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3%%
4->''"It's only natural for living creatures to fight to protect their own lives. But what makes us human is that we fight for others. But who do you fight for? How hard must you fight...? That's the true measure of what human life is worth. We defense attorneys are warriors who are constantly challenged by that question. Even when the battle is over, and the bonds that connect us are severed... We always return... Time and time again."''
5-->-- '''Phoenix Wright''', ''Franchise/AceAttorney''
6%%
7%% Only one quote per main page, please.
8
9The Crusading Lawyer is sympathetic to your problems and '''will''' help you, though they may need some prodding or [[CharacterDevelopment screentime]] before taking your case. Whether suing a MegaCorp because they poisoned the water supply or defending a client's innocence in a murder trial, that's the lawyer you want. Money will be a decidedly secondary worry for this type, and if you can't afford a crusader's services, there is always ''pro bono'' work[[labelnote:*]]They'll take your case for free. In civil suits, they may waive fees but be entitled to part of the settlement and/or to ask for attorney's fees from the other side.[[/labelnote]] In some cases, a Crusading Lawyer becomes a prosecutor who takes on the most hopeless cases so that justice can be served and will never forget that they serve the people, the law, and the victim. Defense attorney examples are also common.
10
11In legal dramas, TheProtagonist usually fits this trope ''if'' he's a HeroProtagonist (a VillainProtagonist may be crusading for another cause and be opposed by a HeroAntagonist who more closely fits this trope). If you're in a CrapsackWorld or the protagonist is an AntiHero, they may have ''started'' as a Crusading Lawyer before turning into the WellIntentionedExtremist version of an AmoralAttorney. If a Crusading Lawyer lives in a CrapsackWorld but continues to live up to this trope, expect them to have at least become a KnightInSourArmor. If the character happens to be "quirky" as well as a competent lawyer, you have a (literal) BunnyEarsLawyer. The two tropes aren't mutually exclusive, and a BunnyEarsLawyer may turn out to be a Crusading Lawyer despite using UnconventionalCourtroomTactics. If the crusader loses and goes beyond the bounds of the law, they've crossed the line and become a version of the WellIntentionedExtremist. This can be permanent, a form of CharacterDevelopment (particularly when done in reverse), or temporary.
12
13Contrast this trope with other lawyers who are OnlyInItForTheMoney. These kinds don't care who you are or what they are represent at court as long as the bill gets paid. You can also contrast with [[AmoralAttorney amoral attorneys]] who will do anything to win, regardless of the broader impact and with no concern for what's "right."
14
15Compare to GoodLawyersGoodClients. A Crusading Lawyer can appear outside of criminal cases -- civil litigation is ''hugely'' expensive, so the crusader may decide to fight for a nobody in a police brutality case. In criminal law, crusaders may defend the obviously guilty to uphold the right to a fair trial, if the [[ToBeLawfulOrGood letters of the law do not fully suit the situation]], or because of broader issues related to the case. Depending on where the work in question falls on the SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism, it's possible to see two crusaders in head-to-head battle.
16
17%% When adding examples, please remember to add full context! Zero Context Examples are not allowed.
18
19----
20!!Examples:
21
22[[foldercontrol]]
23
24[[folder:Anime And Manga]]
25* ''{{Anime/Monster}}'': Fritz Verdemann is devoted to [[GoodLawyersGoodClients defending people he believes to be innocent]], due to his conviction that his father was wrongly accused of being a communist spy. Hired by [[spoiler:sympathetic former patients]], he ends up defending [[spoiler:the neurosurgeon Dr. Kenzo Tenma]], who is accused of crimes he didn't actually commit and is [[spoiler:hunting for the true perpetrator]].
26* ''Manga/CaseClosed'': Ran's mother Eri Kisaki is a lawyer and, when she's actually shown at her work, she has strong traces of this. i.e., a {{filler}} case has her defending a guy who's been accused of murder because she's sure that not only he isn't the culprit, but because she believes he's TakingTheHeat. [[spoiler: She's right.]]
