Pisgah Legal Services is only able to improve the lives of more than 15,000 low-income people annually because of the generous pro bono contributions of volunteer lawyers through the Mountain Area Volunteer Lawyers (MAVL) Program.
MAVL is a pro bono referral program made up of approximately 300 active private attorneys who volunteer their services to help meet the need for civil law representation of low-income residents of Buncombe, Henderson, Madison, Polk, Rutherford, and Transylvania counties.
MAVL was formed in 1983 under the sponsorship of the North Carolina Bar Association and in cooperation with Pisgah Legal Services (PLS). The program is governed by an Advisory Board consisting of private attorneys from each county and client eligible representatives. Pisgah Legal Services screens and refers clients to MAVL attorneys.
MAVL is celebrating more than 30 years of helping people through volunteerism. Last year area attorneys volunteered more than 3,176 hours to help Pisgah Legal’s low-income clients. Those hours of service are valued at more than $794,000 in services.
For new attorneys, we provide training and information. If you are interested in support, please contact us. Videos are available of past CLEs on poverty law.
For more information or to join MAVL, contact Katie Russell Miller at or 828-210-3420.