Lawyers give back to communities

TT Lawyers Football Club president Gerry Brook, third from left, hands over a white board to Gregory Nurse, assistant secretary of the Barataria Ball Players Association. Looking on are BBPA education officer June Rogers and TTLFC members, attorneys John Heath, Nicolas Ali; public relations officer of the Barataria Village Council Royce Russell, and attorney Trevor Clarke and TTLFC vice president, Assistant DPP George Busby.
TT Lawyers Football Club president Gerry Brook, third from left, hands over a white board to Gregory Nurse, assistant secretary of the Barataria Ball Players Association. Looking on are BBPA education officer June Rogers and TTLFC members, attorneys John Heath, Nicolas Ali; public relations officer of the Barataria Village Council Royce Russell, and attorney Trevor Clarke and TTLFC vice president, Assistant DPP George Busby.

Argentinian football legend Lionel Messi isn’t the only philanthropic footballer around.

While relatively new, members of the TT Lawyers’ Football Club (TTLFC) aren’t only known for their prowess in the courtroom and hopefully the field, but they are also giving back to the local communities in which they play.

On Thursday last, the executive of the club donated a whiteboard to the Barataria Community Centre for an after-school homework programme being established there.

They have also hosted free legal clinics at the Barataria Community Centre and will move on to a new community in the coming weeks.

Present at the handover were president of the TTLFC, chairman of the National Gas Company (NGC) Gerry Brooks and vice president, Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions George Busby; Gregory Nurse of the Barataria Ball Players Association and other members of the TTLFC.

According to Busby, the TTLFC’s main focus is to mentor young legal practitioners through interaction with senior members of the Law Association of TT at an informal setting.

The group of lawyers also felt it was equally important to give back to the community by hosting the free legal clinics to any member of the public in need of advice on legal issues affecting them.

Busby said it is the hope of the TTLFC to visit communities around the country, reaching out to young lawyers there as well as providing pro bono advisory services on varying aspects of law, including probate, family , civil and criminal law.

The TTLFC’s Community Outreach Programme began in July at the Barataria Community Centre.

The club was formed for the Mundiavocat, World Football Cup for Lawyers in Spain in 2016 where the players met with more than 2000 lawyers from around the world. The next World Cup will be held next year.

The team also participated in the Biennial Americas Cup for Lawyers hosted in Panama City in March.

Busby noted that there were no egos on the field. “We play as a team. We’re just a group of guys having a good time,” he said.

The TTLFC has it own constitution and executive. They meet every week to train and try to have a game on the weekends.

They also hope to attract judges and more lawyers to the club.

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