Jan. 7, 2014

Bruce Moseley, coordinator of the Legal Studies Program at Amarillo College, is passionate about fostering within his students an appreciation for the merits of volunteer legal service. He does not merely send them into the fray, however—he enthusiastically leads them there.

While his innumerable academic and personally motivated pro bono efforts on behalf of indigent clients have long been recognized regionally, suddenly they are being subjected to praise on a much broader scale.

Moseley is one of six attorneys in Texas who will be presented with prestigious Pro Bono Awards Jan. 24 in Austin by the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) and the Texas Access to Justice Foundation (TAJF).

The awards ceremony will transpire in the LBJ Presidential Library in conjunction with a three-day meeting of the LSC Board of Directors and the TAJF’s 30th Anniversary Kick-Off event.

The LSC was enacted by the U.S. Congress in 1974 and is the single largest source of funding for civil legal assistance  to the nation’s poor. Its Board of Directors is appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. The TAJF, meanwhile, is the leading funding source for legal aid in Texas.

He was nominated for the award “for dedication to assisting clients” by Luisa Vigil, coordinator for the Amarillo-area Equal Justice Volunteer Program (EJVP), by which he has repeatedly been named Attorney of the Year.

The EJVP in 2012 went so far as to name one of its annual awards in honor of Moseley.

The EJVP supports Legal Aid of Northwest Texas by providing free civil legal services to low-income residents in 114 Texas Counties. The Amarillo office represents clients in 20 Panhandle counties. Of his own volition, Moseley personally takes part in the majority of the 10 to 12 free clinics EJVP offers each year, and the pro bono hours add up.

Moreover, he continually encourages his students to join him, even weaving the clinics into his curriculum. He asks his students, particularly those in his Family Law Class, to master ProDoc, a software system for legal documentation, and to utilize their new-found skills on behalf of clients they meet at free EJVP clinics. The students receive hands-on training through real-life application, and underprivileged members of the community receive much-needed legal assistance.

“I consider it a privilege to be an attorney and a professor,” Moseley said. “I am very lucky, especially compared to those that Legal Aid serves. When I first started practicing law, I realized I couldn’t afford an attorney if I needed one.

“AC has a poverty initiative that opened my eyes to how many people in our community need legal help but can’t afford it. Legal Aid has been a wonderful partner, and our students have really stepped up to help with the clinics. I’m humbled by this award, but I’m also proud that it’s not just about me but about my students’ involvement.

“Hopefully we can continue to expand our reach and help even more people in the future.”

Moseley’s efforts have not gone unnoticed at Amarillo College, where he also chairs the Business Department. He was the recipient in 2012 of the John F. Mead Faculty Excellence Award, the College’s highest faculty accolade.

Moseley is a graduate of the University of North Texas and St. Mary’s University School of Law.