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NOMINEES FOR 2000-01
This issue of BLAST contains the report of the Section's
Nominating Committee. The Chair thanks the members of the Nominating
Committee for the time and attention they devoted to this important
function.
The Nominating Committee has nominated the following individuals
to serve as Officers and Council members:
Chair-Elect Raymond L. Ocampo, Jr.
Vice Chair William Sam Byassee
Secretary Heather Rafter
Budget Officer Robert J. Butler
Section Delegate Ellen J. Flannery
Second Delegate Scott Partridge
Council Bill Coats, Julie Fleming, John North, Gil Whittemore
Each nominee has stated that he or she has no personal interest
or obligation which would, or would likely, conflict in any material
way with impartially promoting the objectives and activities of
the Section. Each nominee has agreed to promptly notify the Council
if this should change. Bonnie E. Fought, currently Chair-Elect,
will become Chair of the Section at the close of the Annual Meeting
in July.
INCOMING SECTION CHAIR
Bonnie E. Fought, is currently serving as the Chair Elect. She
is the co-founder, Chief Operating Officer, and General Counsel
of Connectix Corporation, a developer of cross-platform software
solutions. She specializes in computer law and licensing issues.
She is a graduate of the University of Michigan and received a J.D.
from University of California at Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of
Law.
CHAIR-ELECT
Raymond L. Ocampo Jr. is the Executive Director of the Berkeley
Center for Law and Technology and serves on the board of directors
of Vantive Corporation (VNTV), a customer asset management software
company, and other technology companies. He retired in November
1996 as Senior Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary at
Oracle Corporation. He received his undergraduate degree from UCLA
and graduated from Boalt Hall School of Law in 1976. Mr. Ocampo
co-authored (with Shelley Curtis and John Moss) Negotiating and
Drafting Software Consulting Agreements (Glasser Legal/Works
1996). Mr. Ocampo is the chair of the Section's Internet & Cyberspace
Committee and a past co-chair of the Multimedia & Interactive Technologies
Committee. He recently completed serving on the California Supreme
Court Advisory Committee on Racial and Ethnic Bias.
VICE CHAIR
William Sam Byassee is a partner in the North Carolina law
firm of Smith Helms Muliss & Moore, LLP. He received his law degree
from Vanderbilt University, and he has practiced law with Smith
Helms since 1983, first in Greensboro, North Carolina, and now in
the firm's Raleigh/Research Triangle office. Sam is experienced
as a counselor and litigator involving computer and cyberspace-related
matters, including contract and license interpretation and enforcement,
system performance and Year 2000 problems, intellectual property
issues, and privacy/security concerns. He frequently speaks at legal
seminars and programs on computer and intellectual property topics
related to licensing, multimedia, on-line communications, and Year
2000 compliance issues. He chairs the Section's Multimedia and Interactive
Technologies Committee. Mr. Byassee is co-chair of the North Carolina
Computer Law Round Table and is a member of the Computer Law Association.
He is active in the North Carolina Bar Association as a past-chair
of its Technology Advisory Committee and currently as an officer
of the Intellectual Property Section. He also is the author, most
recently, of "Jurisdiction of Cyberspace: Applying Real World Precedent
to the Virtual Community," Wake Forest Law Review (1995),
and "An Introduction to Internet Use by Lawyers," State Bar Journal,
Spring 1997.
SECRETARY
Heather Dembert Rafter is the General Counsel for Digidesign,
a division of Avid Technology, Inc. At Digidesign, Ms. Rafter is
responsible for overseeing all of Digidesign's legal matters. Digidesign
is the leading developer of digital audio systems and software for
the professional music, recording, film and video markets. Digidesign's
products are used to record, edit, mix and master sound.
Ms. Rafter holds a variety of positions with the Section, including
Council member, Chair of the Internet and Cyberspace Committee,
and Chair of the Program Planning Committee. Ms. Rafter is a past
chair of the Barristers Intellectual Property Committee of the Bar
Association of San Francisco and past vice-chair of the Computer
Litigation Committee of the ABA's Litigation Section.
