Mid-Shore Pro Bono recently named Laura L. Chafey, Esq. as the non-profit’s Legal Director. Chafey most recently served as Dorchester County’s Assistant State’s Attorney, where she gained extensive experience working on legal issues impacting families and children. She has experience working internationally and with a range of nonprofit legal organizations, including completion of an internship with Mid-Shore Pro Bono in 2011.
“We are so grateful to have Laura back on our team in this exciting role,” said Mid-Shore Pro Bono Executive Director Meredith Lathbury Girard. “Her law experience combined with her deep passion for serving the community and pro bono work will ultimately help provide representation for more people in the civil legal process.”
As Legal Director, Chafey is responsible for overseeing Mid-Shore Pro Bono’s legal assistance programs that provide free and low-cost access to legal representation in family law, consumer debt and housing, and elder law issues. In addition, Chafey will lead recruitment, training, and engagement of volunteer attorneys and represent Mid-Shore Pro Bono in regional and statewide networks.
“I’m glad to be back with Mid-Shore Pro Bono and especially in this role,” says Chafey. “I’m eager to work alongside incredible volunteers and staff in this meaningful work.”
Chafey says watching how Mid-Shore Pro Bono has grown and expanded over the years since her internship has been inspiring in helping to fulfill a growing demand for legal help for those who cannot afford it.
“Legal advice or representation is needed by everyone at one point or another in their lifetime,” Chafey commented. “Unfortunately, not everyone can afford legal services for their civil matters. Mid-Shore Pro Bono makes it possible for individuals without means to have legal representation through these services.”
Chafey grew up in St. Michaels, Md., and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in international studies with a concentration in politics from Frostburg State University, graduating summa cum laude. She received her Juris Doctorate from the University of Baltimore School of Law before earning a Master of Laws from the University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam Law School.
Her education includes working as an intern with Mid-Shore Pro Bono and the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) at the Hague, Netherlands, where she assisted the Honorable Judge Bakhtiyar Tuzmukhamedov of the ICTR Appeals Chamber in his judicial duties. Laura studied abroad with American University, Washington College of Law at The Hague, Netherlands, and in Salamanca, Spain with UniverSpain.
Mid-Shore Pro Bono delivers a mission of helping Maryland’s Eastern Shore residents obtain access to legal assistance, with offices in Easton, Chestertown, and Salisbury, and more at www.midshoreprobono.org.
