Volunteer Lawyers Project of CNY

What Volunteer Lawyers Project of CNY does

Volunteer Lawyers Project of CNY, Inc. (VLPCNY; also known as VLP, and formerly Volunteer Lawyers Project of Onondaga County, Inc.) is a private, Syracuse-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal services organization that provides free civil legal aid to low-income individuals, seniors, immigrants, LGBTQIA individuals, veterans, and other vulnerable populations across Central New York. Its practice areas span elder law, eviction defense, family law, immigration, LGBTQIA rights, economic opportunity (student loan and consumer debt), and nonprofit legal support, delivered through a network of community legal clinics, a 24/7 online intake portal hosted on LegalServer, and specialized programs such as the Family Court Clinic, Hospital Clinic, Surrogate's Court Clinic, North Country Tenants Clinic, and the Military Immigrant Family Program.

VLPCNY operates a volunteer-driven service model in which pro bono attorneys from the regional bar — supported by corporate sponsors including law firms (Bond Schoeneck & King, Barclay Damon, Bousquet Holstein, Blitman & King), banks (NBT Bank), and document services providers (Avalon Document Services, SUCOL) — handle matters referred via intake. The organization also runs CLE training for volunteer attorneys, a structured 50-Hour Pro Bono Requirement Program that helps law students and bar applicants satisfy the New York State Court of Appeals requirement, multilingual legal education content on YouTube, and an annual fundraising event ("All In For Equity & Justice 2026"). Federal Tax ID/EIN: 46-1593349.

The organization is funded through one-time gifts, monthly recurring donations, legacy gifts, and corporate donations; revenue figures are not publicly disclosed. Headcount is reported as 11–50 employees, headquartered at 221 S. Warren St., Suite 200, Syracuse, NY 13202. It maintains an active social media presence on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. No AI/ML capabilities, patents, funding rounds, or technology partnerships beyond LegalServer were identified in the available source material.

Name

Volunteer Lawyers Project of CNY

Legal name

Volunteer Lawyers Project of CNY, Inc.

Website

https://vlpcny.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Volunteer Lawyers Project of CNY is a Syracuse-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides free civil legal aid in housing, family, immigration, elder, LGBTQIA, and debt matters to low-income Central New York residents via volunteer attorneys, community clinics, and online intake.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Legal Aid Services

NAICS

Individual and Family Services (6241), Human Rights Organizations (813311)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Legal Aid & Client Advocacy Services (BPAGAEAM)

Keywords

• Legal aid services
• Pro bono legal
• Civil legal services
• Nonprofit legal
• Legal clinics

Headquarters

HQ city

Syracuse

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

VLPCNY provides free civil legal services to low-income individuals and vulnerable populations in Central New York by connecting them with volunteer attorneys. Service areas include elder law (wills, Surrogate's Court, hospital clinic), eviction defense and housing, family law, immigration, LGBTQIA rights, economic opportunity (student loan and consumer debt), and nonprofit legal support. Clients access services through a 24/7 online intake system and a network of community-based legal clinics.

Product overview

The Volunteer Lawyers Project of CNY is a nonprofit legal services organization that operates as a single unified offering rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. The organization provides access to justice through engaging the legal community in volunteer service. Its core programs include: online intake system for client intake; Elder Law services; Eviction Defense; Family Law; Immigration Services; LGBTQIA Rights; Economic Opportunity services; Talk-to-a-Lawyer Clinics; Legal Education Resources; CLE Programs; and a 50 Hour Pro Bono Requirement Program. These programs collectively address various legal needs in the Central New York community, connecting low-income individuals with volunteer attorneys who provide free legal assistance.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Online Intake System

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered supporting.

• Bond, Schoeneck & King, PLLCsupportingOthersLaw firm corporate sponsor providing financial and/or in-kind support to VLPCNY. Receives website and social media recognition as a sponsor.
• Avalon Document ServicessupportingOthersDocument services provider as corporate sponsor. Receives recognition on VLPCNY website and social media.
• Blitman & King LLPsupportingOthersLaw firm corporate sponsor. Listed among corporate supporters on VLPCNY website.
• Bousquet Holstein PLLCsupportingOthersLaw firm corporate sponsor. Listed among corporate supporters on VLPCNY website.
• NBT BanksupportingOthersBanking institution as corporate sponsor. Listed among corporate supporters on VLPCNY website.
• SUCOLsupportingOthersCorporate sponsor listed on VLPCNY website.
• Barclay DamonsupportingOthersLaw firm corporate sponsor. Listed among corporate supporters on VLPCNY website.

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Pro Bono Net: National nonprofit that builds technology and infrastructure to support pro bono legal service delivery across many local partners. Directly comparable mission of expanding pro bono access, with VLPCNY likely a downstream beneficiary of its platforms.

Direct peers

• Volunteer Legal Services Project of Monroe County: Rochester, NY-based nonprofit that matches low-income clients with volunteer attorneys — essentially the sister model to VLPCNY in an adjacent CNY region. Directly comparable in mission, volunteer-driven delivery, and practice-area mix.
• Legal Aid Society of Mid-New York: Regional civil legal aid provider serving a multi-county area across central and upstate New York, including Syracuse. Closest geographic direct peer to VLPCNY with overlapping service categories in housing, family, and consumer law.
• Empire Justice Center: Statewide NY legal services, training, and policy advocacy organization with offices across the state. Directly comparable as a NY-focused legal aid/policy peer serving low-income populations in overlapping practice areas.

Regional players

• Legal Services NYC: City-wide civil legal services organization serving all five NYC boroughs. Comparable practice mix (housing, family, immigration, elder) but NYC-focused rather than serving CNY.
• The Legal Aid Society (NYC): The largest civil and criminal legal aid provider in New York, based in NYC. Comparable in mission and practice areas but operates at materially greater scale and in a different geography than VLPCNY.

Others

• LawHelpNY: Pro Bono Net-operated statewide legal information and referral portal connecting low-income New Yorkers with legal aid providers including VLPCNY. A directly adjacent ecosystem platform with overlapping client population.
• New York State Bar Association (Pro Bono Programs): Statewide bar association that supports pro bono programs, the bar admission pipeline VLPCNY taps, and CLE resources. An enabling ecosystem participant that directly sustains VLPCNY's volunteer model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@vlpcny
• Facebookfacebook.com/VLPCNY
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/volunteer-lawyers-project-of-cny
• Instagraminstagram.com/vlpcny
• Xx.com/vlpcny

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Volunteer Lawyers Project of CNY