Ms. Rafter frequently lectures and writes on intellectual property,
Internet, and computer law issues. She has written articles for
Business Law Today, The Computer Lawyer, The San Francisco Daily
Journal, The Multimedia Law Report, and The Hastings Communications
and Entertainment Law Journal. She received her undergraduate degree
from Princeton University and her J.D. from Columbia Law School.
BUDGET OFFICER
Robert J. Butler is a communications practice partner in
the firm Wiley, Rein & Fielding in Washington, DC. He co-chairs
the firm's Cyberspace and Year 2000 practices. Bob regularly counsels
and represents clients on emerging "cyberspace" and Y2K planning
and liability issues as well as on all aspects of federal, state,
and international telecommunications regulation, with a special
emphasis on regulatory and legislative issues involving carrier
interconnection, information services, and new technologies. He
is a member of the Advisory Committee for the Congressional Internet
Caucus, a member of the District of Columbia Bar, a number of federal
circuits, and the Federal Communi-cations Bar Association. He is
a member of the Council, the Budget Officer for the Section, and
chair of the Subcommittee on Infrastructure under the Committee
on the Law of Commerce in Cyberspace for the Section of Business
Law. Bob received a B.A., with high honors from Michigan State University
and his J.D., magna cum laude from Harvard Law School.
SECOND DELEGATE
Scott F. Partridge chairs the Intellectual Property and Technology
department of Baker Botts, L.L.P.'s Houston office and co-chairs
the Intellectual Property and Technology department of the firm's
Washington office. He has extensive intellectual property law experience,
concentrating on litigation involving patents, copyrights, trademarks,
and trade secrets for technologies in the electrical and mechanical
fields. He has particular expertise representing clients in litigation
matters before the International Trade Commission and in numerous
federal and state courts.
From 1969 through 1973, Mr. Partridge was a Patent Examiner in
the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. He also was employed as an
International and Legislative Specialist for the Office of Legislation
and International Affairs of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
He served as Executive Secretary of the U.S. side of the Joint Working
Group on Intellectual Property for the U.S./U.S.S.R. Agreements
on Cooperation at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. He was the
Assistant Deputy General Counsel and Section Director for the United
States Presidential Clemency Board in 1975.
Mr. Partridge was previously Chair of the Section (1998-1999),
and is a member of the Executive Council and former President of
the International Trade Commission Trial Lawyers Association. He
is admitted to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the U.S. Supreme
Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the
District of Columbia, and Virginia and Texas State Bars. He is a
frequent lecturer on intellectual property law and has addressed
many groups both domestic and international regarding intellectual
property law issues.
Mr. Partridge has been in private practice in intellectual property
law since 1976. He received his law degree from Georgetown University
in 1974, where he was Editor of the Georgetown Law Journal. Mr.
Partridge received a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering
from the University of Cincinnati in 1969. For seven years, he taught
intellectual property law as an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown
University Law Center, and he presently serves on the Georgetown
University Law Center National Alumni Board and the Georgetown Intellectual
Property Law Institute.
SECTION COUNCIL NOMINEES
William S. Coats is a partner in the intellectual property
litigation and counseling department in Howrey Simon Arnold & White's
Silicon Valley office in Menlo Park, California. Mr. Coats specializes
in advising high technology and entertainment companies on copyright,
patent, trade secret, and trademark matters. He served as lead counsel
for Accolade in Sega Enterprises Ltd. v. Accolade, Inc.; for Aztech
Systems in Creative Technology Ltd. v. Aztech Ltd.; for LucasArts
Entertainment Company in LucasArts v. Humongous Entertainment Co.;
Cinema Technologies in Imax v. Cinema Technologies, Inc.; Connectix
in Sony Computer Entertainment v. Connectix; and Lucasfilm and Lucasarts
in Lucasfilm v. Microstar, among other cases. He represents business
and entertainment software, entertainment, consumer electronic,
and computer hardware companies. Mr. Coats regularly writes and
speaks on intellectual property issues involving the Internet, e-commerce,
computer software, multimedia products, and music. He has written
many articles on intellectual property issues in the entertainment
and computer industries for, among other publications, The Computer
Lawyer, Entertainment Law & Finance, The Communications and Entertainment
Law Journal, Business Law Today, Computer Law Reporter, Computer
Law and Practice (UK), and The Computer Litigation Journal. He also
is co-author of an article published in Japanese in Kokusai Shoji
Homu (Journal of the Japanese Institute of International Business
Law) on the protection of computer software in the United States.
A graduate of the University of San Francisco (A.B., 1972) and
the Hastings College of the Law (J.D., 1980), he was admitted to
California bar in 1980. He also has been admitted to practice before
the United States District Courts and various Courts of Appeal.
Julie Fleming is an associate with the Atlanta office of
Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue, where her practice focuses primarily
on patent litigation. Julie holds a B.A. in English from Vanderbilt
University and a B.S., magna cum laude, in Biology from Georgia
State University. Following her 1993 graduation from the Emory University
School of Law, where she was a Notes & Comments Editor for the Emory
International Law Review, Julie clerked for the Honorable J. Owen
Forrester of the United States District Court for the Northern District
of Georgia. Julie was admitted to practice in Georgia in 1993 and
registered to practice before the United States Patent and Trademark
Office in 1998. Julie is a member of the Sections of Science and
Technology, Litigation, and Intellectual Property. Since 1997, she
has chaired the Section's Biotechnology Committee, and she is currently
a member of the Council. Julie also is a member of the American
Intellectual Property Law Association and the American Inns of Court.
John L. North, a partner in the Atlanta office of Sutherland,
Asbill & Brennan, is a member of the Intellectual Property and Litigation
groups. John has substantial experience in controversies involving
patent infringement and trade secret misappropriation, and related
unfair competition and antitrust controversies. John also has experience
handling trademark infringement and trademark opposition matters.
He has tried cases in state and federal court, and also has arbitrated
and mediated a number of disputes.
Mr. North is a member of the Science & Technology, Intellectual
Property Law, and Litigation Sections of the ABA. He is an editor
of the Scientific Evidence Review, a journal published by the Section.
He also is a member of the Section's Standing Committee on Scientific
Evidence, a member of the Biotechnology Committee, and co-chair
of the Technology Subcommittee of the Trial Practice Committee of
the Litigation Section. Mr. North is active in other professional
associations, including the Technology Association of Georgia, and
currently is President-Elect of the Atlanta Chapter of the Federal
Bar Association. Mr. North has been admitted to practice before
all Georgia state courts, the United States District Court for the
Northern District of Georgia, and the Eleventh, Federal, and Third
Federal Circuit Courts of Appeal.
Mr. North graduated cum laude from the Emory University School
of Law in 1987, where he was a Notes & Comments Editor on the Emory
Law Journal, and he graduated magna cum laude from Duke University
in 1984 with a B.A. in public policy studies and economics. John
attended high school at Phillips Academy, Andover Massachusetts.
Gilbert Whittemore joined the Section in 1997, speaking
on scientific misconduct at the ABA annual meeting that year. In
1998 he became Chair of the Committee on the Regulation of Research,
which had been founded by Barbara Mishkin. He also has organized
the Section's session on "Biotechnology in the New Millennium" for
the London 2000 ABA meeting, and served as one of three Section
liaisons to the Family Law Section's project on drafting a uniform
law governing assisted reproduction. As part of an effort to increase
communication with scientists, with fellow Section member Peter
Lee, he co-organized and moderated a session on "Corporate Funding
of University Research: Managing the Conflicts"which was presented
at the February 2000 annual meeting of the American Association
for the Advancement of Science. He holds a law degree from Harvard
and a Ph.D. in the History of Science from Harvard. He joined the
Massachusetts Bar in 1976 and now works in an of counsel capacity
with the law firm of Stalter & Kennedy in Boston, Massachusetts.
JURISPRUDENT THERAPY AND THE ROLE
OF THE FORENSIC TRIAL CONSULTANT
by Eric Y. Drogin, J.D., Ph.D., ABPP
Dr. Drogin is Chair is Chair of the Behavioral Sciences Committee.
He can be reached at P.O. Box 22576 Louisville, KY 40252-0576,Phon
e: (877) 877-6692 Fax: (877) 877-6685 Email: eyd@drogin.net
During the last year, the Behavioral Sciences Committee has focused
on a "Jurisprudent Therapy" model for analyzing issues in law and
mental health. This perspective evaluates mental health science,
mental health practice, and mental health roles, in terms of their
"jurisprudent" or "antijurisprudent" effects on those utilizing
behavioral science expertise.
The sources of such expertise are not limited to the traditional
"witness" role. Given the growing complexity of mental health issues
in the law, and evolving ethical constraints concerning courtroom
testimony, the contributions of forensic trial consultants are increasingly
recognized as a vital adjunct to legal and scientific practice.
Forensic trial consultants are unlikely to testify in court. Their
approach to a case is fundamentally different from that of the expert
witness. The expert witness employs a two-step model: (1) evaluate
from a "pure," non-biased perspective, and then (2) serve as an
advocate, not for a client or a specific case outcome, but rather
for one's own professional opinion (Shapiro, 1991). The forensic
trial consultant, by contrast, is introduced into legal matters
with a clear understanding that the interests of an identified party
are to be championed.
This is not to suggest that the role of the forensic trial consultant
is inherently more or less "ethical" than that of the traditional
expert witness. Litigants are well within their rights, in criminal
and civil contexts alike, to seek the most beneficial explanation
of scientific phenomena arising in the context of pre-trial, courtroom,
and appellate practice. The legal advocate is not only well-advised,
but arguably required, to explore vigorously any perspective likely
to enhance the status of his or her clients.
Ethical problems do arise, however, when mental health scientists
attempt to fill more than one role regarding trial proceedings.
Just as it is increasingly accepted that one should not serve as
both a treating clinician and an expert witness due to inherent
conflicts of interest (Greenberg and Shuman, 1997), attorneys and
mental health professionals have come to understand that expert
witnesses cannot hope to maintain their credibility when they become
overly enmeshed in the legal goals of a defense or prosecution team
(Drogin and Barrett, 1996).
The practical benefits of forensic trial consultation are legion.
These professionals can re-score and otherwise re-analyze psychological
test and interview data. They can assist in the identification,
interview, and retention of expert mental health witnesses. Forensic
trial consultants can investigate curricula vitae and comment on
the objective and subjective reputations of clinicians and experts
in the local and national scientific communities. They may contribute
to the development of strategies for direct, cross, re-direct, and
re-cross examination.
In the criminal law arena, solutions to the crucial issue of consultation
funding have been enhanced by authoritative treatises and key legal
decisions. For example, the ABA Criminal Justice Mental Health Standards
(1989) provide specific recognition of the central importance of
the consultant's role, and many states have followed the lead of
the United States Supreme Court in Ake v. Oklahoma (1985) in acknowledging
the unacceptable risk of inaccurate resolution of mental health
issues without the benefits of trial consultation.
By contrast, in various civil contexts, funding issues are often
less problematic - once those responsible for authorizing such expenditures
are made aware of the advantage that may be gained from monitoring
the participation of one's own experts, as well as those experts
anticipated to testify in an adverse fashion. Attorneys should bear
in mind the proscrip-tions against mental health professionals'
participation in legal matters on a contingent basis (Bersoff, 1999).
Section members with an interest in the role of mental health evidence
in legal contexts are encouraged to contact the Behavioral Sciences
Committee.
PROPOSED NAME CHANGE AND AMENDMENTS TO
THE SECTION'S BYLAWS
The revisions are indicated in blue. The old wording is in italics.
SECTION OF SCIENCE AND &
TECHNOLOGY LAW BY-LAWS
Approved August, 1991 July,
2000
ARTICLE I NAME AND PURPOSES
Section 1. This Section
shall be known as the Section of Science and& Technology Law (the
"Section"). Section 2. The mission of the Section is to provide
leadership on issues concerning science and technology and the law.
The Section's goals are as follows:
(a) To provide a forum for members of the profession to review,
analyze and correlate developments in science and technology and
to evaluate the impact of such developments on society and the law.
(b) To study, report and make appropriate recommendations on the
regulation of science and technology and related legal issues.
(c) To establish and maintain liaison and cooperation between the
scientific and technological communities and the organized bar,
to the end of facilitating desirable scientific and technological,
and related legal, developments.
(d) To contribute to public and professional understanding of the
effects of science and technology on law, of the problems arising
therefrom, and of the processes by which the law responds.
(e) To cooperate with and assist other ABA entities interested in
associated or related areas of activity.
ARTICLE II MEMBERSHIP
Section 1. Each member of the Section shall, at the time
of enrollment, pay to the Association annual dues not in excess
of $40 $50 as fixed by the Council,
which initial annual dues shall constitute the annual dues for the
ensuing fiscal year (September 1 - August 31) if it commences within
three months of such enrollment. Thereafter, annual dues are paid
in advance each year beginning on the September 1st next succeeding
such enrollment.
Section 2. Voting and privileges of the floor at any meeting
of the Section shall be limited to members in good standing. Any
member of the Section whose annual dues are more than six months
past due shall cease to be a member of the Section. Any person who
ceases to be a member of the Association shall also cease to be
a member of the Section. The Section Secretary shall refer to the
most recent membership list certified by the Association.
Section 3. Any law student who is a member of the Law Student
Division of the Association may become a Law Student Member of the
Section upon request and upon payment to the Association of annual
Section dues not in excess of $10 as fixed by the Council. Law Student
Membership shall be for a period of twelve months beginning October
1 and ending September 30 in each calendar year. A qualified law
student upon payment of dues for the current law student year shall
be enrolled as a Law Student Member of the Section. Thereafter such
dues shall be paid in advance each year beginning on October 1 next
succeeding such enrollment. Any Law Student Member whose annual
dues shall be more than six months past due shall thereupon cease
to be a member of this Section. Law Student Members shall have such
rights, privileges, responsibilities and duties as are hereinafter
in this paragraph set forth and as the Council may from time to
time determine, and no other, consistent with the By-Laws of the
Association and guidelines adopted by the Board of Governors. Any
and all references in these By-Laws to "Member" or "Members" shall
be deemed not to refer to Law Student Members. Except as otherwise
provided by the Council, Law Student Members shall be entitled to
receive the Jurimetrics Journal and shall also be entitled to receive
all other publications of the Section, distributed to the other
members of the Section at no greater charge than that made to other
members. They shall be entitled to attend all meetings of the Section,
but shall not have the right to vote.
ARTICLE III OFFICERS AND COUNCIL
Section 1. The officers of the Section shall be a Chair,
a Chair-Elect, one to four Vice-Chairs, a Secretary, and a
the Section Delegate[s] to the House
of Delegates.
Section 2. There shall be a Council, which shall consist of
the officers and the Immediate Retiring Chair, together with twelve
other members of the Section to be elected by the Section membership,
and one representative each of the Law Student Division and the
Young Lawyers Division of the Association.
Section 3. At each annual meeting of the Section the following
shall be elected:
(a) Chair-Elect, a Vice-Chair, or such number of Vice-Chairs not
in excess of four as may be determined by the Council, and a Secretary,
each for a term of one year.
(b) A Chair, in the event that the office of Chair-Elect at the
time of the election is vacant.
(c) Upon the expiration of the terms of Council members, three members
of the Council shall be elected at each annual meeting of the Section
to terms of four years beginning at the close of the annual meeting
at which they shall have been elected and ending at the close of
the fourth succeeding annual meeting of the Section. The representatives
of the Law Student Division and of the Young Lawyers Division shall
be designated by these organizations at the time of the annual meeting
for a term of one year.
Section 4. If any member of the Council shall fail to attend
two successive meetings of the Council, the office held by such
member may be vacated by the Council unless the Council determines
that there was reasonable cause for such absence, and the vacancy
so created shall be filled by the Council.
Section 5. The Section shall elect a Section Delegate
shall elect the Section Delegate[s]
to the House of Delegates in accordance with the Constitution and
By-Laws of the American Bar Association and the By-Laws of the Section.
At appropriate times, as determined by the Section Officers Conference,
the Section Delegate shall serve on the Nominating Committee
a Section Delegate shall serve on the Nominating
Committee of the House of Delegates. If there is more than one Section
Delegate, the Council shall designate which Section Delegate shall
serve on the Nominating Committee of the House of Delegates. The
designation shall be made by the Council with due regard for the
eligibility requirements for service on the Nominating Committee
of the House of Delegates. In the case of the absence of a Section
Delegate from a meeting of the House or its Nominating Committee,
the Council may designate a member of the Section as an Alternate
Section Delegate to replace the absent Section Delegate.
Section 6. All terms of Office herein specified shall begin
at the close of the annual meeting at which election or appointment
takes place, and shall end at the close of the annual meeting at
the end of the term specified, or when a successor shall have been
elected and qualified.
Section 7. No person shall be eligible for election as a
member of the Council if he or she is then an elected member of
the Council and has been such member continuously for a period of
three years or more, but this provision shall not bar election of
such person as an officer or as a Section
Delegate.
ARTICLE IV NOMINATIONS AND ELECTIONS
Section 1. At any time no later than the close of the Association's
midyear meeting, the Chair, after consultation with the Council,
shall appoint a Nominating Committee of five members of the Section
who are not candidates for office, not more than four of whom shall
be either present or former office holders or Council members of
the Section. The Section Chair shall appoint one of the five to
be Chair of the Nominating Committee who may act on behalf of the
Committee as authorized by the Committee. The Section Chair shall
promptly thereafter announce the appointments with mailing addresses
in an appropriate Section publication. The Section Chair may appoint
a Section member to fill any vacancy which may arise thereafter
in the Nominating Committee or Chair thereof. Before making a nomination,
the Committee shall obtain from the proposed nominee a brief statement
(a) describing the nominee's activities in the Section and in the
law profession generally, (b) identifying any personal interest
or obligation known to the nominee that would, or would be likely
to, conflict in any material way with promoting impartially the
objectives and activities of the Section, and (c) agreeing that
if any such conflicts become known to the nominee he or she will,
if elected, advise the Council. The Nominating Committee shall make
and report one nomination for each position which is to be filled
by election as provided elsewhere in these By-Laws. The report shall
identify such nominee, provide the nominee's mailing address, and
include a brief statement of the nominee's activities and conflicts,
if any, disclosed by the nominee to the Committee. The Committee
shall submit its report to the Chair of the Section who shall cause
it to be published in an appropriate Section publication not later
than thirty days prior to the opening assembly of the Association
annual meeting, together with the time and place of the election.
The Nominating Committee shall supplement its published report and
action by making one nomination for each vacancy in the Council
or in its slate of nominees, if any, that may arise prior to the
beginning of the annual meeting of the Section. Additional nominations
may be made by petition signed by twenty-five Section members and
delivered to the Section Staff Liaison at the office of the Association
in Chicago, Illinois, at least seven full business days prior to
the opening assembly of the Association annual meeting. The petition
shall be accompanied by the information with respect to the nominee
required for Committee nominees. Otherwise such nomination shall
not be a valid nomination. At the commencement of the first business
session of the annual meeting of the Section, the Chair shall orally
announce the time and place when the election will be held as stated
in the official program of the annual meeting of the Association,
together with the foregoing information as to nominees nominated
by Nominating Committee or by petition.
Section 2. All elections shall be held at the business session
of the annual meeting of the Section designated by the Chair, and
elections shall be by voice vote, except that elections for contested
positions shall be by written ballot if requested by any member
in attendance at such session. Each position to be filled by election
shall be voted upon separately, except that the vote may be for
the entire slate of nominees nominated by the Nominating Committee
for uncontested positions. Elections shall be by majority of the
votes cast, and a runoff election to choose between the two leading
candidates shall be held if a majority vote is not initially obtained.
ARTICLE V DUTIES OF OFFICERS AND SECTION DELEGATE
Section 1. Chair. The Chair shall preside at all meetings
of the Section and of the Council. The Chair shall formulate and
present at each annual meeting of the Association a report of the
work of the Section for the then past year. The Chair shall perform
such other duties and acts as usually pertain to the office of Chair.
The Chair shall certify vouchers for payments out of Section funds,
such certification signifying that the expenditure was incurred
by authority of the Section or the Council of the Section. The Chair
may appoint an Assistant Secretary who shall assist the Secretary
in keeping the records of proceedings of all meetings of the Section
and of the Council and who shall assist the Secretary in any other
respects requested by the Secretary and shall perform such other
duties as may be prescribed by the Chair. The Chair shall appoint
a Budget Officer who shall prepare and submit a budget recommendation
to the Council for adoption at the annual meeting and who shall
perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the Chair or the
Council; and the Chair may also appoint an Assistant Budget Officer
to assist the Budget Officer.
