The 2005-2006 bar year marked an important change for GP|Solo; we officially became the General Practice, Solo and Small Firm Division and, as such, the ABA recognized home for the solo and small firm lawyer population. The year was also dedicated to recognizing and celebrating the countless contributions of thousands of unsung heroes who are America’s Main Street Lawyers. Throughout the year, the Division’s leadership produced an incredible amount of programs and resources that have enabled the Division to better serve its membership and remain viable to the profession. An account of those activities can be found in the 2005-2006 Report of the Chair, available for download in PDF.

Congratulations to ABA President Karen J. Mathis

Former GP|Solo Division Chair Karen J. Mathis became president of the ABA on August 8th, 2006! President Mathis, a Denver lawyer, is the third woman to serve as an ABA President and the first lawyer from Colorado to head the nation’s largest association of lawyers. During her speech to the ABA House of Delegates last week in Honolulu, President Mathis said she would focus on mobilizing lawyers to help America’s at-risk youth, and on creating ways to help baby boom lawyers do meaningful volunteer service as they enter active retirement. Mathis also said she would work to promote the rule of law internationally during her one-year term.

President Mathis was Chair of the GP|Solo Division from 2002-2003 and, among other things, instituted the Division’s Difference Makers Program which pays tribute to outstanding local area lawyers who have made a difference in the lives of fellow citizens particularly, although not exclusively, by breaking down barriers for women, people of color, people with disabilities and people regardless of sexual orientation.

For more information about President Mathis and her initiatives, please visit the ABA President’s Homepage.

Congratulations to ABA House of Delegates Chair Laurel G. Bellows

GP|Solo Division Council Member Laurel G. Bellows took office as chair of the ABA’s House of Delegates (HOD) at the conclusion of the ABA Annual Meeting in Hawaii last week. HOD Chair Bellows, a Chicago lawyer, is the first person from Illinois to be elected to an association-wide office since 1975. The HOD is the ABA’s policy-making body, and the two-year post of chair is the second-highest elected office in the organization.

HOD Chair Bellows formerly served as the ABA Board of Governors’ liaison to the GP|Solo Division and later became an elected Council Member of the Division in 2004. She will continue to serve on the Council until her seat is up for election in 2008.

For more information about HOD Chair Bellows and the House of Delegates, please visit her Chair’s Page.

Practice Builders Teleconference

Diagnosing and Treating Ethical Dilemmas at Your Solo or Small Firm
Thursday, September 7, 2006
1:00 PM-2:30 PM (Eastern)

In this Practice Builders teleconference and live audio webcast, our panelists will present a national “snapshot” of malpractice data and discuss hypothetical scenarios to illustrate potential ethical and malpractice issues at solo and small firms. 

We have created a new CLE page! On it you can now find:

• Information about our Practice Builders teleconference series;
• Download CLE Materials from past materials;
• Find out more about our CLE programs on the WestLegalEdCenter; and
• Other CLE news.

The GP|Solo Division’s Council and Executive Committee voted to cosponsor the following reports up for action at the House of Delegates Meeting in Hawaii:

• Report #10A: Urges federal, state, territorial, tribal, and local governments to assure that adequate and appropriate services are made readily available to at-risk youth and their caretakers by ensuring that community mental health systems serving youth are reinvigorated and significantly expanded to provide greater access to troubled youth and their caretakers. (APPROVED AS REVISED)
• Report # 114: Adopts the Standards of Practice for Attorneys Representing Parents in Abuse and Neglect Cases, dated August 2006, which would clarify the role of parents’ attorneys in the same type of cases. (APPROVED AS AMENDED)
• Report #117: Supports the Proposed Attorney Discipline Amendments to the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure that would clarify the authority of bankruptcy courts to discipline attorneys engaging in a pattern of misconduct and require district or bankruptcy courts to adopt and enforce local disciplinary rules and procedures with respect to attorneys practicing before bankruptcy courts and which comply with the ABA Model Federal Rules of Disciplinary Enforcement and the ABA Standards for Imposing Lawyer Sanctions. (APPROVED)
• Report #121B: Urges law schools to require legal employers that recruit on campus to disclose, and to make available to the schools’ students and alumni, specific information regarding the employer’s pro bono policies, practices and activities and urges law schools to adopt the Pro Bono Disclosure Requirements for Law School Recruiters, dated August 2006. (APPROVED)
• Report #302A: Supports the preservation of the attorney-client privilege and work product doctrine in connection with audits of company financial statements and urges the Securities and Exchange Commission and other relevant organizations to adopt standards, policies, practices and procedures and take other appropriate steps to ensure that attorney-client privilege and work product protections are preserved throughout the audit process. (APPROVED)

For more information, please download the Daily Journal of the HOD at the 2006 Annual Meeting (PDF).

