The Public Interest, Professionalism & Probono Publico

Lorne Sossin, Faculty of Law, University of Toronto

With response by: Ken McPhail Dept of Accounting & Finance, University of Glasgow.

Tuesday 18th November

Room G678

3:30 - 5:00

The relationship between pro bono publico and the public interest is at once simple and complex. It is simple in the sense that lawyers are key guardians of the rule of law, which in a democracy is a cornerstone of the public interest. There is a clear, public interest benefit for lawyers to ensure access to the rule of law, especially on the part of the vulnerable.  It is complex because lawyers seek not only to ensure access to the rule of law but also, in many cases, to serve clients and run a business. For example, one of the few reasons for which it is ethically permissible to turn away a potential client is if they cannot pay their legal fees. Thus, lawyers at once uphold the public interest and pursue their own interests (often through advancing the interests of their clients). These objectives, of course, will not always be in alignment.  

Through an analysis of pro bono activities, this paper seeks to show that the simple relationship between the legal profession and the public interest is in fact more complicated than it looks. Both the motivation of lawyers and the motivation of litigants matter, but neither on its own provides a complete justification for pro bono as advancing the public interest. Despite this complexity (or, perhaps, because of it), I argue that a public interest approach allows for both lawyer and client perspectives to inform an understanding of pro bono publico. And, understood in a public interest paradigm, pro bono may be seen as playing a vital and necessary role both in the legal profession and the legal system, and sa such, lies at the heart of ethical lawyering.

The Professions & Public Service

Professor Alice Brown, the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman.

Wednesday, 3rd December,  2008, 11am-1pm

Programme:

• 10.15am - 11am Registration and coffee
• 11am-1pm  Seminar introduced by  Professor Alice Brown
• 1pm  Buffet Lunch

Click here to download seminar flyer: December Seminar Flyer

Professional bodies are well established in Scotland and are recognised as having an important role to play in the provision of public services.  How is the quality of the service they provide to be evaluated?  Can the public exert any influence on the extent to which professionals act in an ethical manner?  How might conflicts between ethical codes and public service be reconciled?

These and related questions will be considered at a seminar organised by the Scottish Forum for Professional Ethics, which seeks to foster inter-professional dialogue in Scotland through a series of seminars and conferences.  These are intended to provide representatives of professional bodies and interested individuals with the opportunity to engage in the discussion of issues in professional ethics.

This fourth seminar in the series will be introduced by Professor Alice Brown, the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman.

Those wishing to attend should provide Grace McGuire (g.mcguire@law.gla.ac.uk) with their full name, designation, professional affiliation/field of work, and contact details (preferably email address), together with a note of any special dietary requirements.

It would be most helpful if Grace could have this information by noon on Friday 21st November.

There is no charge for the seminar.

SFPE Annual Conference

Professor Sir Kenneth Calman, Chancellor of the University of Glasgow,

Professor Gordon Kirk, formerly Vice-principal of The University of Edinburgh, and The Scottish Forum for Professional Ethics.

Monday, 8th September, 2008,

Programme:

• 09.15 Registration
• 10.00 The Role of the Professions in 21st Century Scotland: Professor Sir Kenneth Calman
• 10.45 Discussion
• 11.30 The Scottish Forum for Professional Ethics: Professor Gordon Kirk
• 12.15 Formal Launch of the Forum: Professor Bart McGettrick
• 13.00 Buffet Lunch.

Click here to download the conference registration form: Conference Registration Form

Cost: The conference fee is £95; however, a limited number of free student places are available.

Conference Registration will close on August 29^th.

What is the role of professional bodies in 21st century Scotland?  Are there professional values that they share in common?  How can they best serve the public interest? Are there ways in which they might more fruitfully collaborate?  How can they promote higher standards of ethical practice in public life?

These and related questions will be the focus of analysis and discussion at the inaugural conference of the Scottish Forum for Professional Ethics, a recently established body in Scotland, which seeks to foster inter-professional dialogue and exchange between professional bodies and their members.

The Planning Group, which has arranged the conference, has been in existence since September, 2007 and has planned a series of successful seminars on inter-professional themes. The Forum works in close collaboration with the Centre for Ethics and Legal philosophy at the University of Glasgow and the administrative base of the Forum is located there.

Conference participants are invited to attend the launch, to consider proposals from the Forum Planning Group, and to agree the steps necessary to formalise the establishment of the Forum.

Click here to down load a PdF of the conference flyer: Conference Flyer
Click here for a map and directions to the Playfair Library Hall: Map & Directions ; University of Edinburgh, Campus Map

International Workshop on Human Rights & Corporate Accountability

Roger Adams, Tom Cambell & Ole Mestad

30th May 2008

University of Glasgow, G12 8LE

Organized in conjunction with The Adam Smith Research Foundation.

