LGBT Lawyers Association

a-ha

Dear all,

As you may be aware there is now an organisation for Gay Doctors (Gay Doctors Ireland). I am setting up a similar organisation for LGBT Lawyers. Membership is open to solicitors, barristers, law students and academics.


The purpose of having such a society is as follows:

* to raise awareness and increase the visibility of LGBT
lawyers within the profession
* to provide support to lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender (LGBT) lawyers and students
* to promote awareness of LGBT legal issues
* to facilitate legal research and support other LGBT
rights organisations


The visibility of LGBT lawyers is important within the profession particularly for those who are contemplating coming out at work.

There are a number of legal issues affecting the gay community in Ireland and lawyers can raise awareness within the legal profession and beyond of LGBT rights issues.

If anyone wishes to join, please email



lgbtlawyers@ireland.com

a-ha

Firstly, in terms of campaigns for LGBT rights there is quite a long way to go. It is important that lawyers who have interest in LGBT rights can pool their knowledge and raise awareness of the often complex issues surrounding recognition of family relationships, the constitutionality of marital equality and campaign for the repeal of section 37 of the Employment Equality Act.


While both professions have many gay lawyers until you are out you might never realise quite how many. Visibility of an LGBT group should provide encouragement to lawyers who are considering whether or not is prudent to be out at work.


Finally, it's worth noting that virtually every other country has an LGBT Bar Association. I have provided links to some of these below:


http://www.lgbtbar.org/
http://www.mlgba.org/main/
http://www.lgla.net/
http://www.dglba.org/
http://www.lagla.org.uk/

eagle_&_bear

I think its a brilliant idea.

I don't know how it would function or if it would just be a social group but it's definitaly something worth persuing!

Sign me up

a-ha

Just email the address below to sign up:

lgbtlawyers@ireland.com

evercloserunion

Hmm, so this is an organisation for lawyers and law students who are themselves LGBT, and not more generally for lawyers who support increased rights and recognition of the LGBT community?

a-ha

evercloserunion wrote: »

Hmm, so this is an organisation for lawyers and law students who are themselves LGBT, and not more generally for lawyers who support increased rights and recognition of the LGBT community?

We would be delighted to have members who are lawyers who are supportive of LGBT rights and interested in equality. We'd really welcome any straight allies so don't feel that you have to be LGBT to take an interest.

a-ha

We have now set up a basic (interim) website at the following address:

http://www.lgbtlawyersireland.com/

The site has a members forum and information about upcoming events/conferences will be available to members in the members section.

a-ha

Good news! We're making progress. Here's a link to our facebook site...so if you are out on facebook come and join us there.

If not...log in to the website with a username. That way you don't have to sacrifice any privacy to join, for example, if you're not out at work and don't want to be.

a-ha wrote: »

Dear all,

As you may be aware there is now an organisation for Gay Doctors (Gay Doctors Ireland). I am setting up a similar organisation for LGBT Lawyers. Membership is open to solicitors, barristers, law students and academics.


The purpose of having such a society is as follows:

* to raise awareness and increase the visibility of LGBT
lawyers within the profession
* to provide support to lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender (LGBT) lawyers and students
* to promote awareness of LGBT legal issues
* to facilitate legal research and support other LGBT
rights organisations


The visibility of LGBT lawyers is important within the profession particularly for those who are contemplating coming out at work.

There are a number of legal issues affecting the gay community in Ireland and lawyers can raise awareness within the legal profession and beyond of LGBT rights issues.

If anyone wishes to join, please email



lgbtlawyers@ireland.com

a-ha

Dear all,

We have now had our inaugural meeting to form a committee. We'll be meeting again on the 19th of August.

We will hold cpd seminar in October so if your interested follow us on facebook or on the web.

detective

I look forward to the day when lgbt members of the law society (and any other section of society also by the way) don't have to partition themselves by way of a separate facebook/email/boards.ie section. Still though, fair play in the starting of such a movement.

BehindTheScenes

detective wrote: »

I look forward to the day when lgbt members of the law society (and any other section of society also by the way) don't have to partition themselves by way of a separate facebook/email/boards.ie section. Still though, fair play in the starting of such a movement.

I agree with the above sentiment.

Why does sexuality have to be brought in to the profession? Whatever happened to being good at your job and doing your own thing after work?

If it was a group for highlighting issues that marginalise LGBTs I'd be wholeheartedly for it but not an organisation that distinguishes LGBTs further from the profession.

Dliodor

The LGBT Lawyers Association of Ireland is proud to launch the LGBT Free Legal Advice Centre. It begins this coming Tuesday November 2nd 2010 and the first Tuesday of every month thereafter at 7-8:30pm at the Outhouse, LGBT Community Resource Centre on Capel Street, Dublin 1. If any lawyers would like to volunteer please contact us at lgbtlawyers@ireland.com.

