© 2015 The Texas Lawbook.
By AT&T General Counsel David McAtee
(Jan. 12) – There are many things I recall about beginning my legal career in Dallas. Like most lawyers, I look back on my early days of practice fondly, perhaps even with a hint of rose color in my glasses.
But one thing I remember clearly, from the very first day on the job, was the pervasive sentiment that an indispensable part of being a lawyer – a real lawyer committed to the craft and the profession – is helping those who need access to our courts.
That sentiment has long been a hallmark of the Dallas Bar, and I’m happy that it remains so today. I was therefore delighted when the Dallas Bar asked me to serve as Honorary Co-Chair of this year’s Equal Access to Justice Campaign.
To some degree or another, all lawyers are reflections of their mentors. In my case, I began my career as a law clerk to U.S. District Judge Jerry Buchmeyer, Chief Judge of the Northern District of Texas and unquestioned champion of the overlooked and underserved.
Quick in his legendary wit and deeply steeped in law, Judge Buchmeyer was one-of-a-kind and, for me, a shining example of a lawyer with a servant’s heart. Ask anyone who knew Judge Buchmeyer as a lawyer, a judge or a person, and they’ll tell you the same.
Over two decades later, my thinking on access to justice was shaped again by another, equally important, mentor – my predecessor as General Counsel of AT&T, Wayne Watts. During his tenure as General Counsel, Wayne pushed hard to extend and enhance the Department’s already-substantial commitment to pro bono service.
Now, our attorneys partner with 44 organizations across the country to deliver a variety of pro bono services. For example:
· We work with Wills for Heroes to provide essential legal documents to our nation’s first responders.
· We work with organizations like the Human Rights Initiative and the National Immigration Justice Center to help qualified immigrants navigate a path toward safe asylum.
· We sponsor wills clinics on tribal lands for indigent Native Americans.
· We represent children in immigration proceedings, help veterans obtain VA benefits, and represent domestic violence victims in gaining protective orders.
Of course, pro bono service takes many forms, and our lawyers particularly enjoy helping students from under-represented communities find their own path to the law.
Whether it is teaching with the Chicago Constitutional Law Foundation’s Lawyers in the Classroom program, mentoring pre-law undergrads at UT Arlington, serving as mock trial coaches in local high schools, or working with law school externs on pro bono matters, we love seeing the legal profession through the eyes of those who are still years away from joining it.
It reminds us of why we became lawyers, and it underscores the importance of serving others as zealously as we support our clients.
Which brings me to the importance of the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program. The Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program, a joint pro bono program of the Dallas Bar Association and Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas, brings together the volunteer resources of our over 11,000 member metropolitan bar association with the expertise of the Dallas non-profit that has been committed to legal aid to the poor for over 50 years.
Joining the best of both worlds, DVAP has become the most comprehensive provider of pro bono legal aid to the poor in Dallas, providing legal help on family, housing, benefits, employment, wills and probate, consumer cases, and more.
The elderly, victims of abuse, veterans, single parents, and the working poor call DVAP volunteer attorneys their lawyers, and most, if not all, would have gone without access to justice without DVAP’s help.
The program serves over 5,000 people per year, hosts at least a dozen legal clinics per month, offers a wide range of poverty law CLE opportunities for the legal community, refers cases to volunteers for full representation, and provides the mentoring needed for lawyers and clients to be properly served.
So, as we begin another year as lawyers, I hope all of us consider how we can better support the cause of access to justice. The need is clear, and the opportunities to contribute are many.
None, however, are more convenient and impactful than providing a meaningful financial gift to the Dallas Bar’s Equal Access to Justice Campaign. On behalf of all AT&T lawyers, I am honored to be a part of this worthy effort.
David McAtee is Senior Executive Vice President and General Counsel of AT&T Inc. He is a former litigation partner at Haynes and Boone in Dallas.
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