27[[/folder]]
28
29[[folder:Comic Books]]
30* From Marvel, [[Comicbook/{{Daredevil}} Matt Murdock]] and Comicbook/SheHulk both bring the same sense of work ethics and morality into their [[SecretIdentity day-job]] as they do the courtroom. And as hard as it is to believe, [[LetsYouAndHimFight given how much the good guys seem to love fighting each other in comics]], it took ''until 2014'' before the two [[http://marvel.com/comics/issue/49124/she-hulk_2014_10 opposed each other on opposite sides in a case.]]
31* The latest, pre-Comicbook/{{New 52}} incarnation of ComicBook/{{Manhunter}} (No, not the [[ComicBook/MartianManhunter green one]]) shows one of the more extreme versions of this trope, as she is a prosecutor willing to bring criminals justice as vigilante if it isn't found in court.
32* [[Franchise/{{Batman}} Harvey Dent]] was a District Attorney in Gotham City and ally of Batman before a Gangster throws acid in his face and he becomes ComicBook/TwoFace.
33* ''ComicBook/HardTime'' has Julius and Truth Rosenberg, a pair of these portrayed in a ''bad'' light -- as the DistantFinale reveals, they were only interested in Ethan's hot-button case as a way to grab headlines. The second they thought associating with Ethan might reflect badly on them, they abandoned him. [[spoiler:Ethan never heard from them again, and ended up serving his full 50-year sentence.]]
34* ''ComicBook/AnimalMan'': The alternate future miniseries ''The Last Days of Animal Man'' shows Buddy Baker's son Cliff growing up to become a lawyer who is so passionate about providing legal council for those who need it that he barely has time for his persona life.
35[[/folder]]
36
37[[folder:FanWorks]]
38
39* ''Blog/BetterBonesAU'': Lizardstripe is an example in the afterlife due to participating in JudgmentOfTheDead, managing to get her friend Bluestar into [[{{Heaven}} [=StarClan=]]] while making her enemy Thistleclaw and his supporters look horrible in the process.
40* ''Fanfic/{{Mortified}}'': Advocates are an interesting case, in that most of them are this not due to any innate sense of justice but rather because their Obsessions are related to arguing and winning cases. As such, most firms don't really charge anything for their services, instead offering them for free for the sake of more exposure and thus chances for more cases.
41[[/folder]]
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43[[folder:Film]]
44* The kung-fu film ''Film/DragonsForever'' has its protagonist Jackie (played by Creator/JackieChan, no less!) who is originally hired by an evil industrialist to steal the rights of a fishing village, but ultimately ends up helping the village folk.
45%% * Edward L. Masry in ''Film/ErinBrockovich'', though more on the "ending there" than "starting there" side. Also in RealLife.
46%% * Similarly Joe Miller from ''Film/{{Philadelphia}}''
47* Fred Gailey in ''Film/MiracleOn34thStreet'' (renamed Bill Schaffner in the 1973 version and Bryan Bedford in 1994 one) is this; after his law firm tells him to drop the case in fear of bad publicity, Gailey quits, claiming he'll start his own simply to help guys like Kris.
48%% * Alan Isaacman in ''Film/ThePeopleVsLarryFlynt''
49* When superheroes were started to be sued and banned by the government in ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles1'', daytime-lawyer/nighttime-hero Gazerbeam fought as hard as he could for the rights of his masked compatriots.
50%% * Like in the comics, [[Film/TheDarkKnight Harvey Dent]].
51* John Travolta's character Jan Schlichtmann in ''Film/ACivilAction'' was this type of lawyer. He ended up [[spoiler: going bankrupt]] because of his dedication to the cause.
52* Ari Josephson in ''Film/TheChase1994'' was this for Jack Hammond pre-film, though he failed at it (the one crucial piece of evidence for his defense was disallowed). He tries to talk Jack out of running but is unsuccessful. By the end of the movie, he's rooting for Jack to get away.
53* Craig, from the film ''Film/InThisOurLife'', doesn't make much money with his law firm, but he's willing to help his clients whenever he can even if they don't have to money to pay him. He even rejects Uncle Fitzroy's offer to help with the legal side of his business (something that would bring him a lot of money) because he disagrees with Fitzroy's practices. He even gives Parry Clay, the Timberlake's African American helper, a job as a clerk because he wants to become a lawyer (this being the 1940s, it was a rare and very progressive gesture.)
54* In ''Film/{{Spotlight}}'', Mitchell Garabedian is the only lawyer in Boston who will bring cases of sex abuse against the Catholic Church in court rather than settling them quietly.
55* James Donovan in ''Film/BridgeOfSpies'' becomes this, taking the case of accused Soviet spy Rudolf Abel because he believes even those working against the United States deserve protection under the Constitution.
56* ''Film/TrappedTheAlexCooperStory'': One of these, Paul C. Burke, gets teenage lesbian Alex free of the Simms (who run a brutal [[CureYourGays conversion therapy camp]]) and her fundamentalist parents (who sent her there) in the end. He has since become a part of Alex's extended family.
57* ''Film/TheTurningPoint1952'': John Conroy wants to use his position as prosecutor to eliminate corruption in his city.
58* In ''Film/Victim1961'', Mel morphs into one after the death of Barrett.
59* ''Film/FatherOfTheBride2022'': Billy is appalled that his daughter Sofia and her soon-to-be-husband Adan want to move to Mexico to work for a nonprofit helping immigrants at the border when they could get any job they wanted as NYU Law grads. He sees it as a downgrade to their comfortable lives in America and the gains that Billy's generation has made. Adan clarifies that Sofia wanted to do it because she had ImmigrantParents.
60[[/folder]]
61
62[[folder:Literature]]
63* ''Literature/TwentySixSixtySix'': Klaus’s lawyer. [[spoiler: The fact that they're sleeping together gives her an incentive.]]
64* ''Literature/BenSaffordMysteries:'' ''The Attending Physician'' features two such lawyers.
65** Murder victim Sidney Karras initially seems like an AmbulanceChaser out to cash in on a Medicaid scandal using stolen documents to make his case. However,r it turns out that Karras had nothing to do with the theft and has dedicated his decades-long career to social justice issues and helping low-income clients who can't pay him much. The lawsuit which costs him his life is driven by a desire to help a young mother whose husband has multiple sclerosis.
66** Michael Isham is from a bigger, more successful firm, but he is motivated by a genuine desire to help his client (a blind man on welfare) get his life in order, and he also ends up representing Karras's client after his death.
67--> '''Isham:''' Real satisfaction comes from the big jobs--like devoting your life to outlawing child labor--or from the little jobs that make a big difference to one human being, that are damn near life transforming.
68* ''Literature/BehindTheSandratHoax'': R.J. Rocklash and J. Harrington Savage sue Bancroff for pettily trying to prevent Cathcart from receiving an award after it's proven that eating sandrats prevents dehydration. They also file a class-action suit on behalf of the families of 162 people who died of thirst in various deserts after Bancroff's media campaign falsely claims that eating sandrats ''increases'' the chances of dying of thirst.
69* ''Literature/TheFragilityOfBodies'': Federico is a lawyer who fully supports Verónica's work as an IntrepidReporter, doing constant legal favors for her not only due to their romantic connection, but over a mutual desire to see justice done.
70* ''Literature/LetMeCallYouSweetheart'' features two notable examples:
71** Kerry [=McGrath=], a prosecutor and aspiring judge who believes strongly in getting justice for victims and their loved ones, and refuses to accept job offers from law firms even though they pay better because she's more interested in justice.
72** Geoff Dorso, a defence lawyer who feels compelled to advocate for people affected by mitigating circumstances, or who he believes to be innocent.
