|
 The
State Bar will launch a full-scale publicity campaign this month to
increase the public's awareness of its consumer information
pamphlets. The pamphlets provide general information on hiring the
right lawyer, getting a divorce, buying a home, using the small claims
court, dealing with debts, battling hate crimes, preparing a will and
other legal topics.
"The consumer pamphlets are the cornerstone of
the State Bar's public education program," said bar executive
director Judy Johnson.
"We hope to distribute as many as possible to
people around the state who need assistance with everyday problems -
from finding the right attorney, to dealing with law enforcement, to
handling financial difficulties."
Pamphlet titles available in English and Spanish
are: How Can I Find and Hire the Right Lawyer? What Should I Know
Before I Rent? How Should I Use the Small Claims Court? What Can I Do
If I Can't Pay My Debts? Can the Law Protect Me From Domestic
Violence? What Should I Know If I Am Arrested? What Should I Know
About Divorce and Custody? What Should I Know If I Have An Auto
Accident? What Should I Know Before I Buy A House? Do I Need a Will?
Do I Need Estate Planning? and Do I Need a Living Trust?
Titles available only in English are: What Should
I Know Before I Sign? What Should I Do If I Am a Crime Victim? What
Should I Know About Hate Crimes? and What Should I Do If I Have a
Problem With My Lawyer? The bar also is planning to translate other
pamphlet titles into Spanish and possibly other languages, such as
Chinese, Vietnamese and Arabic.
The bar's pamphlet awareness campaign will be
directed to legal, general, ethnic and religious print and electronic
media. Pamphlet information also will go directly to libraries,
churches, synagogues, temples and mosques; high schools and
universities; service, social and community clubs and organizations,
and other non-profits groups.
Public service announcements and other
promotional material will be developed in English and Spanish for
selected radio and television stations in the state's larger media
markets.
In addition, State Bar representatives as well as
local bar associations will promote the pamphlets in the media and
before community organizations. Events to celebrate Law Day on May 1
will provide an opportunity to publicize
the pamphlets.
Aiding in this effort will be speakers from the
bar's newly developed speaker's referral service, a group drawn
from leading legal experts in academia and public and private
practice. An advertising campaign in the general and ethnic press also
is under consideration.
The State Bar also continually revises and
updates its consumer education pamphlets
on its web site at www.calbar.org.
The pamphlets are produced by the Office of Media
& Information Services in cooperation with the bar's different
legal sections and volunteer attorneys from the bar's various
committees.
To order one free pamphlet, send a
self-addressed, stamped envelope for each single pamphlet. Multiple
copies - 2 to 99 copies - are 50 cents each; 100 copies are $40.
The price covers printing and shipping costs and cannot be discounted.
If ordering multiple copies, include your name
and address, make checks payable to the State Bar of California and
mail to 180 Howard Street, San Francisco, CA 94105. Attn: Pamphlets.
For additional information, call 415/538-2283 or
e-mail barcomm@calsb.org. |
