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UMBA Awards Banquet Honorees
The Utah Minority Bar Association is Proud to Recognize the Following Individuals Who Were Honored at UMBA's Annual Awards Banquet November 21,
2003:
Senator Orrin Hatch, Recipient of the Pete Suazo Community Service Award, for his efforts to assist immigrant students attend college with his proposed D.R.E.A.M. Act.
Sherrie Hayashi, Director of the Utah Antidiscrimination and Labor Division, recipient of the Distinguished Attorney of the Year for her service as the former Executive
Director of the Multi-Cultural Legal Center.
Carl Hernandez III, Assistant Dean of Admissions at the J. Reuben Clark Law School, and Reyes Aguilar, Jr., Associate
Dean of Admissions at the University of Utah College of Law, co-recipients of the Honoree of the Year Award for their commitment to diversify our law schools.
2003 UMBA Scholarship Winners: Rose Montoya (University of Utah) & Robert Mooney (BYU).
UMBA Also Congratulates Its Newly Elected Officers for 2003-2004
President: Ross I. Romero,
Jones, Waldo, Holbrook & McDonough
President-Elect: Sean D. Reyes,
Parsons Behle & Latimer
Secretary: Bibiana Ochoa,
Gonzalez & Ochoa
Treasurer: Vanessa Ramos-Smith,
Utah Federal Defenders Office
And UMBA Thanks:
Yvette Diaz of Manning, Curtis, Bradshaw & Bednar, for her dedicated and excellent leadership as President this past year.
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Notice of Direct Election of Bar President
In response to the task force on Bar governance the Utah Supreme Court has amended the Bar's election rules to permit
all active Bar members in good standing to submit their names to the Bar Commission to be nominated to run for President-Elect in a popular election and to succeed to the office of
President. The Bar Commission will interview all potential candidates and select two final candidates who will run on a ballot submitted to all active Bar members and voted upon by the
active Bar membership. Final candidates may include sitting Bar Commissioners who have indicated interest.
Letters indicating an interest in being nominated to run are due at the
Bar offices, 645 South 200 East, Salt Lake City, Utah, 84111 by 5:00 P.M. on March 1, 2004. Potential candidates will be invited to meet with the Bar Commission in the afternoon of March
11, 2004 at the commission meeting in St. George. At that time the Commission will select the finalist candidates for the election.
Ballots will be mailed May 3rd and will be
counted June 2nd. The President-Elect will be seated July 14, 2004 at the Bar's Annual Convention and will serve one year as President-Elect prior to succeeding to President. The
President and President-Elect need not be sitting Bar commissioners.
In order to reduce campaigning costs, the Bar will print a one page campaign statement from the final
candidates in the Utah Bar Journal and will include a one page statement from the candidates with the election ballot mailing. For further information, call John C. Baldwin, Executive Director, 297-7028, or e-mail jbaldwin@utahbar.org.
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Special Recognition
On November 5th, Catholic Community Services of Utah (CCS) presented Jay Kessler with its community service award, in appreciation of his
three-year commitment to staffing the weekly, three hour street law clinic at the St. Vincent de Paul Homeless Resource Center (the clinic is sponsored by Utah Legal Services). The award
is presented annually to people who help make Utah a better place through their extraordinary service. Jay was described at the annual CCS awards dinner as an outstanding example of pro
bono service because of his compassion for impoverished clients and the many hours he commits to their assistance.
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Notice of Election of Bar Commissioners
Second and Third Divisions
Pursuant to the Rules of Integration and Management of the Utah State Bar,
nominations to the office of Bar Commission are hereby solicited for one member from the Second Division and three members from the Third Division, each to serve a three-year term. To be
eligible for the office of Commissioner from a division, the nominee's mailing address must be in that division as shown by the records of the Bar.
Applicants must be nominated by
a written petition of ten or more members of the Bar in good standing and residing in their respective Division. Nominating petitions may be obtained from the Bar office on or after
January 2, and completed petitions must be received no later than March 1.
Ballots will be mailed on or about May 3 with balloting to be completed and ballots received by the Bar office by 5:00 p.m. May 31. Ballots will be counted on June 2nd.
In order
to reduce out-of-pocket costs and encourage candidates, the Bar will provide the following services at no cost.
1. Space for up to a 200-word campaign message plus a photograph in the April issue of the Utah Bar Journal. The space may be used for biographical information, platform or other election promotion. Campaign
messages for the April Bar Journal publications are due along with completed petitions, two photographs, and a short biographical sketch no later than March 1.
2. A set of mailing labels for candidates who wish to send a personalized letter to the lawyers in their division.
3.
The Bar will insert a one-page letter from the candidates into the ballot mailer. Candidates would be responsible for delivering to the Bar no later than March 15 enough copies of letters for all attorneys in their division. (Call Bar office for count in your respective division.)
If you have any questions concerning this procedure, please contact John C. Baldwin at the Bar Office, 531-9077.
NOTE: According to the Rules of Integration and
Management, residence is interpreted to be the mailing address according to the Bar's records.
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Public Disclosure of Law Schools
Information obtained by the Bar indicating the law school from which a lawyer has graduated has by policy been considered
non-public and accordingly has not been disclosed to the public. Information regarding a lawyer's status as active or inactive, a designated business address, phone number, date of
admission, other states of licensure and the existence of any public discipline is available to the public upon request, along with an e-mail address if the e-mail address has been
specifically authorized for disclosure.
The Bar Commission has been requested to also make the name of the law school from which a lawyer has graduated available to the public
upon request.
The Commission is seeking your opinion regarding whether or not the name of the law school from which a lawyer has graduated should remain confidential as a
matter of privacy or may be disclosed to the public to assist in lawyer selection and because such information is already almost universally available in a variety of published voluntary
listings.
Please send your comments by January 31, 2004 to Bar Executive Director John Baldwin @ barsurvey@utahbar.org.
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SPOTLIGHT on Professionalism
In a "hotly contested" civil matter pending in federal court, documents earmarked for delivery to local counsel for
submission to the court for in camera review were erroneously delivered instead to opposing counsel, Salt Lake attorney Gregory D. Phillips.
Mr. Phillips, upon learning of the mistake, "willingly relinquished" the documents, still sealed in the original envelope. Out-of-state counsel was sufficiently impressed that he wrote to Judge David Nuffer to "point out . . . and commend Mr. Phillips' professionalism." Nicely done, Mr. Phillips! (And our thanks to Judge Nuffer for sharing the letter.)
Heard or seen something similar?
E-mail your anecdote to: jorme@email.utcourts.gov
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2004 Annual Convention Awards
The Board of Bar Commissioners is seeking nominations for the 2004 Annual Convention Awards. These awards have a long history of
honoring publicly those whose professionalism, public service and personal dedication have significantly enhanced the administration of justice, the delivery of legal services and the
building up of the profession. Your award nomination must be submitted in writing to Maud Thurman, Executive Secretary, 645 South 200 East, Suite 310, Salt Lake City, UT 84111, no later
than Friday, April 23, 2004. The award categories include:
1. Judge of the Year
2. Lawyer of the Year
3. Young Lawyer of the Year
4. Section/Committee of the Year
5. Community Member of the Year
6. Pro Bono Lawyer of the Year
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