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NC LEAP is part of a small but growing group of pro bono programs across the United States that focus on community economic development in America's low-wealth communities by providing legal services to entrepreneurs and economic development not-for-profits.
NC LEAP was created by a cadre of attorneys from the Business Law Section of the North Carolina Bar Association and is currently supported by the Business Law Section and Corporate Counsel Section.
The program is modeled after programs initiated by the American Bar Association’s A Business Commitment (ABC) project. The ABC project is predicated on two basic ideas. First, business and transactional lawyers are more likely to engage in pro bono legal services in their areas of expertise, rather than in unfamiliar areas of the law. Second, across the country, low-wealth entrepreneurs are working to create jobs, stimulate commercial activity and revive lagging local economies. Lack of access to high-quality, affordable legal services is a major barrier to their success. The goal of the ABC Project is to address this need by encouraging more business and transactional lawyers to provide transactional legal services to low-wealth entrepreneurs on a pro bono basis.
In North Carolina, there are a number of clinics that work with community economic development non-profits and a few that work directly with for-profit entrepreneurs. Historically, North Carolina's low-wealth entrepreneurs have had difficulty accessing the legal services necessary to support the businesses which have been and will continue to be the cornerstone of North Carolina's economy. Recognizing this gap, NC LEAP's creators stepped in to ensure that North Carolina entrepreneurs and communities are able to utilize legal expertise to increase the likelihood of success for small businesses across the state.
Since we began providing services to low-wealth entrepreneurs in June 2007, NC LEAP has fielded over 51 inquiries and provided direct service to 31 entrepreneurs through direct representation and/or clinic advising. NC LEAP has represented entrepreneurs from some of the most economically distressed counties in our state. These entrepreneurs are working hard to improve our economy and NC LEAP is working hard to make sure they succeed.
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