73* ''Literature/MightAsWellBeDead'': Peter's lawyer Albert Freyer is a determined and intelligent advocate for his innocent client even though Peter doesn't have enough money to adequately pay him.
74* ''Literature/ToKillAMockingbird'': Atticus Finch didn't want the case but works to the best of his abilities anyhow, being dedicated to justice.
75* Literature/MickeyHaller:
76** Margareth [=McPherson=] a.k.a. Maggie [=McFierce=] is a prosecutor who is more interested in justice than in winning cases.
77** Her ex-husband, Mickey himself, fits the trope in a roundabout fashion. He spends the majority of his career as a criminal defense attorney, and his clients are usually guilty of something, if not necessarily the crime they're accused of. While he isn't above hunting for lucrative cases and cashing in on publicity his usual clientele comes from the lower echelons of society and he views himself as standing up for the little guy against a large, unwieldy, and often flawed judicial system.
78* In the ''Literature/XWingSeries'' we have Nawara Ven. While a Pilot for Rogue Squadron he was originally a lawyer defending non-humans in the very [[FantasticRacism humanocentric]] Galactic Empire. Later he defends one Squadron mate who is accused of killing another.
79--> "You would have hated me if you were trying to make a case against one of my clients - whether he was lying about his innocence or not."
80[[/folder]]
81
82[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
83* ''Series/{{JAG}}'' veers into this sometimes, as they go to some lengths to win their cases, like firing a submachine gun in the courtroom.
84%% * ''Series/DropDeadDiva'' has the lawyers of Harrison & Parker, particularly Jane and Grayson.
85* In ''Series/BostonLegal'', most lawyers at Crane, Pool & Schmidt, given the right case. Especially Alan Shore (after some CharacterDevelopment), who is always willing to stand onto his soapbox for the underdog, bends this and AmoralAttorney together into a nice pretzel.
86* Shore was first a character on ''Series/ThePractice'', off of which ''Boston Legal'' was spun off. The firm of Donnell, Young, et al tended toward fighting for the little guy, sometimes with questionable methods, and even more often methods that get them yelled at. Shore, introduced in the final season, is more of an AmoralAttorney in context, but even with him it's more a matter of method, as deep down he cares as well.
87* Series/{{Ally McBeal}} and John Cage are also often emphatic about their clients' troubles and determined to help.
88* ''Series/TheCloser'' has Peter Goldman, Brenda Johnson's attorney in the Turrell Baylor lawsuit. At first, he won't work without pay but in the end, he is willing to work ''pro bono'' (and publicity).
89%% * Series/EliStone ends up as this after some CharacterDevelopment.
90* Who can we get on the case? We need Franchise/PerryMason, who takes on hopeless cases and fights until victory.
91%% * Series/{{Matlock}} as well, him being the CoolOldGuy version of Perry Mason.
92* ''Franchise/LawAndOrder'' has its share. A lot of them tend more towards the morally gray area of this trope, skirting into KnightTemplar or AmoralAttorney territory sometimes.
93** Jack [=McCoy=] is probably the most prominent of them, with his methods letting him skirt into AmoralAttorney territory occasionally.
94** Alex Cabot from ''[[Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit SVU]]'' is also willing to interpret the law somewhat creatively in order to bring justice.
95*** Also from SVU: Casey Novak slips off the slippery slope in her crusade against a child-raping police officer and violating due process, ending with her getting censured and losing her license for 3 years (getting disbarred before a {{Retcon}}). There was also a famous incident where she subpoenaed [[RefugeInAudacity the US Secretary of Defense]].
96*** Also from SVU is Kim Greylek, who had the in-universe nickname "Crusader" while working at the Department of Justice. However, this (at least during her tenure at SVU) turned out to be more of an InformedAttribute.
97*** Rafael Barba is this as well, though much more pragmatic than any of his predecessors.
98** On the defending side we have Danielle Melnick, whose belief in the right to have counsel goes to the point where she (a Jewish woman) defends a neo-Nazi in court.
99** See also Shambala Green.
100%% * ''Series/RaisingTheBar'' shows lawyers from both sides, showing this trope from both sides in the same series
101* In [[Recap/BlakesSevenS1E1TheWayBack the first episode]] of ''Series/BlakesSeven'' the titular Blake has this kind of lawyer as representation, who got executed for his troubles.
102* In ''Series/HowIMetYourMother'', we have Marshall Eriksen, a man who seems completely devoted to the idea of saving the planet by becoming an environmental lawyer... Some day. This extends to the point that, as stated by Future!Ted in narration, ''[[OffscreenMomentOfAwesome he succeeds.]]''
103* Laurel Lance from ''Series/{{Arrow}}'' works for a legal aid office and seems to take great delight in taking on cases where people have been abused by the system.
104-->'''Laurel:''' If we can't win a class-action suit against a man who swindled hundreds of people out of their homes and life savings, then we're not fit to call ourselves a legal aid office.
105%% * The obscure 1970-71 series ''[[http://www.tvobscurities.com/spotlight/the-storefront-lawyers/ Storefront Lawyers]]'' (later retooled into ''Men at Law'').
106* In ''Series/Daredevil2015'', being this trope is a prerequisite to working at Nelson & Murdock. Matt Murdock lives his double life as a lawyer and as a vigilante with the interest of making Hell's Kitchen a better place. And even though she's just a secretary, Karen Page's investigating and exposing Wilson Fisk through the law and the press drives the plot just as much, if not more, than Matt's work.
107* Both the prosecution and defence in ''Series/ForThePeople'' often see themselves as fighting for justice, though Sandra takes the cake as she gets very emotionally invested in defending the downtrodden.
108* Usually {{averted}} in ''Series/TheGoodWife'', where AmoralAttorney is usually the norm (in the sense that they try to provide the best possible defense for their clients regardless of guilt or innocence, not that they're necessarily corrupt). There are exceptions, though:
109** One episode has a case nearly go constitutional when a businessman client of protagonist Alicia Florrick tries to claim SpousalPrivilege on his husband, colliding with the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defense_of_Marriage_Act Defense of Marriage Act]]. This attracts the attention of a noted constitutional law attorney who is on a mission to get DOMA struck down, an approach Lockhart & Gardner disagrees with on ethical grounds: they ''could'' hope for a conviction to be overturned on appeal under equal protection grounds, but at present, their ''job'' is to defend their client as best they can. [[spoiler:Ultimately their client is acquitted.]]
110** Alicia manages to significantly irritate a judge while working as a bar attorney by simply acting in accordance with her professional ethics, i.e. trying to provide each of her dozens of petty crime clients individually with the best representation she can, which slows down the court proceedings.
111* The 2018 drama ''Burden of Truth'' has Joanna, a corporate attorney, coming to her small hometown to give out pay-offs for people suing the company she represents about a vaccine-causing illness. She clashes with Billy Crawford, who admits his "Crawford & Associates" name is just him alone. But as Joanna realizes something in the town beside the vaccines is causing the illness, she ends up switching sides and joins with Billy to take on the true source of the illness.
112* ''Series/CrazyExGirlfriend'':
113** Given that the protagonist is a lawyer, many of the lawyers at her firm are neutral-leaning-towards-amoral. The truest example is Paula, who becomes a lawyer after starting as a paralegal. She pushes her firm to open a ''pro bono'' arm where she helps underprivileged people.
114** PlayedForLaughs in "Don't Be A Lawyer". Jim sings about how law in general is a terrible profession and says that lawyers in "crusading" positions like environmental, human rights, or immigration law make no money.
115--->'''Jim:''' Plus, [immigration law]'s a bummer.
116* ''Series/ForLife'': Aaron is dead-set on winning his exoneration, helping fellow prisoners then people in general he feels were screwed by the system, and removing corrupt attorney Glen Maskins, the man who prosecuted him.
