Bar Assoc. president resigns from Legal Aid Clinic

Mon, Sep 21st 2015, 10:29 AM

Bar Association President Elsworth Johnson has resigned from the Eugene Dupuch Law School’s Legal Aid Clinic.

Eugene Dupuch Law School Principal Tonya Bastian-Galanis made the announcement over the weekend at a graduation ceremony of the country’s newest lawyers.

Johnson’s departure comes months after the retirement of his mentor and former director of the Legal Aid Clinic Dion Hanna.

The Nassau Guardian understands that Johnson will join a private firm in 2016.

Nicole Sutherland-King, formerly a partner of McKinney, Bancroft and Hughes, is the new director of the Legal Aid Clinic.

At a press conference organized by the Office of the Attorney General to announce Hanna’s retirement in April, Hanna suggested that Johnson would take up the mantle.

Hanna said, “There are a whole lot of people who fell through the cracks and still don’t have access to justice and I know Mr. Johnson will rise to the occasion as president of the bar and director of the Legal Aid Clinic.

“I feel so comfortable leaving now because you’ve got a safe pair of hands.”

In an interview with The Guardian earlier this year, Johnson lamented that the country’s current system does not adequately address the need for legal aid for the indigent and disadvantaged.

“One of the most fundamental rights is to have access to the courts,” he said.

Johnson said there is some concern about inexperienced lawyers taking Crown briefs for capital crimes.

“You can’t cut your teeth when you’re dealing with persons’ lives,” he said.

Click here to read more at The Nassau Guardian

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