9/20/2010
In Mississippi, there has been a proposal that lawyers would be giving 20 hours as free legal service to the poor every year. The Supreme Court of Mississippi is reviewing this proposal but apparently, not all lawyers in Mississippi are amenable to the idea.
One lawyer from the City of Flowood, Don Lacy, called the proposal as an unprecedented and unjustifiable extension of the court’s authority. Lacy said that he is unaware of any other profession aside from priesthood, wherein professionals are required to contribute a part of their income to charity.
But there are also lawyers who are supporting the proposal, Will Bardwell, was one of them. He said that he understands the arguments of his colleagues, and while it may be true, he believes that being lawyers is a different thing, because the profession itself carries with it a degree of honor.
Other proposals were to raise the amount that a lawyer can donate to charity from $200 – $500, in lieu of the number of hours that one must render as free legal service.
Comments are welcomed by the Supreme Court Rules Committee on the Legal Profession until October 1. The Supreme Court has already received 64 letters, and majority of the letters were opposed to the free legal service proposition.