Section 2. Chair-Elect. The Chair-Elect shall, unless he
or she shall have failed or been unable to act as Chair-Elect, at
the end of the Chair's term, automatically assume the office of
Chair for a term of one year. The Chair-Elect shall be Chair of
the Section's Committee on Committees and shall be responsible for
appointing all Chairs and Vice-Chairs and members of Section Divisions
and Committees at or about the time of the annual meeting at which
he or she assumes the office of Chair. If the Chair shall die, resign,
or refuse to act as Chair, the Chair-Elect shall perform the duties
of the Chair for the remainder of the term. If the Chair, due to
disability, absence, or otherwise, is not able and available to
perform the duties of that office, the Chair-Elect shall perform
such duties. Such performance shall not prohibit the Chair-Elect's
succession to the office of Chair at the close of the next annual
meeting.
Section 3. Vice-Chair or Vice-Chairs. The Vice-Chair or Vice-Chairs
shall be responsible for directing such activities of the Section
as the Chair or the Council shall assign to them from time to time.
Section 4. Secretary. The Secretary shall be the custodian
of all books, papers, documents, and other property of the Section,
except money. The Secretary shall keep a true record of the proceedings
of all meetings of the Section and of the Council. The Secretary,
in conjunction with the Chair, as authorized by the Council, shall
attend generally to the business of the Section.
Section 5. Section Delegates.
The Section Delegate[s] shall perform
such duties as are prescribed by the Association and, in addition,
shall make such reports to the Council and the Section membership
as from time to time are requested by the Chair.
ARTICLE VI DUTIES AND POWERS OF THE COUNCIL
Section 1. The Council shall have general supervision and
control of the affairs of the Section, subject to the provisions
of the Constitution and By-Laws of the Association and the By-Laws
of the Section. It shall expressly authorize all commitments or
contracts which entail the expenditure of all monies appropriated
for the use or benefit of the Section. The Council shall not, however,
authorize commitments or contracts which entail the expenditure
of funds in excess of the funds on deposit with the Association
to the credit of the Section.
Section 2. The Council may authorize the Chair-Elect to establish
committees or divisions, and their respective Chairs and Vice-Chairs,
from among Section members and may determine the duties, powers,
functions and designations of standing and other committees and
divisions subject to the limitations of the Constitution and By-Laws
of the Association and the By-Laws of the Section.
Section 3. The Council, during the interim between annual
meetings of the Section, may fill vacancies in its elected membership,
in the offices of Vice-Chair, Secretary, or Section Delegate, and,
in the event of a vacancy in both offices of Chair and Chair-Elect,
then in the office of Chair. Members of the Council and officers
so selected shall serve until the close of the next annual meeting
of the Section, except in the case of the a Section Delegate who
shall serve for the remainder of the term.
Section 4. All binding action of the Council shall be by
majority vote of the members of Council present. A quorum for Council
action at meetings shall be a majority of Council members, but less
than a quorum may adjourn a meeting.
Section 5. In the interim between business meetings of the
Section, the Council may act for the Section in any way in which
the Section is authorized to act, including the submission of reports
and recommendations for Association action pursuant to the Constitution
and By-Laws of the Association. The Council may not act in derogation
of any binding action by the Section pursuant to these By-Laws at
the immediately preceding annual meeting of the Section. If the
Council finds that change or supervening circumstances justify and
require action in derogation of any action taken by the Section
at earlier annual meetings, the Council may act but shall report
any action to the members of the Section at the annual meeting next
following.
Section 6. The Council shall meet at or about the time of
each annual meeting of the Association at the place of such meeting,
and at or about the time of each midyear meeting. The Council may
also meet at any time and place upon call of the Chair or upon call
of any three members of the Council.