117* ''Series/JudgeJohnDeed'': The title character himself, who very much believes in doing what is right, and refuses to be influenced by the government and big business.
118* ''Series/BurdenOfTruth'': Joanna becomes this after quitting her job with a huge corporate law firm that represented corporations being sued, taking up the claims of the weak and vulnerable instead.
119* ''Series/PrisonBreak:'' Veronica Donovan is a real-estate lawyer by training, but when no one else will defend her WrongfullyAccused childhood friend Lincoln in a capital case, Veronica steps up, risking her livelihood and her life to try to frame the conspiracy that framed Lincoln.
120* Pretty much every lawyer on ''Series/LALaw'' is this, but particularly Michael Kuzak. Harry Hamlin even said that his character ofttimes reminded him of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crusader_Rabbit Crusader Rabbit]].
121[[/folder]]
122
123[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
124* ''TabletopGame/InNomine'': Koriel, the Angel of Equal Justice, has dedicated herself to defending those who, by virtue of poor means, unpopularity, or bad luck, would not be given fair hearings in courts of law. Notable here is the weight that Words carry in the setting and for the celestials that bear them -- when Koriel took on the Word of Equal Justice, defending the unwanted and unpopular from unfair treatment ceased to simply be what she did and became her core purpose for being. She is often the last hope of outcast angels seeking to return to Heaven, and her superior Dominic, the Archangel of Judgement, has taken to calling her the Devil's Advocate -- which he means very literally. She serves as an important NPC ally in ''The Final Trumpet'', where she's the only major figure in Heaven willing to defend the outcast archangel Khalid or the disgraced Malakite Maximillian -- and, if the [=PCs=] were exiled at the end of the previous adventure, she's also their best chance of getting back into Heaven.
125%% * ''TabletopGame/WerewolfTheApocalypse'': Werewolves born under the Half Moon, called Philodox, tend to be this, if following a legal career.
126[[/folder]]
127
128[[folder:Video Games]]
129* ''VideoGame/AviaryAttorney'''s Jayjay Falcon works out to be this [[spoiler: in all but one ending]]. The player can choose repeatedly to have him want to abandon a case when it gets dangerous or refuse one, ButThouMust. Aside from those moments, he tries to be entirely valorous, ''especially'' in 4C (Fraternité). His rival Severin Cocorico is a lot less friendly and rarely sympathetic, and ''used'' to be an AmoralAttorney, but now pursues justice, not punishment.
130* The female protagonist of ''VideoGame/Fallout4'' is shown in deleted material (which can be brought back by mods) to have a streak of this, getting ready to defend a client that she knows is innocent of what he's being accused of.
131* Takayuki Yagami of ''Videogame/{{Judgment}}'' as well as its [[Videogame/LostJudgment sequel]] used to be a defense attorney until a defendant of his that he got off of a murder case ended up getting caught for killing his girlfriend, disgracing him and causing him to switch career to that of a private detective. Despite this, he still maintains a strong sense of justice and during the climax of his games will don his suit and enter the court to make sure the guilty pay in court.
132[[/folder]]
133
134[[folder:Visual Novels]]
135* ''Franchise/AceAttorney'':
136** VisualNovel/{{Phoenix Wright|AceAttorney}} might be one of the best examples of this trope. Yes, he is the universe's ButtMonkey, and his methods [[UnconventionalCourtroomTactics may sometimes be unorthodox]], but he ''will'' fight for a client he knows is innocent no matter the odds, and he ''will'' make sure [[ThePerryMasonMethod that the guilty pay for what they did]].
137** Phoenix's successor, VisualNovel/{{Apollo Justice|AceAttorney}}, follows the same path.
