Minutes for February 9, 2005

The Executive Committee of the Litigation Section met on Wednesday, February 9, 2005 at 8:00 a.m. at the Utah Law & Justice Center in Salt Lake City.

Executive Committee members present were:

• Sammi Anderson
• Wayne Klein
• Lee Curtis
• Sean Monson
• Jon Hafen
• Willis Orton
• Ryan Harris
• Bryan Pattison
• Judge Deno Himonas
• Michael Petrogeorge
• Connie Howard (bar)
• Dan Steele

1. New Executive Committee Member Sean Monson was welcomed as a new member of the Executive Committee.

2. Minutes/Financial Report Minutes of the January meeting were approved. There was a discussion of expenditures charged to the section including $351.44 for the aborted mock jury seminar and a net expense of $4,883.04 for the November golf and CLE seminar. There also was a brief discussion of charges for the telephone and use of the bar’s meeting room. The current fund balance is $88,407.38.

3. NITA Training Judge Himonas and Connie Howard led a discussion of NITA litigation training to be held in Salt Lake. The decision was made to go forward, with the section sponsoring the seminar. It will be held at the Salt Palace May 18-21 (Wednesday through Saturday). The section discussed the expected costs of about $46,000. The faculty will be led by Judge Christine Habas from Colorado. It will be limited to 48 participants and limited to members of the Litigation Section. Those outside the section will be placed on a waiting list. The fee will be $800 for members, with the section subsidizing about $8,000 for the seminar. A postcard will be sent to section members soon and a notice announcing the seminar will be posted on the section web site.

4. ABA Mid-Year Meeting There was a reminder of this week’s ABA meeting in Salt Lake and a description of the assistance the section was providing.

5. Quarterly E-mail The summary of section events was sent by e-mail to section members on February 4 by Lee Curtis. It contained a great summary of activities of the section.

6. Legislation Sammi Anderson reported on the Governmental Relations Committee of the bar. She distributed a list of legislation being evaluated by the bar and identified those on which the bar is taking a position. She distributed a copy of a bill to change how attorneys fees are charged in tort cases and mentioned legislation altering treatment of non-compete clauses. A discussion followed.

7. Web Site Sammi Anderson discussed changes that have been made to the section web site. She mentioned other items on the site that need to be updated. She will correct errors on the site and may come back next month to get feedback on other content.

8. Court Rules There was a brief discussion of amendments to federal and state court rules. Lee Curtis emphasized that one rule already adopted on an emergency basis requires non-parties to be identified in discovery plans if fault may be assessed against them.

9. American Jury Trial Summit Lee Curtis led a discussion of a request that the section pay the expenses of a judge and bar leader to the American Jury Trial Summit in Las Vegas starting March 31. After discussion, the section agreed to approve paying the expenses of a judge. Willis Orton will find out how much the registration fee will be. The section agreed to pay reasonable expenses, not to exceed $1,500.

10. Judge’s Benchbook Some older profiles on the federal judges are on the benchbook. Jon Hafen will send additional profiles to Ryan Harris for inclusion.

11. Other Upcoming Section CLE Programs There was a discussion of upcoming programs being sponsored by the section: The section briefly reviewed the CLE events being considered later this year. Sean Monson agreed to serve as the long-term planner for half-day and full-day CLE programs.

a. Quarterly Luncheon: Governor’s Legislative Agenda Mike Petrogeorge said Mike Lee has agreed to speak at the April 5 seminar. The section discussed how to balance the discussion and members agreed to contact other possible panelists.

b. Evidence Jon Hafen will tell Judge Benson we again will sponsor next year’s evidence program and will set a date for the seminar.

c. Evening with Third District Judges Willis Orton agreed to oversee this event. After discussion, the section agreed with his suggestion to have the event in the third district every other year. In the intervening years the section can sponsor similar events in the other districts.

d. Spring Meeting Bryan Pattison said the meeting is all set. The section is sponsoring Justice Nehring’s keynote address and a breakout session.

e. Annual Meeting Mike Petrogeorge described the two panels at the Annual Meeting: one will be a judges panel and the other on structured settlements.

12. Law Related Education Committee Sammi Anderson encouraged the members to volunteer as coaches and judges for the mock trials by high school students. Several members described their positive experiences serving as coaches Sammi will send an e-mail to all section members soliciting volunteers.

The meeting adjourned at 9:10 a.m.

DATED this 9th day of March, 2005.

For the Executive Committee

__________________________________________
Wayne Klein
Secretary