March 2, 2016 – Attorneys of Wisconsin: The Wisconsin Wills for Heroes program needs you. Help those who are prepared to pay the ultimate price in the line of duty – Wisconsin’s first responders.
Attorneys are needed for the Wisconsin Wills for Heroes clinics to prepare free basic estate planning documents to eligible first responders – helping to give them the peace of mind of knowing that their affairs are in order should the unthinkable occur.
These clinics occur across the state, two to three times per month. Publicly employed or volunteer police officers, firefighters, EMTs, and their spouses or domestic partners are eligible to participate in these free clinics.
Free Basic Estate Planning for First Responders
The national Wills for Heroes program was created by the Wills for Heroes Foundation after Sept. 11, 2001, to assist emergency personnel in preparing basic estate planning documents to protect themselves and their families.
In this program, trained volunteers provide free estate planning education, basic wills, living wills, health care powers of attorney, and financial powers of attorney for eligible first responders and their spouses or domestic partners. This is an important public service for a group of men and women who are prepared to pay the ultimate price in the line of duty. To be successful, every clinic needs volunteer attorneys, notaries, and witnesses.
“Wills for Heroes is a great way to give back to your community,” says State Bar pro bono coordinator Jeff Brown.
Danielle Kranz has volunteered a handful of times since 2011, most recently in Novmber.
"It's such a great way to give back to the first responders
that put their lives on the line every day they go to work," Kranz says. "The program
is well-established and everything runs quite smoothly, allowing us, as
attorneys, to help first responders and their families complete basic estate
planning documents. It was extremely rewarding to know I was able to work
with them and get some documentation in place that provides them peace of mind."
The program is sponsored by the State Bar of Wisconsin with support from its Young Lawyers Division, Foley & Lardner LLP, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, LexisNexis, HotDocs, and volunteer attorneys.
Lawyers Needed – No Experience Required
Volunteer attorneys play one of two roles in the program: Estate planning specialist, and general attorney volunteers.
Estate planning specialists are the “expert” that other volunteers and first responders go to with estate planning questions, and are responsible for overseeing the operations on the day of the clinic.
General attorney volunteers are needed to meet with first responders on an individual basis to review the documents. No estate planning experience is required.
Wills for Heroes clinics are generally held on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Attorneys choose to volunteer for the entire day, or for a morning or afternoon shift.
Attorneys must attend the introductory training before serving as an attorney at a clinic, conveniently available as an On-Demand program through the State Bar.
This program is sponsored by the State Bar of Wisconsin, so when you volunteer in one of our clinics you are covered for the professional services that you provide in the clinic through the professional liability insurance that the State Bar has in place for its volunteers. There is no additional cost to you for this benefit.
Overwhelmingly Positive Response
The program launched in Wisconsin in 2009, with a clinic for first responders in Milwaukee, and since then it has received an overwhelmingly positive response from first-responder organizations around the state, helping over 1,000 first responders and their families.
For More Information
Visit the State Bar’s Wills for Heroes webpage on WisBar.org, which includes a listing of upcoming events. To sign up to volunteer, visit this website. More information for the public is available on Wisbar.org.
