About Us
Our Vision
Our vision is a growing nationwide fellowship of Christian lawyers and law students who act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with God.
~ Micah 6:8; Matthew 23:23 ~
Our Mission
Our mission is to inspire, encourage, and equip Christians, both individually and in community, to proclaim, love and serve Jesus Christ through the study and practice of law, the provision of legal assistance to the poor and needy, and the defense of religious freedom and the sanctity of human life.
About Attorney Ministries
Christian Legal Society’s (CLS) Attorney Ministries seeks to encourage and train legal professionals how to integrate the Word of God and their faith in Jesus Christ with their professional and personal lives.
CLS is comprised of legal professionals dedicated to serving Jesus Christ through the practice of law. CLS members include attorneys, judges, paralegals, and friends of the legal profession.
Attorney Ministries is the foundation of all of CLS’ ministries – on law school campuses, through its work to defend religious liberty and the sanctity of human life, and helping the poor and needy.
Attorney Chapters, located throughout the country, provide attorneys with a wide range of opportunities, including fellowship and spiritual development, discipleship, legal referrals, legal best practices, CLE training, and mentoring.
Faith inspires action. CLS attorneys are encouraged to lead or start a chapter and thereby guide, encourage, and support other Christian attorneys in their private practice of law and find unique ways to serve the Lord though their vocation.
Professor Elton Trueblood called it the “Strategy of Jesus.” This strategy, as set forth by Professor Trueblood, well describes what we all need and the kind of “society” CLS aspires to be:
What we need is not intellectual theorizing or even preaching, but a demonstration. One of the most powerful ways of turning people’s loyalty to Christ is by loving others with the great love of God. We cannot revive faith by argument, but we might catch the imagination of puzzled men and women by an exhibition of a fellowship so intensely alive that every thoughtful person would be forced to respect it. If there should emerge in our day such a fellowship, wholly without artificiality and free from the dead hand of the past, it would be an exciting event of momentous importance. A society of genuine loving friends, set free from the self-seeking struggle for personal prestige and from all unreality, would be something unutterably priceless and powerful. A wise person would travel any distance to join it.
Should you seek such a society, you are cordially invited to join CLS.
In the memorable words of former Chaplain of the Senate, Dick Halverson, we believe that
each member of this Society can be like “a garment which Jesus Christ wears every day to do what Jesus wants to do” with his or her life. Seen from this perspective, “we don’t need power; our weakness is an asset. If Christ is truly in each of us as we all have confessed, then what more do we need to follow Him?” And so, as we move forward, we are committed to following the example of servant-leadership Jesus has modeled for us. John 13:14-15
We are also committed to the following in the footsteps of the first member of the “Christian Legal Society”, St. Paul. We remember that St. Paul (then known as Saul) was an angry lawyer on a prosecutor’s assignment to arrest the Christians in Damascus when, upon being struck blind by a vision of the glory of God, he became a follower of Jesus Christ at the invitation of one of Christ’s followers, Ananias. See Acts 9.
In this sense, the Apostle Paul became the “founding member” of the Christian Legal Society when he was cast “from his high horse”, crushed in the dust and blinded for a season. He was converted and called when Ananias told him he was to take the Gospel to “kings and princes” and that he would be persecuted for his obedience to Jesus. After his conversion, Paul spent the rest of his life helping establish and network the fellowship of the followers of Christ.
Christian Legal Society (CLS) is a fellowship of Christians dedicated to serving Jesus Christ through the practice and study of law, the defense of religious freedom and life, and the provision of legal aid to the needy.
OUR FOUNDATION
“Seeking Justice with the Love of God”
Luke 11:42; Matthew 23:23
Christian Legal Society (CLS), founded in 1961, seeks to fulfill God’s command found in Micah 6:8 by bringing glory to God by inspiring, encouraging, and equipping Christian attorneys and law students, both individually and in community, to proclaim, love, and serve Jesus Christ through the study and practice of law, through the provision of legal assistance to the poor and needy, and through the defense of the inalienable rights to life and religious freedom.
