Duke Law Education Inspires Alumnus to Pursue Poverty Law Practice
by John Keller '87
Note: This also article appeared in the
Spring 2003 edition of "Duke Law Magazine", pp. 44-45
It
has been exciting to read recently about the Law School's growing commitment
to and support of public interest opportunities. During my years there
(1984-87), public interest resources were minimal. I enjoyed and appreciated
the personal encouragement of Duke faculty, particularly Katharine Bartlett
and Jerome Culp, as I pursued a career with Legal Services.
During college, I heard a Legal Services lawyer speak at a public interest
job fair. His enthusiasm for and sense of vocation about his work led
me to check into opportunities with Legal Services of North Carolina
when I came to Duke Law. After my first year of law school, I worked
with Legal Services of the Coastal Plain in Ahoskie, NC. Following my
second year, I worked with Legal Services of Southern Piedmont in Charlotte,
NC. That second summer, I also volunteered for one month at the Community
Law Office (CLO) in Mendenhall, MS, a one-attorney office that was an
outreach ministry of Mendenhall Ministries, a community-based Christian
ministry.
My summer experiences exposed me to advocates whose commitment, work
ethic and caring remain inspiration and confirmed my interest in a civil
poverty law practice. I learned how legal and administrative decisions
can have far-reaching consequences on the daily lives of people with
low incomes. Individual experiences still stand out.
For example, the CLO represented and African-American school employee
in a grievance before the local school board, alleging lack of cause
and race discrimination. the board members were unresponsive to the
evidence presented and were also openly hostile to the attorney, personally
berating her for "always trying to make race an issue." After the hearing,
which lasted more than four hours, we stood outside the school administration
building late that night recapping the proceedings. The attorney was
in tears from frustration and anger. her client was equally angry, but
also genuinely thankful for his attorney's efforts. I think back on
that moment man times. It crystallizes for me the personal commitment
to a client that makes the case the person and not simply the legal
issue, the courage to say what is right and is true, and the need to
advocate for justice and fairness beyond the traditional courtroom setting.
I have since spent my career with Legal Aid of North Carolina - Wilson,
formerly Eastern Carolina Legal Services, serving a six-county region
in eastern North Carolina. I have served as a staff attorney and am
currently a supervising attorney. I have an individual caseload, and
i supervise for staff attorneys and two paralegals. We all handle a
general caseload of housing, consumer, employment, public benefits and
education matters. On a statewide level, I have had the opportunity
to participate in substantive trainings in both housing and employment
law, learning from great advocates across the state as well as providing
training for attorneys new to the practice.
Working with low-income clients continually educates me about the law's
all-too-pervasive preoccupation with the allocation of power in our
society. As Reginald Heber Smith wrote, when fairness and equality in
the creation and administration of our laws are compromised by wealth
and power, "the poor come to think of American justice as containing
only laws that punish and never laws that help." Public interest lawyering
might be viewed as working to ensure that there is not one law for the
wealthy and one for the poor.
During my 15 years as a legal aid lawyer, I have seen numerous examples
of lawyers striving to promote equal justice. Solo and small-firm practitioners
take cases pro bono from our office. They also serve untold and unrecognized
numbers of clients who cannot pay -- simply because the clients need
and deserve a lawyer. In a child advocacy clinic taught by Dean Barlett
in 1987, I was paired with a small-firm practitioner in Durham, Jane
Volland '83. I saw that she and her partners had created a "public interest"
practice within the firm's overall practice. It made a lasting impression
of the importance of pursuing equal justice and advocating principles
in all practice settings. Large firms have provided substantial pro
bono contributions in cases beyond our office's resources or expertise.
Also, many times it is the lawyers who play key roles in the NC General
Assembly, supporting legislation seeking to improve the lives of low-income
people.
Oliver Wendell Holmes stated, "Those of you who would involve yourself
in the greatness of the profession must immerse yourselves in the agonies
of the times." Lawyers working the public interest have a singular ability
to stand up for society's vulnerable and underrepresented and pursue
the ideal of equal justice.
John Keller '87 is a supervising attorney with
Legal Aid of North Carolina - Wilson. He lives in Knightdale, NC
with his wife, Carolyn Ingram.
_______
RELATED ARTICLES ON JOHN KELLER:
"Hope Challenges Us, John Keller, a lawyer with Legal Aid of North Carolina,
advocates for the poor," NC Catholic Magazine, March 2006
"25 Years of Free Service," Wilson Daily Times, November 1, 2006
Disclaimer
The materials contained on this website are for information and educational
purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. Please contact your
Legal Aid of North Carolina office or a private attorney if you need to speak to
an attorney regarding your particular situation. See our complete
disclaimer.
Mission Statement
Legal Aid of North Carolina is a statewide, nonprofit law firm that
provides free legal services in civil matters to low-income people in
order to ensure equal access to justice and to remove legal barriers
to economic opportunity.