SAN DIEGO COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION LRIS ANNOUNCES
MAJOR GIFT FOR LAW-RELATED PUBLIC SERVICE

SAN DIEGO, CA, March 21, 2003 -- The San Diego County Bar Association's Lawyer Referral and Information Service is contributing $50,000 to the San Diego County Bar Foundation in 2003. The gift will go toward funding law-related public service activities in San Diego County, including education programs and the delivery of free legal services to under represented San Diegans.

The contribution is the Bar's second $50,000 gift in as many years.

" The Bar is committed to assisting those in need of legal help, which is the Referral Service's reason for being," said Bill Hargreaves, chair of the Bar's LRIS Committee. "So it is with great pride and pleasure that the LRIS announces this major gift."

The San Diego County Bar Foundation is a nonprofit charitable foundation established to improve public awareness of the legal system in San Diego County, the administration of justice and the delivery of legal services.

The gift will help to support the Bar Foundation's work providing grants to encourage the creation of public service programs which promote public understanding of the law, fund legal services for low income populations and promote the ideals of justice.

" This generous gift is a wonderful example of the legal community's commitment to serving the public," said David B. Norris, president of the Bar Foundation. "This contribution will help the Bar Foundation to meet the ever increasing needs of those in need of access to legal services in the County."

In addition to supporting the work of the Bar Foundation, LRIS funds the Bar's Client Relations program, which assists with attorney/client disputes and fee arbitration; Law Week community outreach programs including Free Law at Kobey's and the televised Ask-A-Lawyer call-in program; and provides reduced fee referrals to those of modest-means.

Established in 1952, the Lawyer Referral and Information Service links those in need of legal assistance with qualified attorneys in their area of the county. Last year, LRIS received over 50,000 telephone calls from San Diegans seeking legal help.

LRIS is program of the San Diego County Bar Association, headquartered in downtown San Diego.