Janet Ward Black's Installation Address

Article Date: Friday, June 22, 2007

Written By: Russell Rawlings

It is January 12^th of this year -- a Friday. It is ten minutes before
8 o’clock in the morning. It is L’Enfant Plaza Metro station in Washington, D. C. A young man, dressed in blue jeans and a baseball cap, removes his violin from its case. He places the empty case by his feet. He throws a few dollars and some change into the open violin case as “seed money.”

The young man begins to play his violin that January morning. He plays for the next 43 minutes. According to the Washington Post reporter present, he is passed by 1,097 commuters. Almost no one stops to listen to him play. The exceptions are primarily a few children who try to stop and listen, but they are invariably pulled away by a parent anxious to get on to life’s next activity. The young man plays Bach, Brahms, and even Shubert’s “Ave Maria”-- some of the most exquisite music ever written for the violin.

The young man is Joshua Bell, who, just a few days later, will be awarded the Avery Fisher prize as the best classical musician in America,and who, shortly before, had played to a sold-out crowd at the Library of Congress. The violin he plays is a Stradivarius worth a reported $3.5 million dollars.

Joshua Bell and the Washington Post orchestrated this experiment to see whether D.C. commuters would stop, or even slow down, to hear one of the best musicians on earth, playing some of the best music ever written, on one of the best violins ever made.

Only seven people stopped for at least sixty seconds -- seven people out of 1,097. One of the seven recognized Bell. Most of the rest were the children. He collected $32.17 in donations during those 43 minutes.

We’ll come back to this story in a few minutes. Stay tuned.

The gravity of this moment in my life is not lost on me. To stand here, knowing that 112 brilliant and innovative North Carolina lawyers have held the office I now hold, humbles me. To be one of their number is breathtaking.

The North Carolina Bar Association, with its 14,615 members, has, for more than a century, fought for justice and the rule of law. I will be honored to play my small part in that history, and I am grateful to you for the opportunity. I pledge to do my best.

I am so proud to be a lawyer. I believe that lawyers enjoy a privileged position in our society as problem solvers for the citizens of our communities. I believe that lawyers believe deeply in the rightness of the United States Constitution and the precepts of equal justice and the rule of law. But attacks, often for political purposes, have damaged the image of our profession, the judiciary, and the very system of justice itself. It’s like somebody telling you your baby is ugly--it hurts.

The work of the North Carolina Bar Association is awe-inspiring to me. I wish each of you could see what our 70 committees, sections, and divisions are in the process of accomplishing just this year. Individual lawyers, judges, legal assistants, and law students work as volunteers to make the system work better for all North Carolinians. They are generous with their time, their energy, and their genuine concern. We know that there are many lawyers across this state who donate untold hours as citizen lawyers, some incredible examples of which we have celebrated this weekend. We know much good is done by our profession, but, unfortunately, that’s not what makes the news.

The heartbeat of the Bar Association now is “Momentum 2010,” our 5-year strategic plan. Activities abound as we seek to accomplish its goals for our Association, our profession, our offices, our courthouses, and our communities.

This coming year, there will be one major focus and that is the provision of civil legal services to the poor. Momentum 2010 establishes goals of increasing the number of lawyers volunteering pro bono services and increasing funding by the North Carolina legal community for civil legal services for the poor to the national average. We stand now at an abysmal 43^rd in the nation.

Our campaign to accomplish this is named “4 All.” The name is a slightly updated twist on the postlude of Pledge of Allegiance most of us recited in grade school: “…one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

We lawyers have been granted a monopoly to do what we do. Those not licensed by the North Carolina State Bar cannot practice law. Just as in any other monopoly authorized by the state, we have an obligation to serve all people. But somehow, in the pull against us by so many good charitable causes, legal services for the poor in North Carolina has just been relegated to a role of one among many good causes. That needs to change.

Provision of legal services to the poor is our professional responsibility. It is our obligation as holders of these exclusive tickets to practice law. Only we have the right to represent the members of our community before the judicial system. Only we have the duty to represent them.