Per Division tradition, Outgoing Chair Dwight L. Smith passed the gavel to Incoming Chair John P. Macy at the Division’s Council Meeting on Saturday, August 5th, at the 2006 Annual Meeting.

Mr. Smith was presented with two gifts and a Plaque of Appreciation by the Division’s 2005-2006 Council for his tireless service to the Division over the past year. The two gifts were a Native American Medicine Mask Ring and a Native American Painting on the Constitution. The ring was designed by Fernando Benally, of Navaho and Aztec decent, who prepared the one-of-a-kind ring pertaining to the qualities of life for Mr. Smith. The painting included the following saying on the back of the Constitution added by the artist- “The first 10 amendments to the constitution of the United States guaranteed rights to the people as freedom of speech, assembly and worship. The Bill of Rights did not apply to the First Americans (Native Americans) for 150 years until the 20th Century when they were given U.S. citizenship.”

Mr. Smith is a member of the Osage Tribe with his ancestors as members of the Black Dog Clan within the Osage Nation. He currently lives on 160 acres that was deeded to his great, great grandmother when President Andrew Jackson removed all Native Americans from reservations in Oklahoma. Dwight is a voting member of the tribe and currently holds his CIB card proudly.

Chair Macy then announced the Division’s new theme for the year as “Do Something… For Your Profession, Your Community, Yourself.” To learn more about Mr. Macy’s plans for the 2006-2007 bar year, read his GPSolo Chair’s Corner from March 2006.

GP|Solo Division Fall Meeting
October 18-22, 2006
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Pfister Hotel (Room Rate is $140 a night)

More info coming soon!

Solosez is an email discussion list for solo and small firm lawyers. Now celebrating its 10th anniversary, Solosez has grown to be by far the ABA's busiest list.

For a taste of what Solosez has to offer, check out the popular threads on Solosez's website. Last month's threads were:

• How Do You Burn A CD Of Your Files?
• Should I Talk To The Press About A Pending Case?
• How Do You Deal With Anxiety Of Going To Court?
• Name For <<<Marks>>>
• Google Calendar

The Division welcomes the Diversity Fellows for the 2006-2007 bar year:

• Youshea Berry, Washington, D.C.;
• Lisa Chang, Atlanta, Georgia;
• Jane Kow, San Francisco, California; and
• Richard Evangelista, Kingshill, Virgin Islands.

The Diversity Fellows Program is designed to promote ethnic diversity within the Division, recruit members of color, and provide leadership development opportunities within the Division for members of color.

For more information about the Diversity Fellows Program, please visit the Division's Diversity Welcome page

The Division is pleased to announce that Robert S. Spoja of Lewistown, MT and Deanna Zinno of Canton, MI have been chosen as the Division’s inaugural Young Lawyer Fellowship Class of 2006-2007. The program provides young lawyers the opportunity to become actively and integrally involved in the Division’s meetings and committees. In addition to serving on the Division’s Young Lawyer Committee, both of the Fellows have been appointed as Assistant Issue Editors for the Division’s New Lawyer e-Newsletter. The Fellows will also be expected to complete a substantive project for the Division. We look forward to the talent and enthusiasm that Robert and Deanna will bring to our Division. Welcome aboard!

For more information about the Division’s Young Lawyer Fellowship program and other young lawyer activities, please visit the Division’s Young Lawyer Welcome page.

The Standing Committee on Paralegals is currently engaged in the development of educational materials that will focus on attorneys in general practice, solo and small firm practice settings. They are seeking your input to focus development of future projects to meet your specific needs.

Please click here to launch a brief survey that should take no more than 5 minutes of your time.  Thank you in advance for your participation in this study.

Understanding the Americans with Disabilities Act, Second Edition

This book, written from the perspective of a lawyer with a disability, demonstrates that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is not just a law, but a way of life.

Price: $69.95
GP|Solo members: $54.95

Note: The ABA is offering free UPS Ground Shipping on all webstore purchases by August 25, 2006!

Find out about other GP|Solo books at our bookstore.

