Legal Aid
This week I was invited to attend and speak at the Liberian National Bar Association. The LNBA was announcing the launch of its legal aid program and USAID is providing support for the program though a program being implemented by the Carter Center (which also runs the Community Justice Advisor Program).
We had been given short notice of the even, so I didn’t have an opportunity to clear my comments through public affairs, so I had to keep them short and unlikely to stir any controversy should press be in attendance (it was). So I decided to open the comments as if I were telling a story. Like all good stories, it contains a grain (big or small) of the truth, and a bit of what the audience needed to hear. In other words, to use Stephen Colbert’s terminology, there’s a bit of “truthiness” to the story. Maybe I should run for political office? In any event, it was well received!
President, Members of the Executive Committee, Distinguished Guests and Members of the Bar, USAID and I thank you for inviting us to your Legal Aid Information Evening and for asking us to provide words of support.
When I read your invitation I immediately thought of a meeting I had as a young lawyer with my mentor, colleague, and now good friend Judge Robert Wollheim of the Oregon Court of Appeals. At the time, Judge Bob was on the Board of the Oregon State Bar Legal Aid Program and he was explaining to me the importance of the services legal aid provides. Because they are so relevant to today’s proceedings, I would like to share with you three points from that conversation.
First, one cannot imagine the significance of legal aid services for those who receive them. For those citizens, these services are invaluable. You cannot put a price on them because in so many instances the support provided leads to improved living conditions that the recipient would otherwise never see.
Second, pro bono legal aid programs are stellar examples of what makes democracy work. Citizens volunteering to help citizens in order to build a better society is key to a healthy democracy. Through the legal aid program, you are helping to build democracy in Liberia.
Third, a strong legal aid program is the sign of a mature Bar. It shows that the Bar understands that the practice of law is not just a business or a job, it is a profession that brings law to the people. Law is an essential component of what makes democracies work and all citizens are entitled to share in its protections and benefits. Legal aid programs help deliver those benefits even to those least able to fight for them.
On behalf of USAID/Liberia, I congratulate the Liberian National Bar Association and its members on the launch of the LNBA’s Legal Aid Program. The charitable service that you in conjunction with the Community Justice Advisor Program will provide will benefit all of Liberia.
Thank you!