The Code of Professional Responsibility of the North Carolina State Bar recites the professional responsibilities of lawyers. The preamble states:

“All lawyers should devote professional time and resources and use civic influence to ensure equal access to our system of justice for all those who, because of economic or social barriers, cannot secure adequate legal counsel.”

“Every lawyer, regardless of professional prominence or professional workload, should find time to participate in, or otherwise support, the provision of legal services to the disadvantaged.”

The underlining is mine.

What is the need in North Carolina? We have 8.2 million people; 2.9 million of those citizens qualify for legal services under federal poverty guidelines. That is twenty-eight percent (28%) of the state’s population.

Legal Aid of North Carolina, which was created by the North Carolina Bar Association 30 years ago, serves the poor of North Carolina’s 100 counties--almost 3 million people--with 122 lawyers.

So it boils down to this: there are over 20,000 lawyers to serve 72% of the North Carolina population that can purportedly pay for legal service, and less than 200 lawyers to serve the remaining 28%.

For every two clients Legal Aid represents, it must turn away eight qualified North Carolinians because it does not have enough staff. Eighty percent (80%) of Legal Aid clients are working poor. Seventy-five percent (75%) of their clients are women. The median income of Legal Aid of North Carolina clients is $9,100.

So what is the result of an eighty percent (80%) unmet need? Small children are unprotected from family violence. Parents can’t collect child support or avail themselves of legal solutions to remove themselves from abuse. Senior citizens, many victims of predatory lending, lose their homes to foreclosure.

Seriously ill children are denied medical treatment because of a mass of public benefit red tape they can’t wade through. The consequences of inadequate resources for legal services can be dire and cause the loss of shelter, sustenance and safety for those at issue. Family stability is in peril. Injustice occurs for the mere lack of counsel.

Justice denied to one North Carolinian diminishes all North Carolinians.

An unlikely source for a quote, Che Guevara, wrote in a letter to his children: “Above all, always be able to feel deeply any injustice committed against anyone anywhere in the world.” I believe that we as lawyers do feel deeply about injustice and can put our tremendous resources and talents to work to fix it.

So what are we going to do about it? We, the NCBA, will embrace the “4 All” campaign on four fronts.

One: Educate. We will educate lawyers about poverty issues in North Carolina, the shortcomings of legal aid to address that population, and our professional and moral obligation to act. That campaign will include the showing of the “Equal Access” video at every CLE this year. Lawyers can solve problems, but only when they understand that a problem exists and its gravity. The problem of access to justice for the poor is not well understood by the members of our profession or the public.

Two: Legislate. The Bar Association will create a grassroots lobbying effort directed toward the North Carolina legislature and executive branch about the critical needs for civil legal services. We are retaining communications strategy consultants to put together this grassroots effort which will allow us to wield our considerable civic influence in an organized fashion, not just on legal services, but on judicial branch funding and judicial independence as well.

Third: Donate. The Bar Association will undertake an unprecedented effort to encourage financial commitments from NCBA members. We have created a Legal Aid fund within our Endowment and, even though the campaign starts today, we have raised significant funds already, including the $100,000 gift announced yesterday by Charles Dixon, an attorney in Hickory. We want all our members to be “Champions 4 All.” Opportunities to donate will include your upcoming dues statement and an event in the first quarter of next year.

Many fine lawyers spend their careers at Legal Aid. Many others want to but cannot because of the burden of college and law school debt. The starting salary for Legal Aid lawyers is $37,500. Lawyers’ salaries after 10 years average $41,000. Such does not allow for much debt service. The average LANC lawyer with school debt owes $74,000. We hope to apply the fine minds of this organization to solve that problem.

Four: Participate. The NCBA, in conjunction with our Young Lawyers Division, will have its first ever state wide “service day” for the exclusive purpose of providing pro-bono legal services. This day will include a toll-free, call-in number so that North Carolinians can “ask an attorney” their legal questions for free for one day. That day will be April 4, 2008. So the way to remember it is “4/4 4 All.” We are already in discussions with television networks about covering this important community service day. We will also use that day to train lawyers on issues common to Legal Aid and hope to translate their one day of service into an easy transition as a pro bono volunteer.