We’ve just returned from the ABA’s 2006 Annual Meeting in Honolulu where the Division sponsored numerous programs and events. Below are a few highlights:

CLE Programs

Solo Day. By all accounts, Solo Day was a big success. Over 100 attended the two seminars. The first session was standing room only and the second session was well attended as well.

Historical Trial - The Massie Case. Set in Hawaii in the early 1930’s, the Massie trial was a compelling drama involving power, race, government, and politics. The program’s special guest speaker was Hawaii Lt. Gov. James Aiona who played the Judge.

(Front row) Honolulu attorney David Farmer (the Prosecutor), Honolulu attorney Marvin Dang (Moderator), Connecticut attorney David Weinberg (Program Chair), and Honolulu attorney Howard Luke (the Defense Attorney).
(Back row) Law Professor James Starrs from Washington, D.C. (an Expert Witness), Hawaii Lt. Governor James Aiona (the Judge), and Dr. Darlene Shelton from Connecticut (an Expert Witness).

A copy of the Division’s CLE materials (26MB PDF) from Annual is available in our CLE section. All of the programs will also be available as online CLE programs for purchase via the WestLegalEd Center. Remember, GPSolo Division members receive a special discount on all GPSolo-West Online CLE. Keep checking as the programs will be posted soon!

Meetings

Council Meeting. Both the 2005-2006 Council and the 2006-2007 Council met on Saturday, August 5th. In addition to the numerous HOD reports/ cosponsorship requests voted on by the Council, the Division supported a proposal submitted by the Center for Professional Responsibility to allow 4 solo and small firm lawyer liaisons to be appointed by the Division to Standing Committee on Ethics and the Standing Committee on Professional Discipline (2 liaisons each) for the coming year. The Gavel was also passed from Outgoing Chair Dwight L. Smith to Incoming Chair John P. Macy. (See article in this issue about the transition.)

Solo and Small Firm Lawyers Caucus: Over 100 solo and small firm lawyer leaders attended the Division’s caucus. Topics included membership of solos in the ABA, a status report on the Division’s conversion from section to division, and items before the HOD affecting solo and small firm lawyers.

Committee Meetings. Numerous Division committees met during the Annual Meeting to continue working on ongoing projects and to start working on projects for the upcoming bar year. Thank you to all of the Division members who flew out to Hawaii to join in the meetings!

Events

Awards Dinner. Donning their best Hawaiian shirts, the Division’s members headed over to The Willows to celebrate the following Annual Solo and Small Firm Award Winners:

• Allen M. Smallwood, Esq. Tulsa, OK (Donald C. Rikli Solo Lifetime Achievement Award)
• Marvin S.C. Dang, Esq. Honolulu, HI (Annual Small Firm Practitioner of Merit Award)
• DuPage County Bar Association, William E. Hooper Attorney Resource Center, Keith E. Roberts, Jr., President (Solo and Small Firm Project Award)
• Missouri Bar Association, Solo and Small Firm Committee, Solo and Small Firm Law Student Initiative, Frederick J. Cruse, Chair (Solo and Small Firm Project Award)

Keithe. E. Nelson Memorial Military Law Committee Luncheon. Rear Admiral Stephen S. Voetsch, Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, Training and Readiness U.S. Pacific Fleet provided a fascinating overview of the Pacific Fleet as the luncheon’s keynote speaker. The Standing Committee on Armed Forces Law handed out their annual awards for distinguished service writing and outstanding military service for each of the branches of the military. The program was immediately followed by a Swearing-In Ceremony to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces.

Military Dining-Out. This year’s sold-out event, hosted by the United States Air Force, continued the tradition of the military’s dining-out ceremony. If you have never attended this event, please mark your calendar to do so next year at the 2007 Annual Meeting in San Francisco!

Special thanks goes out to our Honolulu Meetings Host, Marvin Dang, for his help in coordinating the Division’s events and programs, and to David Lefton, Chair of the Solo Day Committee, and the other members of the Committee for the incredible programming they produced at this year’s Solo Day.

As part of an ABA-wide effort to standardize the look and feel of the ABA's website, GP|Solo's website has changed and we'd like to know:

• Do you like it?
• Your opinion about the look and navigation
• How it compares to the old design (if you have been to the site before).

Take our survey and tell us what you think.

We would love to know what you think about The Buzz. Please email us your comments, compliments and criticisms.