With the holiday season here, many are busy securing New Year's Eve plans, booking winter getaways, hitting the party circuit and buying (or attempting to buy) gifts for family and friends - all while juggling active case loads and putting in long hours at the office.

The holiday season is also the perfect time to commit to pro bono service.

Pro bono work allows large-firm associates to see beyond document reviews and due diligence, privilege logs and nights at the printer. Committing to pro bono enables associates to see first-hand the impact of their legal work on their clients' lives or businesses. As diverse as the vast pool of large-firm associates is, all agree on one thing: Some of the most satisfying days in practice are the result of representing clients pro bono. What could be a better holiday gift than that?

The benefits of pro bono work - literally meaning, "for the good" - abound. Of course, the individual or organizational recipients of a firm's pro bono services benefit. But the benefits to the junior associates providing a large portion of these services are immeasurable.

The nature of large-firm practice, and heavy staffing of large matters, does not always create opportunities for junior associates to get "on your feet" experience. Pro bono matters do, enabling associates to develop and strengthen their skills. For example, fact-gathering and conducting client interviews - fundamental components of the practice of law regardless of one's department - take place in every pro bono matter.

A junior associate can hone his oral advocacy skills by arguing his client's petition for resentencing before a criminal judge. An associate "first-chairing" the negotiations of a commercial lease for a struggling theater company will interact directly, and frequently, with opposing counsel. And an associate representing a client in her petitions for divorce and child and spousal support will draft discovery requests and subpoenas, prepare witnesses for hearings and question these witnesses (and others) at a court hearing.

At a large firm, an associate can demonstrate just how much responsibility he can handle through his representation of a pro bono client. While the associate is supervised by a partner or the pro bono counsel, the matter is truly the associate's to run with. It is the associate who prioritizes and juggles competing tasks and needs, and who builds the relationship with the client.

In addition, diligent and effective representation of one's pro bono client also strengthens and builds an associate's own reputation as a lawyer and can demonstrate to senior attorneys that an associate can take on high-level work, invariably leading to great work opportunities with the firm's paying clients.

Getting Involved

Many large firms have a counsel or coordinator overseeing the firm's pro bono practice. The pro bono counsel is responsible for the intake of clients, and the formal assigning and managing of matters. The pro bono counsel often serves as the supervising attorney and is a great resource for the many questions the associate will inevitably have.

However, the pro bono counsel is not the only individual with whom an associate can interact to get involved. Partners also spearhead pro bono projects involving particular legal services and community-outreach organizations. An associate who is interested in, for example, representing indigent women in family law matters or advising members of an underprivileged community on establishing business entities, should express interest in such projects to the partner involved.

More senior associates serve as yet another avenue for getting staffed on pro bono matters. Ask a trusted senior associate if he could use the assistance of a junior associate on a matter. The answer, almost always, will be yes.

Lastly, associates also can try to bring to their firms their own pro bono business. If there is a cause or opportunity important to you, chances are you can find support at your firm. Having associates who are committed to community and enthusiastic about these opportunities reflects positively on the firm and all of its attorneys. Approach a senior partner who may share your interest. It may turn out that his client sits on the board of the not-for-profit of interest to you.

Not Only for Litigators

A common misconception at large firms is that pro bono work is only available for litigators. While litigation associates may initially feel more comfortable in criminal, family and immigration courtrooms while representation of their pro bono clients, this does not mean that all pro bono opportunities are only for litigators or that transactional attorneys cannot participate in litigation-oriented work.

Plenty of opportunities exist for associates in corporate, real estate, bankruptcy, tax, intellectual property, and employee benefits departments. Transactional lawyers can draft partnership agreements, assist in obtaining and securing financing, and negotiate real estate transactions for not-for-profit organizations. They can also assist public interest organizations in obtaining 501(c)(3) status. These associates can advise student entrepreneurs, serve as de facto general counsels, and represent nascent artists in contract negotiations.

In addition, many large firms have pro bono externship programs, which allow associates to spend around three-to-six months working full-time at a legal services organization.

The relationship with one's pro bono client is unique. It can be fraught with emotion because the stakes can be high: More often that not, an individual's freedom, family, and livelihood are involved. The lawyer must be sensitive, professional and direct, all at the same time. Managing a client's expectations is no easy feat, but the associate who masters this will be able to use this skill with the firm's paying clients as well.

One should always treat a pro bono client in the same manner as a "paying" client. Be responsive and return phone calls promptly. Keep the client apprised of case developments. Move the case along expeditiously. One never knows where the representation of a pro bono client can lead; today's pro bono organizational client may be the board on which one sits in a few years.

By committing to pro bono service, an associate will become a better lawyer as well as a more valued member of the firm for which he works, and feel good while doing it. The perfect holiday gift indeed.

Lisa Bebchick and Elana F. Sinensky are litigation associates at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson.