This is the cornerstone of our work with the Hungarian public. On an annual basis we provide close to 2000 hours of pro bono legal assistance to community groups and individuals with an environmental issue of public interest. Many of our clients would otherwise be unable to obtain professional counsel. We advise the individual or neighborhood group on how they can handle the issue themselves. We often help these local groups form community-based environmental organizations which prepare them to better confront current and future environmental threats. When we assess that a client has a particularly difficult case or that there is an opportunity to make changes to the governing law or procedure by pursuing a case, we take the client's case to the courts -- on occasion, bringing cases all the way to the Supreme Court.

The largest portion of our work in this area is the teaching of public participation rights and environmental law and its institutions. We run several environmental training programs for other NGOs, government entities, and members of the business community. We also teach regular academic courses for university students.

Because of our expertise in several fields of law (e.g. environmental impact assessment and public participation rights) and because we count technical experts of international renown among EMLA's membership, governments of all levels as well as individuals often ask us to provide advice on, to create, and to revise legislation. We have also played a significant role in the European Union approximation process because of this expertise. We are currently writing the environmental law for Bosnia.

A portion of our work with the business community is fee-based. We revise contracts for environmental managers, review environmental compliance manuals, instruct at company-sponsored seminars, and carry out studies on a company's environmental health & safety policies. Income earned from this portion of our activities is used to finance our legal aid program and operational costs.