At the end of April 2002, the Israel Bar Association's Central Committee approved the "Sahar Mitzvah" program, a legal aid (pro-bono) program that recruits lawyers to provide legal services to the needy as well as to sectors of the population afflicted by hardship. Program beneficiaries are individuals who would otherwise be unable to afford legal services, and would therefore be deprived of their fundamental right to legal representation.

The program was initiated by Dr. Shlomo Cohen, President of the Israel Bar Association, and Adv. Shachar Welner, Chair of the Israel Bar Association’s Legal Aid Committee. The program is headed by leading lawyer Yigal Arnon. Members of the Bar Association’s Legal Aid Committee act to advance and expand the program.

The Program enables the implementation of Section 3(2) of the Israel Bar Association Law, which stipulates that "The Bar Association is entitled, inter alia, to provide legal aid to those of limited means". Indeed, the objective of the program is to increase accessibility to the legal system, and to protect the rights of those who lack the means to hire professional legal services.

Initially, an appeal was made directly to all licensed attorneys in Israel, asking them to participate in the program. A computerized data base of volunteer lawyers, distributed according to geographical area, type of volunteer work and area of specialization, was compiled by the bar association. To date, the pool of volunteers includes approximately 1800 lawyers.

The program began operation, on a trial basis, in September 2002. To date, legal aid has been provided to hundreds of individuals who applied for aid from the various help centres throughout the country.

Informing those in Need of Aid

In January 2003, after a three month pilot period, the program was officially launched and made public through a media campaign including a television broadcast and notices in newspapers. The campaign was prepared on a volunteer basis by the advertising agency, Bauman Bar Rebanai, and broadcast by television channels at the end of December 2002, and during the months February and May 2003.

The 1-700 Line

In January 2003, after a pilot period of three months, the bar association began to operate a telephone hotline to receive requests for aid under the program. The hotline's phone number is 1-700-50-55-50.

The line was advertised, as mentioned above, through a television broadcast. The bar association has set up a team of volunteers, operated inter alia by students, to answer telephone calls and refer callers accordingly

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Operation of the 1 - 700 line, from 2003 - 2006

Our Internet Site is: www.israelbar.org.il/pro-bono

Aid is provided on two levels:

1. Initial counsel and guidance at help centre

The help center is the point for initial legal aid. The Center's is designed to provide initial aid only, and to help people help themselves. At the help centers, volunteer lawyers inform people of their legal rights and obligations, and instruct them about how to exercise their rights. This service is provided to all who approach help centers, without checking eligibility according to criteria.

Today there are 30 active help centres throughout the country, 10 in the Tel Aviv and Central District, 9 in the Jerusalem district, 5 in the Haifa district,4  in the Northern District and 2 in the Southern District.

Ø The list of centres is attached

2. Legal Representation in Judicial Tribunals

As mentioned, the program provides pro-bono legal representation only to those whom meet eligibility conditions, according to criteria determined by the Bar Association.

Applications for legal representation are transferred from the help centres and/or other sources to regional coordinators who bring the applications before a District Committee which examines eligibility under the criteria determined by the Bar Association. Once the committee has determined that the applicant is eligible for voluntary legal representation, the regional coordinator transfers the applicant’s file to a lawyer who has volunteered to litigate in the case concerned.

Ø Attached are the Bar Association’s criteria for receiving legal aid: