Forty years after he entered first year at Queen’s Law, Greg Richards will become a permanent fixture – literally. 

The Queen’s Law Clinics student workroom has been named for Richards, Law’79, whose generous $100,000 donation to the Experiential Learning Fund caps off many years of commitment to the law school.

“Greg is very supportive of what we’re doing at the clinics and we wanted to name the student workroom in recognition of his generous contribution to the school,” Dean Flanagan said at the unveiling ceremony.

Richards, a partner at WeirFoulds LLP, says his support for the Fund stems from two factors: the skills such as advocacy and dealing with clients that he learned from the clinics; and the Law Faculty’s desire to further enhance the program. 

“I wanted to respond by giving back in some way,” Richards says. 

“The real story is how wonderful it is that the school has established those five clinics (legal aid and the elder, business, prison and family law clinics). I understand students really want that opportunity for hands-on learning. If the school says, ‘we could use some support here,’ I’m happy to do what I can.”

Richards has fond memories working for Queen’s Legal Aid in the late ’70s.

“It was not nearly as elaborate and extensive as the facilities are now. There were offices in the school and north of Princess on Montreal Street, where students and Kingston residents would visit,” Richards says. 

“Then there was rural legal aid, which operated with a van that drove up old Highway 38 to Sharbot Lake, stopping at little communities along the way.” 

Richards says the van was nothing fancy; just a regular delivery van with "Queen’s Rural Legal Aid" on the side. 

“One thing that sticks out in my mind is driving up in the winter. For some reason with this van, the heater, at one point wasn’t working,” Richards recalls. “That was one cold trip!”

Richards says rural legal aid at that time could consist of anything – whether it was tax returns or helping someone navigate a court case.

“The court at Sharbot Lake was held in a community hall. The judge would sit up on a platform and preside from there.”

“The downtown legal aid clinic in Kingston had a variety of cases too: small claims court actions, drafting pleadings, landlord-tenant issues.”

Richards recalls helping students fight landlord-tenant cases in which landlords were trying to take advantage of them – such as selling them heating oil at inflated prices as a term of their lease.

“The law isn’t something that just sits on a bookshelf. It’s a part of our society, and to see how it works you’ve got to get out there and give it a try. There’s nothing quite like learning by doing. You have to interact with real people who’ve got real problems and who raise legal issues. It’s a whole other set of skills – and you’re helping other people at the same time. It’s the practice of law, really. There’s no substitute for actually doing it.”

Richards’ investment is just one part of his commitment to Queen’s Law. From 2003 to 2013, he served on the Dean’s Council, including one year as chair. He says the investment is worthwhile in order to help students continue to benefit from clinical education. 

“It certainly did a lot for me. I’ve had a very interesting career in the practice of law, and that never would have happened if I hadn’t had all the support and grounding from Queen’s Law. I feel I’d like to give back as much as I can.”

By Jeremy Mutton