138** His mentor, Mia Fey, might even be more of a crusader than Phoenix. In what [[MentorOccupationalHazard little time we see her alive]], we find that she dedicated her career to taking down villains such as [[spoiler:Dahlia Hawthorne]] and [[spoiler:Redd White]]. The latter of these led to her death, but even after she dies, she repeatedly comes back to help Phoenix and co. by temporarily inhabiting the bodies of her [[ISeeDeadPeople spirit medium]] family members Maya and Pearl. Even ''death itself'' with not stop Mia Fey from taking down evil.
139** [[VisualNovel/AceAttorneyInvestigationsMilesEdgeworth Miles Edgeworth]] used to be [[AmoralAttorney a smug, ruthless prosecutor]], but by the time the first game ends, he's able to truly look inside himself now that the DL-6 case has been laid to rest and his father's killer has been brought to justice; he leaves for a year to find himself, and by the time he comes back, he's undergone some deep CharacterDevelopment and resolved to become the prosecutor version of this. His [[VisualNovel/AceAttorneyInvestigationsMilesEdgeworth two spinoff games]] show how far he's come, both as a prosecutor and a human being, revolving around him solving cases outside the courtroom and learning what it means to always seek the truth. Post-CharacterDevelopment, he sees himself as a sort of partner to Phoenix; he wants the guilty to be punished, Phoenix wants the innocent acquitted, so there's no real contradiction; if they both do their jobs well, then they can ensure justice works for everyone.
140** Miles's late father, Gregory Edgeworth, is yet another example, a defense attorney committed to getting the innocent acquitted and making sure no one twists the truth, refusing to tolerate any foul play during investigations and trials. He was able to expose a forced confession and forged evidence during Jeff Master's trial, and would have appealed for a retrial on these grounds if not for his untimely murder.
141[[/folder]]
142
143[[folder:Webcomics]]
144* Celia from ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'' is technically still at law school, but shows hallmarks that this will be the kind of lawyer she'll be.
145* Laurel Olsen from ''Webcomic/{{Rhapsodies}}'' is a quixotic idealist and believer in "legislation through litigation". She's toned it down a bit since the free legal clinic she was working out of got its funding cut and she found a more stable position.
146[[/folder]]
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148[[folder:Web Novel]]
149* ''Literature/CanYouSpareAQuarter'': Timothy is willing to do his lawyer job for Graham and Jamie without expecting payment, having been moved by the sight of [[ATasteOfTheLash the scars on Jamie's back]].
150[[/folder]]
151
152[[folder:Web Video]]
153* ''WebVideo/EconomyWatch'': Matthew Stratton is hired to get David's apartment back in one of the Season 2 episodes, and has no problem with helping David with his case.
154[[/folder]]
155
156[[folder:Western Animation]]
157* ''WesternAnimation/ToddMcFarlanesSpawn'': {{Deconstruction}}. Wanda Blake's presented with a case with fraudulent evidence against a client for the murder of several children and finds out the evidence was falsified by Jason Wynn and others like a US Senator to cover up the fact the Senator's serial-killing pedophile son Billy Kincaid was responsible to help the Senator's presidential campaign. [[HonorBeforeReason Even when Wanda has enough evidence to vindicate her client she still digs deeper to find out all the ones responsible despite warnings from others to stop while she's ahead]], which gets her daughter, husband, and herself attacked by Wynn and his associates to silence them and they would have been most certainly killed if not for Spawn's intervention.
158* Back and forth on ''WesternAnimation/HarveyBirdmanAttorneyAtLaw''. While the firm Harvey works for, Sebben & Sebben, is constantly engaged in criminal behavior, a lot of it not even attorney-related, Harvey himself seems to believe in his clients. Notably in one episode when he defended a plastic surgeon for a botched Botox injection, Harvey feels so bad for the plaintiff WesternAnimation/{{Droopy}} that he leaves all his money on Droopy's front door.
159[[/folder]]
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161[[folder:Real Life]]
162* TruthInTelevision: Many, many law students and graduates begin their careers with the intention of becoming a crusading lawyer. Many famous names fit this trope, with [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnnie_Cochran Johnnie Cochran]] perhaps being the Ur-example. It's not unheard of for legal firms (of any size) to take on civil cases ''pro bono'' as a way to give back, do the right thing, or otherwise help those who would never be represented.
