Hundreds of attorneys across Oklahoma will provide free legal advice on Thursday, May 1, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. during the annual statewide Law Day celebration. Oklahoma residents may call 405-4294290 or 918-340-5297 to speak to a licensed attorney at no cost. Questions can also be emailed to AskALawyer@okbar.org.

“For nearly 50 years, the Oklahoma Bar Association has celebrated Law Day by providing free legal advice to the public through our annual Ask a Lawyer event,” said OBA President D. Kenyon Williams Jr. “It’s a chance for volunteer attorneys to give back to our communities, and we invite all Oklahomans to reach out with their questions during this annual Law Day tradition this May 1.”

The Ask a Lawyer hotline is one of several events in which Oklahoma lawyers participate to observe Law Day. Free resources and informational videos covering common legal questions are also available online. Visit the Oklahoma Bar Association Facebook page at www. facebook.com/okbarassociation to see these videos and find other helpful legal resources.

WHY CELEBRATE LAW DAY?

Though Law Day is celebrated across the country, it was Wewoka attorney and 1953 OBA President Hicks Epton who originally had the idea of celebrating the law and how it affects our lives in 1951. President Dwight D. Eisenhower established Law Day nationally by proclamation in 1958; in 1961, Congress set aside May 1 as a day for all Americans to celebrate their freedom and the ideals of equality and justice under the law.

The OBA continued its celebration of Know Your Liberties – Know Your Courts Week, but after much hesitation, the decision was made to give up the name in 1960. The change was made only to take advantage of the extensive national publicity given to Law Day through the efforts of the American Bar Association.

The first of May was set aside in 1961 by a Joint Resolution of Congress as a “special day of celebration by the American people in appreciation of their liberties and the reaffirmation of their loyalty to the United States of America” and as an occasion for “rededication to the ideals of equality and justice under laws.”

Since the first observance, the American Bar Association, the national voluntary organization of the legal profession, has acted as the national sponsor of Law Day. State, county and local bar associations organize individual projects throughout the country. Many national organizations also recognize Law Day, including the National Education Association, National Governors’ Association, United States Conference of Mayors, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts of America and civic and services clubs such as Rotary International and Kiwanis International.

The 18,000-member Oklahoma Bar Association, headquartered in Oklahoma City, was created by the Oklahoma Supreme Court to advance the administration of justice and to foster and maintain learning, integrity, competence, public service and high standards of conduct among Oklahoma’s legal community.