The 2008-09 national office of Vice Chair - Student Bar Associations will be elected by the SBA Conference and the Law Student Division Board of Governors during the ABA Annual Meeting in New York City, New York, August 7-12, 2008. The postmark deadline for filing nominating papers is June 1, 2008.

The electoral process is governed by the Law Student Division Bylaws and supplemented with procedures set forth by the Division Board of Governors. Candidates for national office must attend the ABA Annual Meeting at their own expense, or seek funds from non-Division sources (e.g., law school dean). The rules and procedures for the nomination and election of a national officer are set forth below. Note: Campaign activities are strictly limited. Additional information, if necessary, will be sent to candidates after the filing deadline.

Eligibility. Any law student attending an American Bar Association-approved law school is eligible to seek office. A candidate for office must be an ABA Law Student Division member in good standing. A candidate who has not paid his/her dues in full at the time of filing shall not be certified as an eligible candidate. The candidate also must be a student in good standing in law school (not on academic probation or suspension) during the 2007-2008 academic year who has not received his or her first degree in law, and must be a law student during the academic year subsequent to June 1, 2008. A candidate for Vice Chair-SBA must have participated in a student bar association.

Nomination Procedure. Interested students should obtain a set of nomination forms from the ABA Law Student Division web site www.abanet.org/lsd. Nomination is completed by the candidate timely filing the following nomination papers to the American Bar Association, Law Student Division, Attn: Nominations, 321 North Clark Street, 19th Floor, Chicago, IL 60610:

• Nomination Form: This form declares the student's candidacy for a particular office and states that the student has read and will observe the election rules and campaign restrictions.
  
• Dean's certification: The dean of the candidate's law school pledges support to the candidate and states approval of the candidacy on this form.
  
• Statement of candidacy and résumé: Each candidate shall enclose with the nomination forms a résumé and camera-ready typewritten statement of candidacy. The résumé and statement together must not exceed three one-sided 8-1/2 x 11-inch pages, which may be single-spaced. In the statement, the candidate should state his or her qualifications, platform, and ABA involvement. The three-page statement and résumé will be printed and distributed to meeting attendees.

The Chicago office will verify each candidate's membership. A candidate who has not paid his or her dues in full at the time of filing shall not be certified as an eligible candidate.

Evaluation Process. Each candidate should be prepared to present a five-minute speech to the Student Bar Association Conference, which will be followed by a question-and-answer session. Election is by simple majority and results will be announced at the Assembly.

Filing Deadline. In order for a student to be eligible for certification as a candidate for office, a completed nomination form, candidate's statement and résumé must be mailed to:

American Bar Association
Law Student Division
Attn: Nominations
321 North Clark Street, 19th Floor
Chicago, IL 60610

The resume and candidate's statement must not exceed three one-sided, 8.5" x 11" pages, which may be single-spaced.

The nomination form, candidate's statement and resume must be POSTMARKED no later than June 1, 2008, using an overnight mail service (i.e.: Federal Express) to furnish clear proof of sending and receipt. Nominations sent via regular mail are not eligible for certification. This is a "strict liability" deadline and requirement. No exceptions will be granted.

Board Standing Committee on Elections. The Standing Committee on Elections shall help administer these rules without partiality toward any candidate. The Division chair shall ensure that appointed Committee members are impartial.

Procedure After Filing of Nominating Papers. After the Chicago office has received all candidates' nominating papers, the Standing Committee on Elections and the Division staff will begin the certification process. All candidates who have met the conditions of the nomination procedures will be considered candidates for national office. The Committee will notify anyone disqualified as soon as possible. Certified candidates will be informed around June 15, 2008.

Code of Election Guidelines. The following regulations govern all candidates’ campaigns and shall be strictly construed by the Board’s Standing Committee on Elections.   A candidate may be disqualified for failing to comply with these regulations. These regulations will be enforced in an effort to achieve adherence to the goals and principles of the election guidelines, to achieve equity and fairness, and for the purpose of giving each candidate a fair election.

You must read the Guidelines to the Code of Election Regulations followed by the actual Code of Election Regulations. If you agree to accept the Code of Election Regulations, you will be linked to the nomination form.

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