Either my permidementia is really getting out of hand, or the
Summer 2005 edition of the Harvard Law Bulletin arrived really
late — because, I swear, it was stuffed in my mailbox today, along
with the December 2005 edition of Washington [DC] Lawyer. [update:
8 PM: sorting through the rest of my mail, I found an invitation to
a museum opening scheduled for Sept. 18, 2005, and an AARP
life insurance offer that needed a response by Oct. 4. It seems
I’m not going crazy — the Summer edition of HLB really did arrive
today.]
I first looked through Washington Lawyer, and was pleased to see
an extensive cover article on “Government Attorneys and Pro Bono”
and also a column by DC Bar President John C. Cruden on the topic.
I hope this coverage will encourage government managers and individual
staffers at all levels of government to expand and encourage participation
in pro bono programs. (My pro bono work almost three decades ago was
so satisfying that it got me to leave government and antitrust and focus
on mediation and children’s advocacy.)
Inspired by the Washington Lawyer pieces, I was discouraged by what
I saw in the Alumni Letters section of the Harvard Law Bulletin. In response
to articles in the Spring 2005 HLB, and particularly its backcover, there was
this Letter from HLS student Aaron S. Kaufman (Class of 2006):
The Other Side Uncovered
I am somewhat upset about the back cover of the Spring 2005
issue of the Harvard Law Bulletin, with the full-page photo of Suma
Nair and the quote, “I’m glad there is a pro bono requirement. It brought
me back to why I came here in the first place.”
It misrepresents the views of most law students who very much resent
the law school telling us that we must work a certain number of hours
pro bono. Pro bono is supposed to be something that a lawyer wants to
do, not something that is imposed on us as a prerequisite to graduation.
While I doubt, for political reasons, that you’re going to put a full-page
picture of me on the back of the Bulletin saying, “I truly resent the pro
bono requirement,” I would appreciate if you make some sort of apology
or emphasize that Ms. Nair’s views are atypical. Or at the very least,
please present views on the other side of the issue.
Aaron S. Kaufman ’06
Cambridge, Mass.
f/k/a covered the Giving Back edition of HLB here, where we noted:
The latest edition of the Harvard Law Bulletin (Spring 2005) features a
cover that reads “Giving Back: Harvard Law School wants all lawyers
to get involved in public service.” I recommend “Sowing the seeds of
public service at HLS”, as well as “Requirement connects law students
to the practice of public service, which describe the HLS pro bono require-
ment, its purpose, and the flexible ways it can be fulfilled. The program,
which apparently helps attract some of the very best students, hopes to
make even the most skeptical student see how fulfilling it can be to make
public service a part of your life (by following your bliss). There are some
good anecdotes.
I hope the skeptical and “somewhat upset” Mr.Kaufman has mellowed on this
topic.
small town news
just enough paper
to cover the wino
city sunset
two men prowl the ruins
of a burned out house
thunder
the migrant workers
never look up
laid off
she asks the mall santa to
bring dad a job
p.s. Do you think it is deceptive for a solo practitioner to call
his or her law practice a “firm”? How about calling it “The Law
Offices of . ..”? See this article in Washington Lawyer, and
this post at MyShingle, with comments.
December 7, 2005
pro bono meets pro humbug
introducing Hilary Tann
If you saw our sneak preview of the haiku of Hilary Tann,
on December 3rd, you can perhaps understand why we’re
so pleased to welcome Hilary as f/k/a‘s newest Honored
Guest Poet.
Hilary is a founding member of the Rt. 9 Haiku Group, which
has produced the semiannual Upstate [NY] Dim Sum Journal
since 2001. In addiiton to Hilary, the exclusive four-member
group includes john stevenson, tom clausen, yu chang (who
all joined the f/k/a family during 2005). Each of the Rt.-9ers is
known for creating excellent haiku/senryu, of depth and breadth,
while maintaining a unique poetic voice. By meeting each month
for a leisurely, multi-course dim sum meal, at which haiku are pre-
sented, discussed, and sometimes revivsd, the four Rt. 9 members
have established a special artistic environment and helped nurture
the body of work presented in the Dim Sum journal. Hilary brings
— as each of her male co-members will attest — a special vitality
to their sessions and to their journal.Underlying Hilary Tann‘s very recognizable voice is her experience
growing up in the coal-mining valleys of South Wales, which has
inspired both her poetry and her “main” artistic endeavor as a
music composer.
Professor and Former Chair of the Department of Per-
forming Arts at Union College, in Schenectady, New York,
Hilary she lives southeast of the Adirondack Mountains, on
the banks of the Hudson River, with her husband, and beloved
collie dog.Hilary’s website bio explains:
As a composer (for Oxford University Press since 1989) her work
is of necessity forward-looking, shaping different futures. Her
enjoyment in reading and writing haiku stems in no small part from
the fact that haiku train her once more to be “of the moment.”Despite her travels to Wales and around the nation and world, when her compo-
sitions are being performed, Hilary finds time to create one-breath poetry that graces
UDS, along with various anthologies, and leading journals, such as Frogpond
and The Heron’s Nest.
Here are excellent examples that I hope will make you seek out more
of Hilary’s work:
calling
from balcony to balcony
caged birds
family visit
my parents compete
to end my sentences
first day of school
another crayon
for the sunrise
in certain lights
my hands are those of
an older woman
intersection
a chance to view
distant mountains
hometown —
cricket field
above the coal mine
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