AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION AND LOUISIANA STATE BAR ASSOCIATION
TO HOLD DAY-LONG EVENT TO PROVIDE LEGAL ASSISTANCE TO KATRINA VICTIMS

May 6 free program to guide victims on insurance, housing and eminent domain

CHICAGO, April 26, 2006 -- Members of the American Bar Association Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section will join with colleagues from the Louisiana State Bar Association to provide hands-on legal assistance to victims of Hurricane Katrina on May 6 in New Orleans.  Now, seven months after the hurricane, victims are in need of a wide range of legal assistance as they try to put their lives back together and rebuild. 

The program will be held at the Sheraton New Orleans Hotel from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Attendance is free, and up to 350 are expected to attend.  More than 20 volunteer lawyers will be on hand to assist victims.  Speakers during the day long event will include New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin and representatives of administrative agencies.

Those who wish to attend should call 504/619-0137 to RSVP.  Lunch will be provided to all attendees. More information about the event can be found at www.abanet.org/tips/katrina06.html or www.lsba.org.

This day-long session complements efforts that began in the wake of the hurricane when the ABA mobilized volunteer members to man legal services phone lines in a contract with FEMA and to perform pro bono legal services for individuals and small businesses affected by the hurricane, as well as to provide assistance to lawyers displaced from the area.  A Web site, www.abanet.org/katrina, hosts a wealth of information on efforts to address this national crisis.   
     
Within days of Hurricane Katrina’s strike, the Louisiana State Bar Association established a disaster legal assistance hotline where lawyers have handled more than 11,000 calls with questions about insurance, landlord/tenant and a host of other issues. And the LSBA published a disaster-training manual and sponsored training seminars to prepare lawyers for duty at the Call Center, at FEMA Disaster Recovery Centers and at various shelters.

“It became clear to us that our services were needed on the ground and that it was important to meet with those in need, to show them a caring face.  TIPS members are working on this effort with the Louisiana State Bar Association to give hope to victims by providing needed legal guidance, and we will be there to assist in mediation and help them cut through the bureaucracy and red tape to find solutions,” said TIPS Chair Sandra McCandless of San Francisco.  “We are committed to doing our part to provide assistance to those who need help the most.  We hope to make a difference before the new hurricane season is upon us.”

“We are pleased to partner with the American Bar Association Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section to offer legal services to those in need,” said Louisiana State Bar Association President Frank X. Neuner, Jr. “For the past seven months, the legal needs of our citizens have been changing, from initial reaction and response, to rebuilding and recovery. Some citizens are just now realizing what their legal needs are. Our Louisiana attorneys have donated thousands of hours of their time to this effort so far and many more hours will be required of them in the coming weeks and months. Partnering with organizations like the ABA allows us to extend our reach in this long process of rebuilding.”

The ABA Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section is the only national professional group to bring together plaintiffs’ lawyers, defense lawyers and insurance and corporate counsel for the exchange of information and ideas. The section has more than 36,000 members and 34 general committees that focus on substantive and procedural matters in areas including aviation and space law, fidelity and surety law, medical malpractice, transportation law and others.  

The LSBA is a statewide organization with almost 20,000 members. It ensures access to and aids in the administration of justice, assists the Supreme Court in the regulation of the practice of law, and upholds the honor of the courts and the profession.  The Association also promotes the professional competence of attorneys, works to increase public understanding of and respect for the law, and encourages collegiality among its members.

With more than 400,000 members, the American Bar Association is the largest voluntary professional membership organization in the world.  As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law in a democratic society.

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