Should lawyers be required to provide pro bono services?

I believe that those more fortunate in life have an obligation to give something back to the community - in fact, not only just the more fortunate', but that every member of society has some little thing they can contribute to someone else. That being said, I do not believe that lawyers should be forced to provide pro bono services.

I've always believed that you can't do something well unless you're really passionate about it.

To that end, any kind of philanthropic work must be something you are truly passionate about, otherwise you simply won't want to do it, and won't do it well. People need to find something they're truly passionate about and help in that area. It may be in the field of protecting endangered animals, the eradication of poverty, or helping street kids here in Australia. It may even be to help disadvantaged people access legal services. But it shouldn't have to be, just because you're a lawyer.

It has been suggested that there could exist a legal aid system based on the Medicare model. What a fantastic idea. It has always puzzled me that legal aid services are so restricted in the types of matters in which assistance will be provided. When someone I know wasn't being paid for a huge fencing job that he had completed, he couldn't afford legal representation and was denied legal aid. If it had been a family matter, his income and assets were certainly low enough that he would have been provided assistance. But because it was the wrong kind of matter', there was no aid available for him. He was forced to declare bankruptcy instead. So why not a wider legal aid system, that will encompass a larger range of matters for disadvantaged people. We all know that lawyers who take on legal aid work are never going to get rich off it - but at least they are being paid what might be described as a fair payment for their services.

What other profession is forced to give their services for free? I do not believe it is the lawyers who should pay for the disadvantaged to have legal services. This cost should fall on the tax-payers, and to this end legal aid should be widened and more inclusive. Let lawyers, like everyone else, choose how they wish to give back to society. Sure, many of them won't. But it is for each individual to decide if they want to help, who they want to help, and in what way. Their chosen profession should not dictate this decision.