3/27/02-Boston College Law School’s 14th Annual PILF Auction is on Thursday, April 4th. The auction, sponsored by the school’s Public Interest Law Foundation , includes such unique items as "tea in the library’s Rare Book Room" and Red Sox baseball tickets behind home plate.

"The Annual PILF auction is always great fun, and the proceeds go to a wonderful cause," said BC Law Professor Mary Bilder, who will serve as a faculty auctioneer at the event. "Boston College Law School prides itself on its commitment to funding public service law careers, and this is a great way for the whole community to pitch in and help out."

The auction's proceeds go to PILF's summer stipends and other PILF programs, such as the immigration law trips to Miami and Los Angeles. Last year's auction raised $20,000 for summer stipends. This is PILF's major fundraiser for the program.

Other faculty auctioneers in addition to Professor Bilder include Kent Greenfield, Associate Dean Michael Cassidy, Sharon Beckman, Bob Bloom, and Larry Cunningham.

The silent auction is open for bids at 2:30 p.m., and the live auction begins at 3:00 p.m. Silent auction bidding ends at 3:30 pm. Beer and food is available throughout the auction. Some of the other items available include lunches with faculty members (Judy McMorrow, Dan Coquillette), a two-night stay at a bed and breakfast, an hour massage, babysitting, dinner at the BC club, and more.

The Public Interest Law Foundation (PILF) is a student organization dedicated to providing public interest law opportunities to students at Boston College Law School. These opportunities including funding student projects that work to help the needy, sponsoring speakers' series throughout the year, and providing students with summer stipends so that they can afford to work at legal services centers and public interest law jobs after their first and second law school years. In addition, PILF works with faculty and administration to encourage the addition of public interest law classes at Boston College Law School, provide loan forgiveness funds to graduating law students who are committed to practicing public interest law, and ensure that the law school continues its commitment to public interest law.

PILF's greatest strength, however, is its many different student projects that look to give law students practical legal experience, while helping the poor and disadvantaged. These projects include the Miami/El Paso Immigration Asylum Projects, the Domestic Violence Outreach Project (DVOP), and the Children's Rights Project, BC Law Against the Death Penalty, the Criminal Law Group, the Civil Rights Group, PILF Work Weekends and the Community Economic Development Group- as well as projects like the Animal Rights Group and the Indian Law Group.