For someone who died more than two centuries ago, Alexander
Hamilton is in the news quite a bit lately. Some of his newfound
notoriety stems from the blockbuster Broadway musical "Hamilton," a
biographical piece that is currently doing better box office than
perennial pleasers like "Wicked" and "The Book of Mormon."
Additionally, there is a movement to remove Hamilton's image from
the $10 bill and replace it with that of a woman. As we observed
National Pro Bono Week from Oct. 25-31, there's one more
reason to contemplate Hamilton's legacy.
Much is known about Hamilton's historical roles as a founding
father, an author of the Federalist Papers and the first secretary
of the Treasury. We also know well Hamilton's political feuds with
John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, and his dramatic death in a duel
with Aaron Burr, a sitting American vice president. Not much
attention is paid, however, to the fact that after he left
government service, Hamilton was a passionate provider of pro
bono legal representation to poor and marginalized people in
his adopted hometown of New York City. This little-known piece of
his life is detailed by Russell Fowler in "Alexander Hamilton:
Pro Bono Lawyer," an article published last year in the
Tennessee Bar Journal.
Fowler documents how Hamilton, despite being of modest means and
with a large family to feed, took on more pro bono clients
than his creditors would have preferred. He did not limit this work
to high-profile cases or impact litigation; rather he represented
indigent people in the slums of the city - especially women - on
routine civil and criminal matters.
Hamilton was a royalist who favored a strong central government
that was more conservative and less democratic, but whose belief in
the importance of fairness and equal justice for all was so strong
that it fueled his pro bono work. Fowler adds that
Hamilton's dedication to providing free legal representation to the
poor stemmed from his own impoverished upbringing. Born to unwed
parents in the West Indies in 1757 - his mother was actually
married to another man at the time - Hamilton was consigned to a
life of poverty after his father abandoned him and his mother.
After Hamilton's mother died when he was just 11 years old, he was
denied what little inheritance she left him because he was, by law,
illegitimate. A probate court awarded his mother's personal
property to her long-estranged and abusive husband. It was only
through generous benefactors in his St. Croix community, who
recognized his intelligence and industriousness and decided to send
him to college, that Hamilton made his way to America in 1772 and
enrolled in what is now Columbia University. The rest, as they say,
is history.
One need not come from such humble beginnings to understand the
critical importance of equal access to our legal system for
everyone, regardless of ability to pay. Indeed, there is a long
tradition in the legal profession of providing pro bono
service to the poor, and many firms require their attorneys to
fulfill a set amount of pro bono hours per year as a
condition of employment.
Pro bono representation is a desperately needed
complement to the array of legal services provided by our state-
and federally-funded network of civil legal aid organizations,
which provide assistance to individuals and families living in
poverty who need help with non-criminal legal matters, such as
divorce, child support, access to health care and education,
employment discrimination, housing issues or protection from
domestic violence. In fact, the Boston Bar Association's (BBA) 2014
report "Investing in Justice: A Roadmap to Cost-Effective Funding
of Civil Legal Aid in Massachusetts," found that in 2013 attorneys
in Massachusetts supplemented the efforts of four civil legal aid
programs in the state with 82,000 pro bono hours.
Nonetheless, the BBA found that despite the extraordinary efforts
of attorneys doing pro bono work, 30,000 low-income people
- about two-thirds of those who qualify for civil legal aid and
sought services - were nonetheless turned away due to a lack of
resources. The unfortunate reality is that the need for assistance
far outstrips the capacity of legal aid organizations and private
attorneys doing pro bono work.
Perhaps helping a family that is living paycheck to paycheck
stay in their home, ensuring a disabled child receives the
educational services to which he or she is entitled, or helping a
single mother obtain child support from a former spouse isn't the
stuff of splashy Broadway musicals. But pro bono service
has its rewards, as Alexander Hamilton knew - and many lawyers
working today also know. It is the satisfaction of knowing one has
made a tangible, positive difference in the life of another and the
pride of living up to the most important ideal articulated by our
Founding Fathers: we are all created equal.