Latest Community Justice Program News

The Year’s Best in Law Office Management and Technology

The Law Firm Merchant Account™, compliant credit card processing for attorneys, tops Jim Calloway’s list of law office management & technology developments for 2007.  The Law Firm Merchant Account has been a benefit of membership since November 2006.   The Law Firm Merchant Account resolves the ethical issue of credit acceptance by properly safeguarding and separating client funds into their trust and operating accounts.  Fees are never commingled because all service charges or charge backs come only from the operating account and never the trust account. 

To confirm you are accepting credit cards the right way call 866.376.0950 or visit our information page http://sanantoniobar.
affiniscape.com/
to learn more.

You can also read more about Jim Calloway’s Best in Law Office Management and Technology for 2007 by clicking here.  

SABA launches online Career Center

The San Antonio Bar Association is pleased to announce a brand new, full-service, online Career Center designed especially for employers and job seekers in our legal community. Posting your positions and resumes on the SABA Career Center will give you great exposure to a wide array of candidates and exciting opportunities in the profession. Attorneys looking for employment can search the jobs posted by the nation’s leading law firms, corporate legal departments and government agencies listing their full-time, part-time, contract and temporary positions online. Employers will have direct access to thousands of legal professionals within the legal network. Visit the new SABA Career Center for all of your employment needs at http://saba.legalstaff.com/. For more information, contact Tom Origer at 866.376.0949 x7071 or by email at
toriger@association-careernetwork.com.

“Ethics Follies” musical parodies format assures a good time with a serious legal & corporate responsibility message

Click HERE to download a sponsorship form (PDF)

After 10 years of bringing an annual legal ethics conference to South/Central Texas in-house lawyers, ACC opens its door to law firms and corporate executives for the first time to bring the legal and business communities together on ethics issues; In the aftermath of Enron, Tyco, and other corporate catastrophes, annual ethics event promotes an ethical environment to encourage economic growth, public trust, and protect San Antonio’s trusting culture.

The South/Central Texas Chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) and the San Antonio Bar Association have scheduled the 11th annual city-wide ethics conference, called “Ethics Follies,” for November 6, 2008 in San Antonio, Texas at the historic Charlene McCombs Empire Theatre at 1 p.m. Unlike other cities’ ethics conferences with multiple speakers at a podium, “Ethics Follies” is a musical comedy with thirty judges, attorneys, and business executives that both entertains and raises serious ethics issues faced by law firms, in-house attorneys, and their corporate clients. Proceeds from the event benefit The Community Justice Program (CJP), a collaborative effort by the legal community to provide free neighborhood-based legal services to individuals who may not otherwise have access to the legal system. The San Antonio Bar Association is the co-sponsor of the city-wide ethics conference, encouraging all attorneys, in San Antonio and surrounding areas to attend this event to increase the awareness of ethical issues for attorneys, their clients and to raise operating funds for the CJP. The innovative Ethics Follies musical comedy format for the conference is an effort to engage the judges, attorneys, and executives in a project that both builds relationships and trust, and provides a deliverable product at the end of the one year preparation in the form of a fully-produced musical production. Attorney C. Lee Cusenbary, who has written and directed Ethics Follies for the past two years, returns in 2008 with a three hour parody of popular musicals like Wicked, Hairspray, Little Shop of Horrors, and parodies of songs by the Backstreet Boys, Bette Midler, Shania Twain, and Huey Lewis and the News. The cast is excited, but aware of their intimidating task of learning three hours worth of fast-paced comedic and musical material. “Attorneys and business executives alike are so relieved to get their ethics training from an upbeat show with funny song parodies rather than sometimes boring speeches that they are a great audience. We have a fun time, but the message is serious. Ethical companies survive hard times and do better in an unsteady economy,” comments Cusenbary, the General Counsel of Mission Pharmacal Company, a sixty year old San Antonio company which encourages Cusenbary’s commitment to the ethics project, and his other musical efforts, such as releasing a double CD on Amazon.com in 2007. Amber Clark, the ACC Chapter’s Executive Director, works on the Follies project year round from securing the theatre, to signing up sponsors, to organizing the catered reception after the show. “San Antonio deserves a really fantastic ethics conference. I can’t imagine a more creative and fun way to do this than Ethics Follies,” states Clark. “You won’t believe the talent of some of the lawyers and executives in the show.” Well-respected choreographer, Gloria Liu, joins the team this year, adding her professional polish to the song parodies.

