Performances will be held in the Moot Court Room on Friday at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday at 2 p.m.
Best known for the Scopes Monkey Trial and for his defense of Leopold and Loeb, Clarence Darrow is likely the most famous trial lawyer in US history. For more than 50 years he helped shape the moral conscience of the nation.
Early in his legal career he represented railroads, but after the Pullman Strike of 1894 he left the railroads and mostly represented the interests of the organized labor as well as criminal and civil cases from his office in Chicago. He is famous for defending poor, weak, and unpopular clients. Themes of human dignity, freedom and equality mark his advocacy, and many of his trials have become central motifs in American law and culture.
“Any aspiring lawyer – especially law students - should have some familiarity with the legal culture, past and present, and especially Clarence Darrow’s background, and legal work,” says Gershman. “Darrow himself once said that the law is a ‘bum profession as generally practiced,’ and ‘devoid of idealism.’ Whether that is or ever was true, Darrow consistently sought to use the law and his legal skills to help people who desperately needed help, and often did so for free. There is no better way to teach the story of Clarence Darrow’s life and career than to portray him, in his own words, as he describes his life and career.”
General admission tickets are free, with a $15 suggested donation; all proceeds will benefit the Equal Justice Initiative.
The production is sponsored and produced by Pace’s Criminal Justice Society.
To reserve seats or for additional information on Clarence Darrow at Pace Law School, e-mail Producer Jake B. Sher at (617) 620-3831 or jsher@law.pace.edu.