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Canadian Lawyers Honoured for Pro Bono Work

Monday, November 13

  • By: RELEASE
  • Organization: Pro Bono Law Ontario & Pro Bono Law of British Columbia
1 lawyer, 1 pro bono clinic, and 1 law firm to receive National Awards

The first National Pro Bono awards will be presented by the Hon. Roy McMurtry, Chief Justice of Ontario with a keynote address by Ottawa lawyer David Scott, Q.C. at a special dinner and awards event in Toronto this week.

Vancouver lawyer John-Paul Boyd, Calgary Legal Guidance, and McCarthy Tétrault LLP are the three honoured recipients of the awards that recognize distinguished service in the provision of pro bono legal services to the poor. Details on each appears below.

These awards are a national celebration of the dedication and commitment of the many lawyers who give their time freely to represent those who need, but cannot afford, legal assistance.

The awards will be presented as part of the 1st National Pro Bono Conference: Building Bridges to Justice taking place in Toronto on November 16 and 17.  The conference is hosted by Pro Bono Law Ontario and Pro Bono Law of British Columbia.  For more information on the conference and awards, visit www.pblo.org.

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John-Paul Boyd is a lawyer practising in Vancouver, British Columbia who was called to the Bar in 1999.  His nomination for the award is notable in that many members of the profession and community groups, such as the Salvation Army, supported his nomination.  Mr. Boyd is involved in a wide variety of pro bono and access to justice initiatives, and takes a strong leadership role in these activities.

Calgary Legal Guidance is one of the oldest pro bono programs in Canada, started over 35 years ago.  During that time, it has developed a diverse and innovative range of pro bono projects to address the unmet legal needs of low-income Albertans.  Its infrastructure enables it to successfully leverage the resources of the private bar, and it is used as a model for most of the pro bono legal clinics in Alberta.  Calgary Legal Guidance has a solid reputation for collaboration with community groups and lawyers alike, and has a proven ability to sustain ongoing successful alliances.

McCarthy Tétrault LLP is a national law firm that has drafted and adopted a national pro bono policy for its staff, which includes counting pro bono time as part of a lawyer’s billable time.  It has been a leader in Ontario pro bono activities, participating in at least seven separate projects organized through Pro Bono Law Ontario, among these, three signature firm projects – the Unaccompanied Minors Project, the Regent Park Redevelopment Initiative and a support project for Artscapes’ Green/Arts Barn Project.  In addition, the firm supports staff-driven pro bono activities.  So far this year, McCarthys has donated over $1.2 million in free legal services.
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