We recognize that lawyers often fear acting as pro bono volunteers. We have become such specialists that we are concerned that we could not appropriately handle an issue outside our comfort zone. We will work to train all those participating so that it will be like riding a bicycle again. I have already challenged our 70 committee and section chairs to involve their members on this important day, and we hope to involve many of the statewide and local bar organizations as well. We intend to show North Carolinians that lawyers are generous with their time and advice.

So, that is how we will address the provision of civil legal services to the poor: Educate, Legislate, Donate and Participate. Our task force is being headed up by Martin Brinkley, chair of Momentum 2010, and Caryn McNeill, both former chairs of our Young Lawyers Division and lawyers with Smith Anderson in Raleigh. I could have no better minds and hearts in charge of this campaign. They have been preparing for months and are assembling a kitchen cabinet of visionaries to make this a reality.

There are two other important entities also laser-focused on this issue right now. First, the North Carolina State Bar has adopted and sent to the Supreme Court a regulation that would require all North Carolina lawyers’ trust accounts to participate in IOLTA. Additionally, the State Bar is proposing legislation to create a “pro-bono emeritus status”, which would allow retired North Carolina lawyers to work under the supervision of a legal services lawyer without having to comply with certain other State Bar requirements such as CLE. Both are powerful steps to address the need for additional funding and volunteers.

Additionally, Chief Justice Sarah Parker’s Commission on Equal Access to Justice will convene an unprecedented public summit for the Supreme Court on October 12^th of this year in Raleigh. Its aim is to raise the awareness of the legal community and the State’s opinion leaders about the gravity of the problem in North Carolina. These three powerful organizations- the NCBA, the North Carolina State Bar and the Chief’s Equal Access Commission- together are creating a “perfect storm” to shine light on this issue and make a real difference. The time is now. We can be a part of something bigger than ourselves.

So what was the purpose of the story of our rush hour violinist?

Joshua Bell knew the quality of the music he played, the quality of the instrument on which he played, and the skill he had to apply to both. But how do you think this great musician felt to be ignored and shunned by virtually every person who passed him by as he played? Do you think he questioned, at least for that time, the value of his craft, the value of his instrument?

I think we as lawyers often feel as Bell did that day--that people just don’t understand the importance of the system of justice or the critical role our profession plays. We know our justice system is the cornerstone of democracy. We operate in a constitutional system, exquisitely carved, not by Stradivarius, but by a committee of volunteers over two centuries ago. Their work has withstood the test of time. What the framers created is more valuable than that violin, and we in the profession know its value. But our profession is often the object of scorn and ridicule. The system of democracy and the rule of law often are not appreciated by those who don’t understand what would be the consequences of their absence.

The value of the system and the delicacy and import of the balance of powers goes unrecognized except by those of us who see its fairness and its power. The politicizing of the judiciary, the system, and the profession has harmed the faith of the American people in the third branch of government. Much damage has been done by the phrases “activist judges,” ”greedy lawyers” and “frivolous lawsuits.” We know that this system, though not perfect, is noble and just, and it’s worth fighting for.

This year will give us an opportunity to help the public see the value in the founding principles of our democracy--the rule of law and equal justice for all—as well as the generosity of those of us who make up the legal profession.

Horace Mann, the American educator, said: “Be ashamed to die until you have won some victory for humanity.” I believe that North Carolina’s legal community will take a fresh look at this issue, just as we did when Legal Aid of North Carolina was created 30 years ago, and apply our creativity, power and integrity to solve this problem. We will educate our members and the public about poverty in North Carolina and work together as members of this noble profession to fix it. This effort, particularly the Endowment, should allow us to plant trees under which we may not be able to sit, but others in years to come will be able to enjoy their shade.

It is for us now to act. We should not leave this problem for others to face. We have the talent, the ability, the duty, and the opportunity to take action. For me, the idea is summed up in the title of Alice Walker’s recent book: “We are the Ones We Have Been Waiting For.” We have the opportunity this year truly to be the ones we’ve been waiting for.

Our Code of Professional Responsibility also says that “at their best, lawyers assure the availability of legal services to all, regardless of ability to pay….” I look forward to working with all of you to show North Carolinians the best of our profession and that justice for all is a promise worth keeping.