Public Service Pledge

Colorado Law integrates public service and public interest law through the school. Public service is an integral part of a lawyer’s professional obligation and an essential ingredient in a legal career.Ìý

By signing the Colorado Law Public Service Pledge, students commit to at least 50 hours of law-related public service work, not for credit or other compensation, during their time at the Law School. Students who fulfill their pledge will be recognized at graduation, and their public service will be reflected on their transcripts. The graduating 3L who earned and loggedÌýthe most public service hours will be recognized at the Student Awards Ceremony and will have their name added to a plaque.Ìý

Pledge Guidelines

  • When to Sign: We encourage students to signÌýthe Pledge during 1L Orientation, but students can sign the Pledge anytime during law school.
  • Qualifying Work: To count toward the Pledge, work must be:
    • Completed by a current, enrolled Colorado Law student
    • Uncompensated and uncredited
    • Supervised andÌýlaw-related
    • This list is not exhaustive. If you have questions about whether your hours qualifyÌýtowards the Public Service Pledge, please email: probono@colorado.edu
  • Examples of Qualifying work include:
    • Volunteer hours for Colorado Law projects, including:Ìý, Maya Leaders Alliance Project, Korey Wise Innocence Project, and projects throughÌýstudent organizations.
    • Volunteer hours forÌýnonprofit organizations, public interest law firms, local government agencies, public defenders, legal services offices, private firms with pro bono projects.
  • Deadline to Log Hours: Students report hours through ÌýGraduatingÌý3L studentsÌýmust submit hours by April 1 (11:59 p.m. MST)Ìý for recognition on theirÌýtranscripts andÌýat graduation.Ìý3L December graduatesÌýmust submit theirÌýhours by November 15(11:59 p.m. MST)Ìýfor recognition on theirÌýtranscripts andÌýat graduation.ÌýWe encourage students to log public service hours as they are earned throughout their law school career.

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Instructions for Logging Your Public Service Hours

  1. Login to
  2. Once logged into yourÌýaccount, select "Experiential Learning" from the left-hand menu
  3. On the Experiential Learning page, select Ìý"+ New Experience" inÌýthe top right corner
  4. Complete the fields!
    1. For "Experiential Learning Type" select "Public Service Pledge Hours"
    2. The dates for your service project can be approximate
    3. When it asks you what year in school you were (1L, 2L, 1L -Ìý2L), choose 1L, 2L or 3L if your project took place during the Fall or Spring semester of your 1L, 2L, or 3L year.
    4. The "1L-2L" andÌý"2L-3L"ÌýoptionÌýshould be selected if you completed a project in the summer between two years (i.e, the summer between your 1L and 2L year).
  5. Select "Save"
  6. Select "Submit" to change the status from "Draft" to "In Progress"ÌýÌý(you won't be able to log any hours until you press "Submit" this first time)
    1. If you don't see an option to add hours after submitting andÌýchanging the status to "In Progress," try refreshing your browser or backing out of the Experience and reopening it.
  7. Select "Submit" againÌýif you are finished adding hours to that experienceÌýto change the status from "In Progress" to "Complete." You will no longer be able to add new hours to that experience.
  8. If you want to continue adding hours to that exprience, only press "submit" once and that will leave the experienceÌýas "in progress."

As in all activities, students undertaking the Public Service Pledge are subject to the Honor Code.

Frequently Asked Questions for CurrentÌýStudents

Will students be disqualified from counting t