Fort Myers attorney earns statewide recognition for volunteer efforts

FORT MYERS, Fla. - Jan. 15, 2025 - PRLog -- A Fort Myers personal injury attorney and Lee County Legal Aid Society volunteer leader has earned statewide recognition for her pro-bono work on behalf of low-income and disadvantaged clients.

Alaimo, a private practice attorney and vice president of the Fort Myers-based nonprofit, was selected from the 20th Judicial Circuit, which encompasses Charlotte, Collier, Glades, Hendry and Lee counties.

Unlike in criminal law, there is no constitutional right to counsel in civil law, which includes landlord-tenant disputes, foreclosures, evictions, probate, debt collection, child custody cases, domestic violence orders of protection and more.

Alaimo is part of a local volunteer corps that collectively donates about 1,000 hours a year of their time. Statewide, Florida lawyers provided more than 1.7 million hours of pro bono services to those in need and $11.6 million to legal aid organizations last year, according to The Florida Bar.

Here's how The Florida Bar describes Alaimo's efforts:

"Helping those who can't fully advocate on their own is at the core of the Lee County Legal Aid Society's mission – and is at the heart of Fort Myers attorney Maria Rita Alaimo's own personal commitment to the organization and those it serves."

"Most weeks, you can find her staffing the weekly self-help Zoom calls at which both staff attorneys and volunteers provide limited legal advice to the public, as part of a partnership with the Lee County Clerk of Court's office."

"Alaimo also serves as vice president of the Lee County Legal Aid Society's Board of Directors and president of the Lee County Association for Women Lawyers, where she has helped implement one of the most significant efforts in the organization's history – a coordinated effort to provide free civil legal aid to displaced immigrants under age 18 who are in foster care or require other legal support as a result of being abused, neglected or abandoned."

For more information on Lee County Legal Aid Society, visit www.leecountylegalaid.org or call 239-334-6118.