Emeritus pro bono practice rules encourage retired and inactive attorneys to volunteer to provide pro bono assistance to clients unable to pay for essential legal representation. At last count 33 jurisdictions have adopted emeritus pro bono rules waiving some of the normal licensing requirement for attorneys agreeing to limit their practice to volunteer service. The following chart contains essential details of the current rules.

The ABA Commission on Law and Aging has published a brochure designed to help states successfully recruit emeritus pro bono attorneys to provide critically needed legal services to vulnerable seniors and low- and moderate-income individuals who are now facing their legal problems on their own. The brochure is titled No Longer on Their Own: Using Emeritus Attorney Pro Bono Programs to Meet Unmet Civil Legal Needs.