barriers to justice through free civil legal help, community engagement, and advocacy for equitable laws.
Vision Statement: Our vision is for a fair legal system that is free of injustice and equitably serves underrepresented Marylanders.
Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service (MVLS) serves Marylanders by offering full representation in civil legal cases. We match clients with compassionate volunteers, including lawyers, Certified Public Accountants (CPAs), Enrolled Agents (EAs), and special education advocates and consultants who represent thousands of Maryland families each year who cannot afford to hire an attorney in critical civil legal matters.
MVLS leverages professional volunteers to provide pro bono representation across Maryland in a range of civil legal issues, including family, housing, consumer, expungements, tax controversy, special education, and estate planning and administration. We also work to expand access to legal services through partnerships and collaborations with community partners, while advocating for changes to laws and policies that disproportionately impact Marylanders experiencing financial hardship.
View MVLS 45 Year Timeline
MVLS strives for a collaborative environment where all staff members, volunteers, clients, and community partners are encouraged to share ideas that further the organization’s work and where staff embrace contributing to initiatives outside their department or day to day duties.
MVLS values a dedication to our mission of providing free civil legal help, developing and supporting community partnerships, and addressing inequity within the legal system. All actions, decisions, initiatives, and day to day activities are guided by this mission.
MVLS will work to challenge the racist structures and barriers within the civil legal system that lead to inequitable outcomes for Black Marylanders and other communities of color. We will also continue to examine and challenge the structures within our own organization that negatively impact Black staff, job applicants, clients, volunteers, and community partners. We commit to supporting our internal Anti-Racism Committee and conducting an annual review of all internal policies as they relate to race equity.
MVLS has three main constituents: our clients, our volunteers, and our community partners. For our clients, we strive to provide the best possible legal representation and customer service, as well as challenge inequitable legal systems, so we can remove barriers to obtaining justice for all. For our volunteers, we want MVLS to be a welcoming, accessible place, in which we provide support to make pro bono work approachable so that they may make a meaningful impact in their MVLS client’s lives as well as on the legal system. For our community partners, we strive to be a trustworthy partner that listens to and our actions are informed by community input and follows through on our commitments. All actions and initiatives are guided by community identified needs.
MVLS values staff initiative and proactive ideas. Each staff member, volunteer, client, and community partner bring a unique perspective to the organization and we encourage them to offer ideas to better serve our clients and support our mission. We are committed to being flexible and adapting so that we can continue to increase our impact in the community.
MVLS accepts the responsibility that comes with financial support from our donors, private foundations, government funding, and other supporters. With all funds entrusted to us, we utilize each dollar to maximize help for Marylanders in need and removing barriers to justice. We also seek to work in partnership with funders to identify ways we can invest together in disinvested communities.
MVLS Board Diversity Statement
Interested in becoming an MVLS Board Member?
If you’d like to learn more, email Susan Francis, Executive Director
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