GRANTS - Local attorney Bruce Boynton was honored last week by the New Mexico Supreme Court as the “Pro Bono Lawyer for the District.” Pro bono work is provided either free of charge or at reduced rates for the client.

Nemeth and Boynton

    District Court Judge Camille Martinez Olguin explained that every attorney who is a member of the New Mexico State Bar is required to perform a minimum amount of pro bono work.

    “Bruce helped to model what a pro bono lawyer should be,” she said. “He would call other attorneys when the need for pro bono work was great.

    “When we needed a 'special master' to represent a litigant, we often called Bruce. He was especially devoted to juvenile cases and would be present for every hearing in the case. I've called him for help and defense attorneys have also called on him. Bruce would drop everything to come to court for these kids,” she stated.

    Martinez-Olguin went on to say that Boynton's work product had been reviewed by the state Supreme Court and it determined that he was a model for all attorneys in his demeanor and generosity. “He gives a voice to the voiceless,” she noted.

    “This is a big honor to how he has defined the legal profession,” she added.

Martinez-Olguin explained that Boynton had done a lot of work for the Court Appointed Special Advocates program. “He helped them organize legally as a non-profit organization and his work product was used as an example of professionalism during a workshop held when N.M. Supreme Court Justice Richard Bosson visited our district for the presentation of the certificate of appreciation,” she said.

    The CASA Program recruits citizens, who are not usually lawyers, to advocate for victims in abuse and neglect cases. The volunteers are independent of the court and can provide information on the child, which the court doesn't have the time to gather.

    Boynton described the honor as “Recognition among lawyers that we are a profession that involves more than just earning a living, that we have a responsibility to provide some free or discounted services.”

    He explained that all the state justices visited judicial districts around the state to visit local attorneys and promote pro bono work.

    A luncheon, hosted by Martinez-Olguin, was held in her courtroom and attended by all local attorneys and judges. Justice Bosson, accompanied by former president of the New Mexico Bar Association, presented Boynton with the certificate of appreciation.

    Local attorney Sandra Nemeth was also recognized for her pro bono work by the McKinley County Bar Association.