...promotes through philanthropy the rule of law, access to justice, and law-related education.
The Virginia Law Foundation promotes through philanthropy the rule of law,
access to justice and law related education
The three prongs of the Virginia Law Foundation's mission are integrally connected to each other, and our vision for each prong is as follows.
| RULE OF LAW |
All persons should understand, value, and adhere to the Rule of Law. The Rule of Law should be recognized as the foundation of peace, stability, and prosperity.
The Rule of Law embraces all branches of government as well as all persons living and working in the Commonwealth. The components of the Rule of Law include not only written laws, their application and the judicial system but also the practice of civility in civil discourse, the use of best practices for dispute resolution, the resolution of problems without violence or other forms of lawlessness, the teaching and practice of civic virtue, the implementation of desired or necessary changes to government and laws through appropriate processes, and the role modeling of adherence to the rule of law by all in a position to do so. Equal access and treatment within the judicial system are also important components of preserving the Rule of Law.
The VLF will look toward innovative research, programs and activities that:
- produce, coordinate and disseminate clear, engaging information designed to connect the dots for all persons in all sectors of Virginia's communities so that they may better understand the direct relationship between the rule of law, our laws and legal processes, and the rights and duties of members of society;
- convene multidisciplinary groups of knowledgeable stakeholders to examine the Rule of Law and its challenges and to devise possible responses to these challenges;
- improve the administration of justice in Virginia;
- advance competence and accountability within and among the three branches of Virginia government in upholding and applying the Rule of Law;
- capitalize on teachable moments and otherwise motivate and reward respect for the Rule of Law.
In all cases, the VLF wants to support programs that demonstrate a clearly planned commitment to realizing the VLF's vision and the likelihood of success.
| ACCESS TO JUSTICE |
The gap between persons in need of access to legal assistance and sources of competent, affordable legal services should be reduced significantly if not closed in Virginia.
Greater access to justice in the Commonwealth can result from better-integrated service networks that coordinate more efficiently the diverse sources of available providers from Virginia's legal profession. Various communities of legal need exist in Virginia. These communities include persons who have difficulty obtaining legal assistance because they are:
- poor or unable to pay in full for legal services;
- mentally disabled or have some other disability that makes access to legal services difficult;
- geographically isolated from sources of service;
- lacking basic English language skills; or
- lacking familiarity with our legal system.
The foregoing examples are by no means exhaustive. They do, however, reflect particular areas of interest and emphasis of the VLF.
The reasons for the gap in legal services must be understood in order to be fully remedied. The gap will be reduced by coordinating better-integrated networks of competent, affordable legal representation and assistance. Achieving this objective will depend upon a number of factors, including the expansion of the pool of attorneys and law firms that provide affordable and pro bono publico legal services, the identification and resolution of issues that impede or facilitate attorney and law firm participation in such provider pools, and better communication and collaboration between private and other sources of legal services.
The delivery of legal services will also depend upon better identification of available resources so that persons in need can locate and access legal providers more easily.
The VLF will consider funding projects:
- to support periodic examinations of specific access needs over time;
- to engender the legal profession's broad-based and enduring commitment to providing affordable and pro bono legal services;
- to test and support effective ways whereby law schools form a public and pro bono service ethic in their students;
- to support innovative and effective organizational, management and communication plans in pursuit of this vision; and
- to obtain reliable, periodic assessments of best practices in realizing the vision.
| LAW RELATED EDUCATION |
The VLF will support law related education as a way to realize the VLF's Rule of Law and Access to Justice visions.
In this context, law related education has multiple applications, including the following:
- enhancing the specific competencies of Virginia lawyers to serve persons with specific legal needs effectively;
- motivating Virginia attorneys to contribute to closing the access to justice gap;
- enhancing the ability of all Virginians who are not attorneys to understand better Virginia's legal system so that they are better able to understand and protect their rights and those of others, avoid future legal problems, and comply with the law;
- improving the ability of non-profit organizations providing a range of services to members of Virginia's communities to understand areas of legal assistance and be better able to direct their clients to them; and,
- facilitating allegiance by all persons in Virginia to the concept of the Rule of Law and the necessity for all to abide by it.
| IN ALL MISSION AREAS |
The VLF shall strive to be recognized as the leading law-related philanthropic organization in Virginia, and respected as an innovator in the field.
Through financial support and partnerships, the VLF shall be a catalyst that galvanizes original research, creative thinking, and well-crafted initiatives that will demonstrate progress toward meeting the goals embedded in this Vision Statement.
The VLF will use its grant-making to participate in strategic partnerships, supporting initiatives that seek to attain the goals embedded in this Vision Statement along with clear indications of how the progress towards achieving such goals can be assessed. The VLF thus commits to being a learning organization as well as a catalyst in pursuit of its vision. The VLF will strengthen its traditional partnerships in service of its mission, will reach out to other stakeholders as well, and will be conscious of how geography should be factored into any efforts undertaken to achieve its vision.