Law Spider elected as president of the Virginia State Bar

Bruce Russell II, L’00, became president-elect of the Virginia State Bar in July, the first attorney from west of Roanoke to hold the position in nearly three decades. He encourages statewide unity from his home in Abingdon.

“It’s very important that attorneys realize that this is everyone’s state bar,” Russell says.

Among Russell’s ambitions is to address Virginia’s legal deserts — communities without enough attorneys to meet residents’ needs. Russell contributed to a recent State Bar report that identified 60 of the commonwealth’s 133 counties and cities as legal deserts, including his own.

Russell, who grew up in Cedar Bluff, never expected to return to southwest Virginia to practice law. But when a job offer drew him back more than 25 years ago, he saw firsthand how difficult it could be for residents to find legal representation — even for everyday matters like traffic citations and estate planning. In response, he launched his own practice, referring to himself as “a modern country lawyer.”

“In places like ours, a lawyer is not just a ‘hired gun’ for a transaction,” Russell says. “A lawyer is often to various degrees a counselor, a translator, a troubleshooter, a neighbor, and sometimes the last person standing between a client and abject ruin. [Rural attorneys] still practice in courthouses where everyone knows everyone, where reputation matters, where your word has weight, and where the work cannot be separated from the community it serves.”

Now, the country lawyer brings that perspective to the state bar as he works to bridge the justice gap. He sees promise in strategies such as virtual court and legal services; incentives for private practitioners; and stronger collaborations among community organizations, bar associations, and legal aid clinics. Through his work, he hopes more Virginians can access legal help — regardless of where they live.