????華盛頓知名律師事務所安慶國際法律事務所（Akin Gump）法律援助主管史蒂夫?舒爾曼指出：“作為一家律師事務所，我們的規模有所縮水，所以，法律援助時間自然就降下來了?！笔鏍柭f，安慶通過重組，在編律師人數比2007年最高峰時期減少了近200人，導致法律援助時間下降。

????安慶今年以來已提供48,000小時的免費法律援助服務，預計全年將接近去年的57,000小時。他說，此類工作“仍能吸引頂級法學院的畢業生加盟?！?/p>

????大中型律師事務所也有更強的經濟實力來支付法律援助服務產生的費用，如差旅費用。但舒爾曼堅持稱：“我們需要支付律師的薪水，這是公司的固定成本。額外撥出一個小時用于法律援助的花費雖然不會像帶薪服務那么高，但對律所而言也并不是零成本?！?/p>

法律援助培養律所新人

????公益法律事務研究所的拉登特稱，可能的解決方案是建立一套模式，正式將法律援助工作作為“律師鍛煉技能和獲取經驗的途徑”。由于企業客戶不太愿意為新手律師的在崗培訓買單，她說，法律援助工作正好能夠提供這種機會。

????如果法律援助的時間不夠，為什么不對大律師事務所及所有執業律師規定一個強制性的下限時間？

????“強制規定缺乏可操作性，”舒爾曼堅持稱?！胺▽W院需要效仿醫學院，規定相當時間的臨床實踐，而不只是一個學期1個學分就夠了?！?/p>

????“比如，法學院的學生們可以在法律服務辦公室實習，”他說?！皩W生們可以花兩年時間實習，兩年時間在法學院學習?！?/p>

????殖民時期有志于成為律師的人需要在執業律師的指導下學習法律實踐，因此，今天的法學院學生們也可以在公益法律援助辦公室實習，理解法律。學徒模式一直延續到19世紀末（有些州如今仍然認可這種做法），直到美國律師協會開始敦促正規的研究生教育，后來就演變成了今天的的法學院。

????At Akin Gump, a prominent law firm in Washington, D.C., Steve Schulman, head of the pro bono practice, notes, "as a firm, we are a bit leaner, so, of course, pro bono hours are down." A firm restructuring trimmed nearly 200 attorneys from its roster since 2007, which has resulted in a reduced pro bono case load, Schulman says.

????Akin Gump lawyers have racked up 48,000 free hours so far this year, and the firm expects to be close to last year's 57,000 total hours. Such work, he says, "is still a draw to recruit top law students."

????Larger firms also have deeper pockets to cover expenses, such as travel, to pursue a pro bono case. But, Schulman maintains, that while "our attorneys are on salary, which is a fixed cost, and it doesn't cost that much to generate an extra free hour, the cost to the firm of these hours is not zero."

Pro bono cases as apprentice work?

????One potential solution is to create a model where pro bono work is formally used as "the way lawyers gain skills and experience," says the Pro Bono Institute's Lardent. Since fewer corporate clients are willing to pick up the tab for novice lawyers to learn on the job, she says, pro bono work can provide those opportunities.

????If not enough hours are being devoted to pro bono work, why not just come up with a mandatory minimum for big firms or all practicing lawyers?

????"A mandate would not be enforceable in any way that is meaningful," maintains Schulman. "Law schools need to follow the medical school model and devote significant time to clinical practice so it's not just one credit a semester.

????"Law students could apprentice to a legal services office, for example," he says, "and could spend two years learning and two years in law school."

????Like aspiring lawyers in colonial days who learned the legal ropes under the tutelage of a practicing attorney, law students today could apprentice themselves at public interest or legal aid offices to "read the law," a practice that largely did not change (although a few states still allow it) until the 1890s, when the ABA began urging formal post-college instruction -- what is now called law school.