About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline

27 Geo. J. Legal Ethics 1187 (2014)
Ensuring Access to Justice for All: Addressing the Justice Gap through Renewed Emphasis on Attorney Professionalism and Ethical Obligations in the Classroom and beyond

handle is hein.journals/geojlege27 and id is 1218 raw text is: Ensuring Access to Justice for All: Addressing the
Justice Gap Through Renewed Emphasis on
Attorney Professionalism and Ethical Obligations
in the Classroom and Beyond
THE HONORABLE ANNA BLACKBURNE-RIGSBY*
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I.   THE JUSTICE GAP                 ...................................            1189
A.   DEFINING ACCESS TO JUSTICE......................                        1189
B.   THE NATIONAL CIVIL LEGAL AID CRISIS ..............                      1190
C.   THE SITUATION IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA                   ....... ..    1192
D.   THE PUSH FOR MORE CIVIL LEGAL AID                      ..............     1193
II.   THE ETHICAL OBLIGATION TO ENSURE ACCESS TO JUSTICE                     ....    1194
III.  RECOMMENDATIONS FOR LAw              SCHOOLS .           .................      1196
A. VIEWING PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY AS PART OF
THE ESSENTIAL CURRICULUM                      .....................       1196
B. THE NEED FOR PRACTICAL VALUE IN PROFESSIONAL
RESPONSIBILITY COURSES                   ........................         1198
* The Honorable Anna Blackburne-Rigsby is an Associate Judge on the District of Columbia Court of
Appeals. She was nominated to the court by President George W. Bush in August 2006. Judge Blackburne-
Rigsby chairs the District of Columbia Courts' Standing Committee on Fairness and Access, and serves as a
Commissioner on the District of Columbia's Access to Justice Commission. In addition, Judge Blackburne-
Rigsby was the President of the National Association of Women Judges (NAWJ) for the 2013-2014 term. The
theme that she chose for her 2013-2014 tenure as President was NAWJ: Ensuring Access to Justice for All.
Prior to her appointment to the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, Judge Blackburne-Rigsby served for six
years as an Associate Judge on the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, having been nominated in 2000
by President William J. Clinton. Judge Blackburne-Rigsby also served as a Magistrate Judge on the Superior
Court from 1995-2000. Judge Blackburne-Rigsby teaches professional responsibility at the University of the
District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law. Judge Blackburne-Rigsby is married to Judge Robert
Rigsby, Associate Judge on the Superior Court of the District of Columbia and a retired United States Army
Colonel. They have one teenaged son. Judge Blackburne-Rigsby is the daughter of Justice Laura D. Blackburne,
retired, New York State Supreme Court.
Judge Blackburne-Rigsby acknowledges with gratitude the assistance of her law clerk, David Wei Guo, Esq.,
and her judicial fellow Justin E. Berlin, Esq., a graduate of University of California Hastings College of the
Law. © 2014, Anna Blackburne-Rigsby.

1187

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

profiles profiles most