To keep their law licenses, Texas attorneys are required to obtain three hours of Continuing Legal Education training in the area of legal ethics each year. The Texas Bar Association approved Ethics Follies for this full annual ethics credit for the past two years. Many San Antonio corporations also have created ethics training to raise their employees’ awareness of the importance of making good decisions. Valero Energy Corporation has already created ethics training programs for its employees, recognizing the value of such programs for the stability and growth of the company. “Business and legal ethics are an important aspect of working at Valero, it’s part of our culture here,” comments Diane Hirsch, Managing Counsel, in the Litigation Section of Valero Energy Corporation and current ACC Chapter President. “I enjoy Ethics Follies because it reminds us each year what can go wrong if we don’t analyze our decisions from an ethics perspective,” comments Ms. Hirsch, “and it’s hilarious.”

ACC will host a city-wide nomination process for the first annual “Ethical Life” awards, given to a law firm and an in-house law department exhibiting ethical behavior in their legal and business activities. The chairperson for The Ethical Life Awards nominations committee is Kelli Cubeta, the General Counsel of BSG Clearing, Inc. The awards will be presented within the script of the show like an awards ceremony within the musical itself. The nomination period begins in September of 2008, with forms available online at www.ethicsfollies.com at that time.
Corporations and law firms can reserve table seating (for 10) or individual tickets for the November 6, 2008 conference from Amber Clark at 830.336.2049 or email to acca@gvtc.com. CLE credit for attorneys and paralegals is available. Continuing Education (CE) credits for other professions may also be available. Visit www.ethicsfollies.com to watch videos and read reviews of the past Ethics Follies conferences.

Lawyers and Mental Illness

State Bar President Martha Dickie has devoted her bar year to help lawyers overcome depression and substance abuse problems. Paul Burks and his team have produced a video, “Practicing from the Shadows,” that addresses these issues and raises awareness of available assistance to those in need.

The San Antonio Bar Association has several copies of the DVD available to check out on a first come, first served basis for 0.5 participatory hours including 0.5 ethics. Please call 210.227.8822 to check availability.

MoneyWise:
Helping students to learn smart financial management

The San Antonio Bar Association is teaming up with the State Bar of Texas Bankruptcy Law Section in sponsoring an educational program called MoneyWise, which is targeted to high school students. The MoneyWise program provides an opportunity for local attorneys to teach high school students about keeping a budget, setting financial goals and preparing for the future. The presentation is about an hour in length and includes a Flashpoint presentation with corresponding handouts. It encourages students to explore real-life scenarios involving budgets, college expenses and planning for the future.

A local committee has already been formed in San Antonio, chaired by Elizabeth G. Smith, and is being endorsed by other local bar associations including the San Antonio Bankruptcy Bar Association, the San Antonio Chapter of the Federal Bar Association, the Bexar County Women’s Bar Association and the San Antonio Young Lawyer’s Association. The San Antonio Bar Association believes the MoneyWise program is a wonderful tool for students and is a wonderful opportunity for members of our profession to give back to the community.

If you or your firm would like more information about this great opportunity, or are interested in presenting a MoneyWise class at a local high school, please contact Elizabeth Smith at 210.731.9177 or beth@egsmithlaw.com.

Gearing up for the 2008 SBOT Annual Meeting

The State Bar of Texas Annual Meeting—the only meeting where all attorneys in Texas are invited to join together to celebrate the profession—will be held in Houston, June 26-27 this year. Learn what the State Bar has to offer you and obtain quality CLE at a bargain price!

Learn from the experts on the future of the legal profession. San Antonio’s own Mayor Phil Hardberger, along with Mayor Tom Leppert from Dallas, and Mayor Bill White from Houston will hold a special panel discussion on the future of three of Texas’ major cities. Other CLE topics will include “How Television Impacts Jurors,” with Martin Kaplan and “The Art of Oral Advocacy,” with David Frederick, author of The Art of Oral Advocacy.

The SBOT Annual Meeting offers you quality CLE at a bargain! Don’t miss the opportunity to expand the scope of your legal knowledge by attending events hosted by the State Bar of Texas Sections. Visit the exhibitors and discover innovative ways to improve your practice. Watch TexasBar.com for more information or call 800.204.2222 x1515.