163* Quite a few notorious dictators started out this way:
164** UsefulNotes/MaximilienRobespierre before the Revolution was known to have often catered to poor clients, helping in particular single mothers who had children out of wedlock, campaigning for the rights of eccentric would-be inventors, and helping in other civil cases. A lot of these cases were done by him pro-bono and it led to his election as a Third Estate representative in the Estates Assembly. Until [[ReignOfTerror the final year of his life]], he had a solid reputation as a principled man who helped the poor, known for standing up for the little guy, with even his friend Camille Desmoullins noting that in law school he had a reputation as a BullyHunter. Which [[KnightTemplar somehow both explains everything]] and leaves many questions unanswered.
165** UsefulNotes/JuliusCaesar in ancient Rome was an ImpoverishedPatrician living in the slums of the city, and he began his practise and his political career by helping poor Romans and challenging the abuses of corrupt governors and officials. Caesar as a politician was a populare, committed to helping and relieving the poor, but this also, as his critics noted, gave him a platform for grabbing power.
166** UsefulNotes/FidelCastro also started out as a lawyer who crusaded in favor of civil liberties against the [[UsefulNotes/FulgencioBatista Batista]] government. As UsefulNotes/NedKelly said, [[BecameTheirOwnAntithesis such is life]]...
167* It's common to paint UsefulNotes/AbrahamLincoln as this and there are a few instances of him helping out poor clients and doing pro-bono work (celebrated in Creator/JohnFord's ''Film/YoungMrLincoln''). But for the most part, Lincoln was a careerist lawyer, who wanted to build a successful practise, and he often worked as a corporate lawyer defending the interests of wealthy railroad clients. Thaddeus Stevens, the most famous abolitionist of his day, was likewise a career lawyer and in one ironic instance, actually successfully campaigned for the return of a runaway slave to its master under the Fugitive Slave Act (which he later considered his OldShame). Which proves that crusading politicians, even if they start out in law, aren't necessarily fully formed at the outset.
168* The [=ACLU=] (American Civil Liberties Union) is built around this trope. In one instance, the [=ACLU=] represented a pedophile -- and won -- due to the fact that the case hinged on an issue of free speech. They also defend or otherwise work to protect the rights of those harmed by racism, sexism, or over-zealous (or just flat-out corrupt) law enforcement.
169** They've readily defended people from all ends of the political spectrum in advocating civil liberties, even the free speech rights of the KKK.
170** Burton Joseph, an [=ACLU=] lawyer who [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Socialist_Party_of_America_v._Village_of_Skokie defended the Skokie Nazis]]' right to march through the Jewish community of Skokie, is one such example. This move was costly to the ACLU in alienating supporters but probably was worth it in the long run in showing that in defending constitutional rights, the ACLU ''really'' means it. Allowing the demonstration also let the Nazis inadvertently show their true nature (i.e., kind of pathetic) instead of making neo-Nazism into ForbiddenFruit. Bonus Points: The head of the ACLU at the time was not only Jewish, but a Holocaust survivor and fully supported their case.
171* Amnesty International's involvement with major human rights cases also falls under this trope. As with the above, both groups are non-profits, so attorneys working for them are likely making considerably less than they could in other jobs.
172* Thurgood Marshall, the great American civil rights lawyer and Supreme Court Justice said that his mentor inspired him with the statement, "A lawyer is either a social engineer or he is [[AmoralAttorney a parasite on society]]."
173* Lawyers who work for organizations that fight for causes of any stripe generally support the cause and think of themselves as helping crusade for it.
174* Gerry Spence created an academy for lawyers of the people, called the Trial Lawyers College. Its mission is to train lawyers to represent "the poor, the injured, the forgotten, the voiceless, the defenseless and the damned".
175[[/folder]]

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