Programme

• 10.00 – 10.15 Welcome 
• 10.15 – 12.45 Ola Mestad, University of Oslo:

Investors Responsibility for Companies' Human Rights Violations. Experiences from the Council on Ethics for the Norwegian Government Pension Fund – Global

• 11.45 - 12.00 Coffee Break
• 2.00 – 13.15 Roger Adams, Association of Chartered Certified Accountants,

Global Reporting Initiative: Human Rights, the Global Reporting Initiative and Corporate Disclosure

• 13.15 – 14.00 Lunch at “The Square”
• 14.00 – 15.00 Sibylle van der Walt, University of Glasgow:

Belief in Human Rights. The Social Origins of Human Rights Consciousness in Business and Commerce

• 5.00 – 16.00 Tom Campbell, Australian National University:

The Role of Human Rights in Legitimating and Limiting the Scope of Corporate Social Responsibility

• 16.00 – 16.30 Workshop Summary and Final Discussion

During the last decade, human rights have become central to the conceptualization and evaluation of business ethics and corporate responsibility in the globalized economy. A growing commitment by increasing numbers of private corporations to respect for human rights in their business practices has been supported by political initiatives such as the United Nations Global Compact programme and by the work of nongovernmental organisations including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. This emerging will to take human rights seriously in business practice has raised urgent new questions concerning the extent, definition and specification of the legal and ethical responsibilities of companies and investors for the safeguarding of human rights within their sphere of influence. The first Glasgow Workshop on Human Rights and Corporate Accountability will bring together academics and practitioners - committed firms as well as human rights organizations - to share their knowledge and experience in the field of human rights. The outcomes of the workshop will provide the basis for a long term research agenda on Human Rights and Corporate Social Responsibility at the University of Glasgow.

Please confirm your attendance with Grace McGuire  (Tel: +44 (0)141 330 3528; email: g.mcguire@law.gla.ac.uk) by 26th of May 2008.

The Contribution of the Professions to a Fairer Society

Professor Sally Brown, Emeritus Professor and formerly Deputy Principal, the University of Stirling

Wednesday, 4th June, 2008,

Stirling Management Centre,

University of Stirling

Programme:

•  9.30  Registration
• 10am-12 noon  Seminar
•  12 noon  Buffet Lunch

It is now widely recognised that in their various ways the professions should seek to serve the public good and that they should be motivated primarily by an ethic of service to others. How do these obligations relate to the development of a fairer society?  Are there particular ways in which the professions can promote greater equity in the life of the community? What are the implications of the commitment to professional practice on a non-discriminatory basis?  Is it reasonable to expect the professions to engage in the alleviation of poverty, to counter disadvantage, and to promote the just society?

These and related questions will be considered at a seminar organised by the Scottish Forum for Professional Ethics, which seeks to foster inter-professional dialogue in Scotland through a series of seminars and conferences.  These are intended to provide representatives of professional bodies and interested individuals with the opportunity to engage in the discussion of issues in professional ethics.

Resolving Ethical Dilemmas in the Workplace

Joyce Cullen, solicitor & Dr Edwin Borman The General Medical Council. 

Tuesday, 25th March, 2008 at 5:30pm

Programme:

• 5.30-6pm  Registration and light buffet supper
• 6pm - 8pm  Seminar

It is now widely recognised that in professional and other occupational settings practitioners should be competent in the sense that they can demonstrate an approved degree of  expertise and skill.  Increasingly, however, it is also expected that practitioners should act ethically, often in accordance with a code of professional practice.  What does ethical practice entail?  What are the common ethical issues that are encountered in work settings?  Are there common dilemmas across different professional and occupational settings? How can practitioners be supported in resolving ethical dilemmas in the workplace?  How can organisations nurture and maintain sound ethical practice? These and related questions will be considered at a seminar organised by the Scottish Forum for Professional Ethics, which seeks to foster inter-professional dialogue in Scotland through a series of seminars and conferences.  These are intended to provide representatives of professional bodies and interested individuals with the opportunity to engage in the discussion of issues in professional ethics.

The speakers will each contribute a brief opening statement, drawing on their own professional experience but seeking to raise issues of wider relevance across different occupations.  These opening statements will be followed by group discussion.

Those wishing to attend should provide Grace McGuire (g.mcguire@law.gla.ac.uk) with their full name, designation, professional affiliation/field of work, and contact details (preferably email address), together with a note of any special dietary requirements, and whether or not they will require parking facilities  It would be most helpful if Grace could have this information by 17th March.