Issue link: https://digital.canadianlawyermag.com/i/466000
The legal profession occupies a unique role: lawyers are specially trained and hold a monopoly on providing legal services. At Paliare Roland Barristers, we believe lawyers have a corresponding responsibility to serve the public interest. One of the most important ways our lawyers give back is by providing free legal services to individuals and organizations in our community who may not otherwise be able to obtain access to justice. Paliare Roland is proud of our deep commitment to pro bono. We routinely act on important cases, both those that advance the law or promote a social good, as well as those that are simply of critical importance to individuals who would otherwise not be able to afford counsel or negotiate our complex legal system. Paliare Roland recently represented two interveners in Carter, the landmark death with dignity case that went to Supreme Court of Canada. Acting on behalf of the HIV & AIDS Legal Clinic of Ontario (HALCO) and the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network, Paliare Roland lawyers argued that the law must respect and protect autonomy in all medical decision-making, and cannot strip them of dignity or condemn them to pain and suffering they may well choose to avoid. In addition to pro bono, Paliare Roland has donated a portion of our revenue to charitable endeavours every year since our inception. We call this our "Doin' Good" program. Between 2001 and 2014, our Doin' Good donations totaled approximately $2,000,000. The major recipients of our Doin' Good funds in recent years include Lawyers Feed the Hungry, The Stop Community Food Centre, Peacebuilders International (Canada), Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research ("CANFAR") and War Child Canada. PALIARE ROLAND: COMMITTED TO DOING – AND DOIN' – GOOD Paliare Roland lawyer Linda Rothstein and counsel Stephen Goudge flip their wigs for justice. "Paliare Roland is proud of our deep commitment to pro bono." Linda Rothstein, Partner 15