HISTORY
Attorney Ministries is foundational ministry in this society of Christians in the law – attorneys, professors, judges, law students, and so many others. The first CLS chapter was the “founding Chicago chapter” and the first CLS annual meeting (August 5-7, 1962) featured a “lively informal discussion directed to the concept of the Christian lawyer” at the American Bar Association convention at the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco on August 5. An attendee of that meeting recalled, “Only a handful attended that historic gathering in the Fairmont Hotel, but it was sufficient to elect a nationwide board of directors and start the infant organization on its way.” But all were challenged to do their part “to enable CLS to provide fellowship for Christian attorneys; to serve as a witness to the legal profession; and to present a platform from which Christian attorneys could speak as a united voice on social, moral, and ethical issues.” In that first year, CLS grew to 100 members and established local chapters in Chicago, Dallas, and Seattle.
CLS Objectives
- To proclaim Jesus as Lord through all we do;
- To defend the religious freedom of all Americans through the legislatures and courts;
- To defend the religious freedom of students to gather on their campuses as Christian organizations;
- To promote justice for the poor, religious freedom, sanctity of human life, and biblical conflict resolution;
- To encourage Christian attorneys to view law as a ministry and help them integrate faith and their legal practice;
- To provide Christian attorneys a means of society and fellowship;
- To encourage and disciple Christian law professors and students;
- To provide a forum for discussing issues related to Christianity and the law;
- To encourage attorneys and law students to serve the poor and needy.
Our Invitation To All
Professor Elton Trueblood called it the “Strategy of Jesus.” This strategy, as set forth by Professor Trueblood, well describes what we all need and the kind of “society” CLS aspires to be:
“What we need is not intellectual theorizing or even preaching, but a demonstration. One of the most powerful ways of turning people’s loyalty to Christ is by loving others with the great love of God. We cannot revive faith by argument, but we might catch the imagination of puzzled men and women by an exhibition of a fellowship so intensely alive that every thoughtful person would be forced to respect it. If there should emerge in our day such a fellowship, wholly without artificiality and free from the dead hand of the past, it would be an exciting event of momentous importance. A society of genuine loving friends, set free from the self-seeking struggle for personal prestige and from all unreality, would be something unutterably priceless and powerful. A wise person would travel any distance to join it.”
Should you seek such a society, you are cordially invited to join CLS, and add your voice to the many other Christians in the legal profession.
All are encouraged to associate through a CLS attorney or law student chapter. If there is not yet a convenient local chapter to join in your area, we would invite all to associate with at least three like-minded attorneys or law students for the purpose of starting a chapter. CLS will help you join or start a local chapter. It’s easy. Just ask for a copy of our Attorney or Law Student Manuals.
If you are already a member of Christian Legal Society, use the CLS membership brochure and membership application to encourage a friend or colleague to join.
In the memorable words of former Chaplain of the Senate, Dick Halverson, we believe that each member of this Society can be like “a garment which Jesus Christ wears every day to do what Jesus wants to do” with his or her life. Seen from this perspective, “we don’t need power; our weakness is an asset. If Christ is truly in each of us as we all have confessed, then what more do we need to follow Him?” And so, as we move forward, we are committed to following the example of servant-leadership Jesus has modeled for us. John 13:14-15
AM TEAM
Lakuita Bittle
Director, Attorney Ministries
Ariana Finley
Attorney Ministries Coordinator
David Nammo
CLS’ Executive Director & CEO
Brian Patlen
CLS’ Chief Operations Officer
Peter Smith
CLS’ Chief Financial Officer
Courtney Herron
CLS’ Director, Development
& Communications
Brent Amato
Barnabas Fellow, Chicagoland
Joe Ruta
Barnabas Fellow, Northeast
