Lindsey Walker
Beaumont

Ninety-year-old Beaumont attorney Lindsey Walker has practiced law for nearly seven decades and has taken pro bono cases for just as long. Law was the family profession: his father, Daniel Walker, served as chief justice and his brother, Charles Walker, served as justice of the Ninth Court of Appeals. A 1939 graduate of the University of Texas School of Law (the same year the State Bar was established), Walker was among the first lawyers required to take the bar exam for licensure. During World War II, he served in the U.S. Army Counter Intelligence Corps in the South Pacific. "He is a wonderful man who gives with his whole heart,"says Cindy Torrans, coordinator of the Jefferson County Bar Association Pro Bono Program.

What kind of law do you practice?
I am what the British would call a solicitor. I have an office practice where I handle business, real estate and probate, and oil and gas matters.

What do you enjoy most about practicing law?
The people. My dad said that the best part of practicing law was that you could sit behind your desk, put your feet up, and get paid for giving your opinion.

How did you get started doing pro bono work?
UT Law Dean Ira P. Hildebrand taught us that our duty was to take care of the community. I have never turned anyone down because they didn’t have any money. I see it is my duty as a lawyer to help people who need help.

What pro bono work are you involved in now?
I have three probate cases open. One involves a 22-year-old girl, her 12-year-old sister, and their 6-year-old brother. Their parents died, and I am helping them go to small claims court to get $1,700 cash from a savings account.

What are your most memorable pro bono cases?
None. They are all just people who need help with ordinary, routine matters.

What has motivated you to continue your pro bono work for so many years?
When I started practicing, law was not a business but a profession. Lawyers were looked upon with awe; they were leaders in the community. I feel pro bono is every lawyer’s duty. It's like giving money to the church. I tithe time as well as money.