Law conference 'helped lawyers'

Press, 10 April 1978, Page 25

Law conference 'helped lawyers'

PA Auckland The law conference held in Auckland last week helped lawyers in their aim of offering their services to clients more effectively and efficiently, according to the president of the Law Society (Mr 1.. H. Southwick, Q.C.). Mr Southwick said that the conference went further — it pointed up various areas where lawyers were reminded of their place in the community. 'lt reinforced also that we need to make the lav. more readily available to people as a right and not

as a privilege," he said. "We have also been reminded of the part lawyers must play in the community as educated citizens. “Intellectually, lawyers accept this, but this conference brought forward forcibly the need to apply it in his practice and life." Mr Southwick said that a spokesman for the Auckland Committee on Racism and Discrimination, Dr Oliver Sutherland, had asserted that lawyers were not really serving all people “fie has said that they are a ‘white man's outfit’.” "Lawyers know this is not correct, but this conference has gone a long way in persuading them to demonstrate it is not correct,” said Mr Southwick "Obviously we are not going to see this overnight, but as president of the New Zealand Law Society, I can say we will see this approach and attitude emerging in lawyers everywhere.” The president of the Auckland District LawSociety (Mr Bruce Slane) said the 1400 lawyers who attended the conference had expressed their great satisfaction with it. He said that lawyers were able to have person al contact with the large number of overseas law yers who had been brought to the conference not becuase of their status or office, but because of w’hat they could contribute.

"Ordinary practitionc ; could talk to these exper ■ and this was of gre ‘ benefit to them.” I Mr Slane said the bu> ness sessions. had shou that lawyers were intei esced in efficiency, but n< at the expense of huma relations Mr Slane said a po had shown that the cost of running a legal firr was the largest area ol concern to lawyers. And, he said, the 50 lawyers who had been in volved in the organisatioi and administration of th< conference had indicate that the law had not be come a “big, impersonal couldn't-care profession.”