Peter Smurr: VLSP Volunteer of the Month Serves the "Down-and-Out"
by Mary Cook

In the back room of his two-room, mom-and-pop office on Fair Oaks Boulevard in Carmichael, Peter Smurr sat sandwiched between his desk and his worktable; both covered with stacks of files. An attorney for over four decades, Smurr has more than a degree in law; he has a pedigree. His family has been in the practice of law since 1792.

Like a lot of legacies, however, Smurr's legal pedigree is bittersweet. His grandfather, a justice of the Missouri Supreme Court, where the infamous Dred Scott case originated, was one of the justices who ruled against Scott in a case that later wended its way to the U.S. Supreme Court. Folding his arms and tucking his chin to his chest as he related examples of his grandfather's racism, Smurr said, "I think that's why I have always been active in civil rights. That's what one's approach should be to the law -- to correct injustice."

Smurr, a Sacramento native and Hastings graduate, began doing pro bono as soon as he passed the bar, joining the then-new Legal Aid Society of Sacramento County. Over the years he has practiced both civil and criminal law. Many of his clients have been people of color and poor.

"I try to be a bit choosy," he said. "Sure, I have handled $10 million divorce cases, but you don't know if you are accomplishing what you should be. A good case is one I will feel good about five years hence," he said. "I like to represent people I think need my help the most."

Indeed, a notation in Smurr's file at the Voluntary Legal Services Program reads, "Takes down-and-out cases only." A member of VLSP since 1983, Smurr has handled many especially time-consuming cases, from divorce to tort. Even when he closes a case he will often stay in touch with his clients. Recently, for example, he found a house near his own for a client whom he met 20 years ago, as a toddler, injured in a fall from an unsafe balcony.

If the young firebrand once kicked out of courtrooms for being "unruly" is now the more composed, white-bearded grandfather of seven, his heart still belongs to the 1960s. "The War on Poverty was the greatest time I have had in law," Smurr said. "People were denouncing violence to beat others in court, and there was the funding to do this. I wish we could get back to those days."

"Those days" called for a good deal of sacrifice from Smurr and his wife. "We had five kids in seven years and lost three houses," he said. "Ninety percent of the wealth I get from the law is not money--but we have learned how to use money wisely."

Smurr and his wife, a former teacher who works as his secretary, have long been active in environmental causes as well, especially that of saving the American River. Yet the siren song Smurr hears is that of the law, and he intends to keep practicing until "I am convinced I am hurting people -- or I can no longer crawl from my car into court!"

To recognize contributions made by local attorneys to the community, the Sacramento Lawyer features one of the Voluntary Legal Services Program's outstanding volunteers each month. VLSP is Sacramento's pro bono program and is co-sponsored by the Sacramento County Bar Association and Legal Services of Northern California. Attorneys, paralegals, notaries, private investigators, interpreters and others donate their services through the program to assist Sacramento's low income with civil legal matters. If you are interested in joining VLSP, please call (916) 551-2123 for information.