Faith and Law:
Justice vs. Mercy?
11:15 AM
Through the centuries, Christians have valued both mercy and justice as distinct virtues. Indeed, followers of Jesus are exhorted to practice both virtues in civic life. However, when it comes to participating in the legal system, some would argue that this exhortation presents a quandary. If mercy demands that the just punishment not be enacted, how are the demands of justice satisfied? Likewise, it would seem that rigorously executed justice removes the possibility for mercy. Especially in a society that increasingly turns to its courts for moral prescriptions, how is a Christian to balance the dual demands of mercy and justice in the legal system?
Moderator
Peter Blair D’12
Former Editor-in-Chief, Dartmouth Apologia
Peter Blair is a member of the class of 2012, and a double major in Classics and Government. Born and raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia, Peter enjoys all the opportunities for outdoor activities that Dartmouth offers. Peter is the former editor-in-chief of the Dartmouth Apologia and member of the student board that helps run Aquinas House.
Panelists
Roy S. McCandless D’84
Attorney, Concord, NH
Roy received his AB from Dartmouth College in 1984, and his JD from Harvard Law School in 1988. Roy and his wife Sue have been married for 24 years and have four children, Caleb, Amos, Abby, and Lily. Roy is a civil trial attorney handling an array of disputes (personal injury, civil rights, employment, real estate, intellectual property, contract, wills, and business) as well as advising churches, youth camps, and other non-profit organizations. For 23 of his 24 of practice Roy worked at large to mid-sized firms in Maine and New Hampshire, and this past year opened up his own solo practice in Concord, New Hampshire.
Thomas A. Barnico D’77
Lecturer, Boston College Law School
Former Assistant Attorney General, Massachusetts
Mr. Barnico teaches at Boston College Law School. He has been Director of the Attorney General Clinical Program at BC Law since 1989. For the academic year 2010-2011, he was Visiting Professor of Law at BC, teaching Federal Courts and other courses. This year, he is teaching two co-curricular series on legal topics at the Nelson A. Rockefeller Center for Public Policy at Dartmouth College.
Mr. Barnico served as an Assistant Attorney General for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts from 1981 to 2010. He represented the state and its officers in civil cases involving constitutional law, administrative law, and business regulation. He has argued three cases in the United States Supreme Court, eighteen cases in the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, and 72 cases in the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts.
Mr. Barnico received his A.B., cum laude, from Dartmouth College in 1977. He received his J.D., cum laude, from Boston College Law School in 1980.
Noel J. Augustyn D’68
Assistant Director, Administrative Office of the United States Courts
Noel Augustyn is Assistant Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts. From 1987-89, he was chief-of-staff to Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist at the Supreme Court of the United States.
Mr. Augustyn graduated from Dartmouth in 1968, and received an MA from Stanford and a JD from Notre Dame Law School. He practiced law with firms in Boston and Marblehead, Massachusetts, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and most recently with Seyfarth, Shaw in Washington, D.C.
Mr. Augustyn has served as adjunct professor at Georgetown University Law Center; deputy director of the Association of American Law Schools; and assistant dean/assistant professor at Boston College Law School. He served also as assistant dean and instructor of English at Linfield College in Oregon and Ripon College in Wisconsin.