Section 7. Any action permitted to be taken at any meeting
of the Council may be taken without a meeting if (a) notice of the
proposed action is given to Council members by mailing to their
respective addresses or telecommunication to their respective telefax
numbers appearing in the records of the Section, and (b) a majority
of the members of the Council consent in writing to such action,
and (c) no written objection to such action by any Council member
is addressed to the Section at the headquarters of the American
Bar Association, and received within ten full business days following
mailing or telecommunication of the notice to Council members. Members
of the Council when personally present at a meeting of the Council
shall vote in person, but when absent may communicate their vote
upon any proposition in writing or by telecommunication to the Secretary
and such vote shall be counted with the same effect as if cast personally
at such meeting.
Section 8. At appropriate times, as determined by the Section
Officers Conference, the Council is authorized to submit a nomination
for a Section member-at-large of the Board of Governors. The selection
of the nominee shall be made by the Council with due regard for
the eligibility requirements for election to the Board of Governors.
ARTICLE VII DIVISIONS AND COMMITTEES
Divisions shall be as from time to time determined by the Council.
Committees of each Division shall be as from time to time determined
by the Chair-Elect with the advice of the Division Chair subject
to modification at any time by the Council.
ARTICLE VIII MEETINGS
Section 1. The annual meeting of the Section shall be held
during the period of each annual meeting of the Association and
at the place of such meeting, with such program and order of business
as may be arranged by the officers and Council. During each annual
meeting and as part thereof there shall be a business meeting or
business meetings at times and places designated by the Chair. One
of such business meetings shall be held for the purpose of election
of officers and Council members whose terms are expiring. Reasonable
notice of the time and place of such business meetings shall be
given in such manner as is determined by the Chair.
Section 2. Special meetings of the Section may be called
by the Chair, upon approval of the Council, at such time and place
as the Council may determine.
Section 3. The members of the Section present at any meeting
shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business; all binding
action by the Section shall be by a majority vote of those present
and voting.
Section 4. At any business meeting of the Section any member
may seek recognition, which shall be granted by the Chair, to bring
before the Section any matter within its jurisdiction and to speak
thereon at reasonable length.
Section 5. The Council may direct that a matter be submitted
to the members of the Section for vote by mail. In such event binding
action shall be by majority of the votes received in accordance
with rules fixed by the Council.
ARTICLE IX MISCELLANEOUS
Section 1. The fiscal year of the Section shall be the same
as that of the Association.
Section 2. All bills incurred by the Section, before being
forwarded to the Treasurer of the Association for payment, shall
be approved by the Chair.
Section 3. Any action by this Section must be approved by
the House of Delegates of the Association before such action can
be effective as the action of the Association. No officer or member
of this Section shall use the name of the Association in public
expression of any action of the Section unless such action of the
Section has been approved by the House of Delegates. Any resolution
adopted or action taken by the Section shall on request of the Council
or the Section be reported by the Chair or Section Delegate to the
House of Delegates or the Board of Governors of the Association
for action by the Association thereon.
Section 4. The Council and officers of the Section shall,
and are authorized to, act in all respects as provided by, and only
consistently with, the applicable provisions of the Constitution,
By-Laws, and Policies and Procedures of the Association from time
to time in effect.
Section 5. The scope of the Section shall not extend to matters
relating to patent, trademark, design, copyright, trade secrets
and know-how law, unfair competition in these areas and the impact
of these laws on new technology.
Section 6. These
By-Laws shall be construed to facilitate and encourage the use of
emerging forms of electronic and written communication. E-mail or
other form of electronic communication has the same force and effect
as "mail" and is included in the definition of "mail" or "writing"
where notice, voting or other action requires or permits the use
of "mail," or "writing," including Article VI, Section 7 and Article
VIII, Section 5.
ARTICLE X AMENDMENTS
These By-Laws may be amended at any annual meeting of the Section
by a majority vote of the members of the Section present and voting,
provided that such amendment shall first have been approved by a
majority of the Council and that the proposed Text of such amendment
shall have been furnished to the members by publication in an appropriate
Section publication at least thirty days prior to the opening assembly
of the Association's annual meeting. No amendment so adopted shall
become effective until approved as required by the then applicable
Association Constitution, By-Laws, practices and procedures. Such
approval shall be conclusively evidenced by certification by the
then Chair of the Section.
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