Dliodor

BehindTheScenes wrote: »

I agree with the above sentiment.

Why does sexuality have to be brought in to the profession? Whatever happened to being good at your job and doing your own thing after work?

If it was a group for highlighting issues that marginalise LGBTs I'd be wholeheartedly for it but not an organisation that distinguishes LGBTs further from the profession.

I think you should find out more about the group and why it was set up. The LGBT Lawyers Association was set up to bring interested lawyers together to work on LGBT rights issues like access to civil marriage for lesbian and gay people, section 37 of the Employment Equality Act and gender recognition among others.

It was also established to alleviate the isolation felt by LGBT lawyers. Quite a number of gay lawyers are not out at work. This is because they don't feel comfortable being open about themselves in an environment which they may, rightly or wrongly perceive to be hostile, or to be one in which being gay might be viewed as a negative with harmful career consequences.

As a result, younger or more vulnerable members who are not active in the community may (quite wrongly) perceive themselves to be quite alone which can make coming out at work a very daunting experience. If gay lawyers are not comfortable in their own environment they are less able to stand up for the LGBT community generally. This is why the LGBT Lawyers Association was founded.

Dliodor

BehindTheScenes wrote: »

I agree with the above sentiment.

Why does sexuality have to be brought in to the profession? Whatever happened to being good at your job and doing your own thing after work?

I would dearly love if life was that simple. Trying to hide who you are at work is quite harmful, if it is done out of fear. Therefore, simply by existing you bring who you are (including your sexuality) into the workplace as do your straight colleagues when they refer to their engagement/marriage/wife/husband/kids/dates/life. To avoid mentioning any of those things ever is quite a task and would undoubtedly leave a person quite isolated and seemingly very cold distant or aloof to others.

Secondly, while you may not wish to make an issue of your sexuality in the workplace, straight colleagues may not be so kind. I hope that you have been lucky enough never to encounter this phenomenon.

RandolphEsq

More barristers here than solicitors I'd imagine

GavinC86

The website seems to be down at the moment and I was looking to get in touch with the organisation as I am currently doing a student documentary about the Civil Partnership Bill and would love a legal mind to break down the Bill and explain it to an audience who may not be too familiar with the facets of the Bill itself. Have emailed the above address tho so hopefully that will get through to you guys.
Looking forward to hearing from yous
Gavin

aacs

Yes, even the Facebook profile created by them appears to be gone. It might be a result of no logic standing in it's favor, since legal profession is such that it do not ask for any discrimination between the kind and creed of it's clients in the first place.

Neither do I find any serious logic behind this thread being kept as sticky by now. The association is closed with it's website so the very logic of this thread kept as sticky...

Tom Young

Thread now unstuck.

a-ha

Actually, the Association is still very much in being and still running an LGBT Free Legal Advice Centre from the Outhouse on Capel Street, the first Tuesday of every month throughout the legal year.

The website was taken down in preparation for the launch of a more professional looking site.

Lastly, the Facebook page is still there, so just follow this link:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/LGBT-Lawyers-Association-of-Ireland/135242836509121

a-ha

GavinC86 wrote: »

The website seems to be down at the moment and I was looking to get in touch with the organisation as I am currently doing a student documentary about the Civil Partnership Bill and would love a legal mind to break down the Bill and explain it to an audience who may not be too familiar with the facets of the Bill itself. Have emailed the above address tho so hopefully that will get through to you guys.
Looking forward to hearing from yous
Gavin

Thanks Gavin, I'll be in touch.

a-ha

The LGBT Lawyers' Association website is now live and can be viewed at:

http://www.lgln.ie/

The Association provides a Free Legal Advice Centre for the gay community in Ireland which runs on the first Tuesday of every month in the Outhouse, Capel Street, Dublin 1.

If you are a qualified lawyer and would like to volunteer or join the Association please do.

Academics and students and non-practising lawyers are also welcome.

The Association provides research support to other LGBT rights organisations, students wishing to volunteer to help us with our research, legal submissions and other work please let us know.

Finally, the Association also provides a referral service, this is designed to faciliate public interest litigation and to match the needs of those wishing to challenge discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity or expression with the best legal teams available.

Sign up today.

http://www.lgln.ie/getinvolved.html

johnnyskeleton

a-ha wrote: »

Finally, the Association also provides a referral service, this is designed to faciliate public interest litigation and to match the needs of those wishing to challenge discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity or expression with the best legal teams available.

So, basically, another one of these new beginnings type efforts then?

golden virginia

From little acorns big trees grow.

a-ha

johnnyskeleton wrote: »

So, basically, another one of these new beginnings type efforts then?

The referral service is new.

The LGBT FLAC has been running for well over a year.

The Association was founded in July 2010.

We've done quite a bit in the interim but the website will make life easier.