Pro Bono: Too Many Lawyers?!?
Today I was hoping to talk about a seminar put on by the Child Advocacy Project (CAP), geared to training lawyers to help in CAP's mission of safeguarding the public education rights of children and youth across Ontario. In return for attending the seminar, lawyers are asked to take on one case, gratis, involving a child.
Specifically, CAP lawyers provide free legal services to:
Students involved in the Special Education process;
Children and youth who are at risk of being suspended or expelled;
Children and youth who are being denied the right to enrol in school; and
Students who feel unsafe at school.
I cannot talk about the seminar though, because it was over-enrolled and CAP had to turn would-be lawyer volunteers away, including me. Lawyers can still join CAP as members though (see the website link above), and I imagine they'll will be very welcome.
My first reaction at this news was, naturally, disappointment. I had very much looked forward to attending. My second reaction was some relief at having a full morning opened up to catch up on some work. My third reaction, and the one that lasted longest, was quiet satisfaction in knowing that there are so many lawyers who want to contribute to the public.
Maybe it had something to do with location: the seminar took place at the Royal Canadian Yacht Club (RCYC), not a bad place to send a summer morning. More likely, though, is that my Monday blog suggesting that most Canadians know that most lawyers are fundamentally good people hit pretty close to the mark.
Thanks for reading.
Sean Graham
