Pine Tree Legal Assistance, Inc.
Sharon Barney is a seasoned legal professional with extensive experience in immigration law, family law, and employment law. Currently serving as a Pro Bono Staff Attorney at Pine Tree Legal Assistance, Inc., since January 2023, Sharon matches clients with pro bono attorneys, conducts trainings, and manages a small caseload. Prior to this role, Sharon was an Adjunct Faculty member at Penn State Law, teaching Family Law, and served as the Associate Director of Career Services, assisting students and alumni with professional development. Experience includes serving as a Partner at Leech Tishman, providing legal services and managing family-based sponsorships, as well as leading the Centre County Bar Association as President in 2020. Sharon has a background in solo practice and has contributed to various legal aid organizations, including the International Institute of New England and Greater Boston Legal Services. Sharon earned a Juris Doctor from Northeastern University School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Rochester.
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Pine Tree Legal Assistance, Inc.
Our Vision We believe that there should be fairness, justice and equality for all, and, that if we can instill more fairness in our society, there will be less poverty. Our Mission Our mission is to ensure that state and federal laws affecting poor people are upheld, while also addressing the systemic barriers to justice faced by Mainers with low incomes. Our Approach To achieve our mission, we provide free civil legal assistance in cases where it can make a difference in one’s ability to meet one’s basic human needs or in enforcing one’s basic human rights, including access to housing, food, income, safety, education, and healthcare. Our Priorities We continually assess the most pressing civil legal problems facing low-income Mainers. Our board of directors regularly reviews our program priorities. Our current priorities are: The preservation of housing and related housing needs; Maintaining, enhancing and protecting income and economic stability; Promoting safety, health, and well-being; Improving outcomes for Maine children and youth; Enforcing workplace opportunities, income and legal protections for low-wage workers; Meeting the legal needs of populations with other vulnerabilities; and Improving the delivery of legal services and justice for low - income Mainers statewide. Our Organization and Funding Pine Tree Legal Assistance is a nonprofit organization, recognized as a 501(c)(3) by the IRS and as a public charity in the State of Maine. Pine Tree receives funding from the Legal Services Corporation (federal appropriation), the State of Maine (including a general Appropriation, allocations from the Maine Civil Legal Services Fund, and State contracts), the Maine Justice Foundation (including IOLTA), the Campaign for Justice, United Ways, other federal grants, and generous support from foundations, corporations, and individual donors. To learn more about our organization, visit https://ptla.org.