Welcome to the website of the Orthodox Christian Attorney Network! We're a fellowship of Orthodox Christian attorneys and law students from across the United States who share a desire to build relationships and learn to serve our Lord through the legal profession.
We are pleased to announce that after six years as an informal group, OCAN has now been formally established as a nonprofit corporation and we're ready to take OCAN's ministry to a higher level.
OCAN is not just another professional association. We'd like to help make your legal career a part of your life journey in Christ. As St. Paul said, “Whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Col. 3:17).
We invite you to join us for what we hope will be a career-transforming journey. Check out our website to learn more about our history, mission, and purposes.
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Icon of Extreme Humility |
Thoughts on Humility
for Orthodox Christian Attorneys
Speaker: Lory Barsdate Easton
Thursday, April 10, 2025
12:00 pm ET/9:00 am PT
In the Lenten prayer of St. Ephrem the Syrian, we ask the Lord to give us the spirit of humility. What is humility, and what does it mean to be humble as a lawyer? This webinar will discuss the virtue of humility, touching on Orthodox teachings and recent psychological research, and will explore challenges for lawyers seeking to grow closer to Christ through humility.
We will discuss some of the specific pitfalls for lawyers, including:
- the competitive and adversarial aspects of the profession,
- the encouragement to be self-promoting as "marketing,"
- the temptations of specialized knowledge, prestige, and power, and
- the dangers of stress and burnout
We also will consider some examples of humility in action in legal practice. Entering Holy Week, Orthodox Christians are brought face-to-face with the icon depicting the Extreme Humility of Christ. Join us before Lent ends to consider how our Lord Himself tolerated shame and injustice – to the grave – and what that means for us as lawyers.
About the Speaker: Lory Barsdate Easton
Lory worked as an ombudsman investigator for the State of Alaska before attending Yale Law School, and she then spent over 25 years in Big Law as a litigator in mass torts defense After retirement, Lory earned her Masters in Clinical Psychology from Divine Mercy University, a Roman Catholic graduate school in Virginia. Her leadership roles on the diversity and associate development committees at her multinational law firm sparked her interest in the psychological and spiritual aspects of cross-group interactions and personal/professional flourishing. In recent years she has presented at conferences of the American Psychological Association, the Association for Death Education and Counseling, and OCAMPR (Orthodox Christian Association of Medicine, Psychology, and Religion) on topics including humility for professionals, vocation as an aspect of identity, non-death loss associated with career change, and the integration of spirituality in psychotherapy. Her research interests include cultural humility, peer and coaching support for grief and loss, and identity development over the lifespan.
Lory and her husband Bob are Founding Supporters of OCAN. They have two children, an eighth grader and a high school sophomore. The Eastons are members of All Saints of North America Orthodox Church in Alexandria, Virginia, where Lory sings in the choir, teaches Sunday School, and leads charitable outreach projects. Lory is a founding board member of FOCUS North America (Fellowship of Orthodox Christians United to Serve). She also frequently presents reflections for the OCAN monthly Women's Coffee Hour.
Confidentiality of Confession
IN THE ORTHODOX CANONICAL TRADITION,
AND ITS LEGAL CHALLENGES
In a majority of U.S. states, clergy are considered mandatory reporters of child abuse. Generally, such laws have carved out an exception for information clergy learns during Confession. In recent years however, multiple states have removed, or made efforts to remove, this exception. This webinar will explore the canonical support and rationale for the confidentiality of Confession in the Orthodox tradition. An understanding of this will allow an evaluation and hopefully a response to these legal challenges.
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Adn. Justin Bosl |
Speaker: Archdeacon Justin Bosl earned his J.D. from the University of San Francisco School of Law after studying philosophy at Franciscan University of Steubenville. For nearly 19 years he was a trial lawyer and shareholder at Kazan, McClain, Satterley & Greenwood in Oakland, California representing injured workers and consumers in toxic tort litigation. In 2023, he resigned from the firm to focus full-time on serving the Church. He graduated from the diaconate program at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology and holds a M.Div. from the Antiochian House of Studies. He is currently enrolled in the Th.M. program at Holy Cross. He serves as the Archdeacon of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of San Francisco as well as the chair of the Metropolis Legal Committee and serves on a variety of boards and committees for the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese and Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops. He and his wife have four children and live in the San Francisco Bay Area.
If you missed the webinar or wish to share it with others, click below for the recording and presentation slides.
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“The emergence of the Orthodox Christian Attorney Network is a long-awaited and happy development for Orthodox Christianity in the United States. Creating this national pan-Orthodox professional community will clearly enhance the presence of Orthodox Christianity in the legal and judicial systems of our culture, and reinforce the principles and values of our holy faith among an important and underserved portion of our faithful. Having Orthodox Christian leaders in the legal community will doubtless enhance the quality of legal thinking in the United States, and provide a much-needed support system for faithful lawyers around the country. We look forward to the many blessings that will emerge within and because of OCAN.”
- Eric S. Namee, Managing Member, Hinkle Law Firm and President, Virginia H. Farah Foundation
The information provided on this website does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice. All content on this site is for general informational purposes only and should not be relied upon without seeking legal advice from one’s own attorney. Use of this website does not create an attorney-client relationship between the reader and OCAN or any authors. All liability with respect to actions taken or not taken based on the content of this site are expressly disclaimed.