News
2010 ABA Annual Meeting in San Francisco, California
Please mark your calendars for the following Fellows events at the 2010 ABA Annual Meeting in San Francisco! Fellows registration will open in June.
Schedule of Fellows Events
Thursday, August 5 - Saturday, August 7
8:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Registration
Moscone Convention Center
Please drop by to pick up your Fellows ribbons even if you will not be registering for this meeting's Fellows events.
Thursday, August 5 - Saturday, August 7
10:00 AM – 4:00 PM on Thursday and Friday
10:00 AM – 2:00 PM on Saturday
Expo
Moscone Convention Center
Friday, August 6
8:30 AM – 10:00 AM
Fellows CLE
Location and Topic TBA
12:30 PM – 2:00 PM
Fellows State and Regional Chair Luncheon
Palace Hotel, Room number TBA
6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Fellows Opening Reception
Museum of the African Diaspora
685 Mission Street
Ticketed Event
Saturday, August 7
7:30 AM – 9:30 AM
Fellows Annual Business Breakfast
Palace Hotel, Room number TBA
Ticketed Event
Sunday, August 8
PM - Time TBA
Life Fellows Recognition Reception
Daniel Burnham Bar & Lounge at the Merchants Exchange
465 California Street, 16th Floor
Ticketed Event
For general information about the 2010 ABA Midyear Meeting, including hotel accommodations, please visit http://new.abanet.org/annual. You must register through the ABA in order to take advantage of special room rates and online hotel reservations.
People to People: 2009 US-India Law Forum Delegation to India
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| Richard and Carolyn Pena, left, and Indian tour guide |
"On India trip, lawyers find it's a small world," by JOHN SIRMAN, posted on April 22 on Texas Bar Blog
A delegation of U.S. lawyers returned from India last month with a simple but important lesson: lawyers everywhere share a common bond, and that's a passion to protect and defend the Rule of Law, sometimes during very difficult circumstances.
The US-India Law Forum was led by former State Bar of Texas president Richard Pena on behalf of People to People Citizen Ambassador Programs, a group originally spun off from the State Department to promote international understanding and friendship through cultural exchange. Pena, a workers compensation lawyer and president of the American Bar Foundation, had led 11 previous legal delegations for People to People, to places like Vietnam, Cambodia, and Tibet. The first trip was a delegation of Texas lawyers to China in 2000.
In the wake of the Mumbai attacks, India is struggling with issues regarding terrorism and how it will respond as a country and a legal community. The group of 26 delegates met personally with the chief justice of the Indian Supreme Court, justices of the New Delhi Supreme Court, and the equivalent of the attorney general of India. They also met a group of lawyers who personally knew Gandhi and are working to promote the principles of peace and peaceful resistance as India works to determine its future. The delegation focused on learning about India's legal system, but also on making personal connections. “A lot of what we’re doing is relationship building,” says Pena. “It’s not unlike what President Obama did on his recent South America trip. You interact and build a foundation for future relationships and support.”
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| Gandhi's living quarters |
The group saw some tourist sites, but Pena explains that these trips are about much more. “The Taj Mahal was great and unique and everyone should see it, but it’s a thing. The people of India and of other countries that we visit are the real story -- the struggles that they face and how lawyers are helping them, sometimes in the face of great odds.”
Another goal of the People to People trips is to expand the world views of participants. “They learn that there are really no borders anymore. We’re all part of a global community,” Pena says. In India and Egypt this may take the form of a legal summit addressing issues of terrorism law.
Pena stresses that the legal delegations never pick “easy” destinations like Paris or London. Instead they go places where they feel they can make a difference.
The next trip is planned for Israel this November. If you’re interested in participating, contact Pena at (512)327-6884.
Oregon Life Fellow Richard J. Stone of Ball Janik, P.C., kept a journal while on the trip. Read it here.
North Carolina Fellow Willis P. Whichard of Moore & Van Allen, PLLC also kept a journal. Read it here.
People to People: 2008 Fellows Delegation to South Africa
The 2008 Fellows delegation to South Africa, November 10 to 22, was a resounding success. We were greeted at the Constitutional Court in Johannesburg by Justices Albie Sachs and Yvonne Mokgoro, both original members ot the Court (created in 1994 to address issues relating to the new constitution) and already legendary figures in South Africa. We were able to observe the Court in session and have a tour of the remarkable art and architecture of the Court and adjoining offices, including the infamous #4 prison which housed political prisoners like Mandela and Gandhi.
Thanks to her lex mundi connections, Minnesota Fellow Trudy Halla arranged for us to be hosted by the law firm Bowman Gilfillan, in both their Jo-burg and Cape Town offices. The firm hosted an elegant reception for us, arranged our visit to the High Court (trial court) in Cape Town, and arranged a panel discussion with partners and associates focused on their firm's impressive efforts to effect the "transformation" in law practice that is part of their country's commitment to racial and gender inclusiveness since the end of apartheid.
Fellows delegates at Bowman Gilfillan law firm in Johannesburg
Other highlights included visits with the South Africa Law Society, the Human Rights Commission, the DeKlerk Foundation, the University of Cape Town Law School, the Apartheid Museum, the Olando Children's Home (orphanage) and a very up-close and personal visit with the African penguin colony near the Cape of Good Hope. We were fortunate to have Fellow John Simpkins, a constitutional law professor at the Charleston School of Law, along on the trip. Professor Simpkins was a student in South Africa in the early 1990's and delivered a fascinating lecture on South African constitutional law. Fellow Barbara Gislason made numerous contacts in connection with her interest in animal law (she helped start the TTIPS Section Animal Law Committee), including the CEO of Kruger National Park - the game reserve that some of us added-on for the last three days of an educational, enjoyable and memorable trip.
The ABF provided a suitcase full of "host gifts" that we enjoyed distributing - including Fellows pen sets, tote bags, and even copies of Researching Law. This provided us with an opportunity to tell our counterparts in South Africa about the exceptional work of the ABF. Other Fellows delegates - 15 in all - brought gifts from home, including much-appreciated Obama election memorabilia. Everywhere we went in South Africa we were congratulated on our recent elections!
- Judge Ellen F. Rosenblum, Chair of The Fellows, 2006-2007
Roster Errata
Errata from the 2009 Roster
Allen W. Kimbrough, Arizona Life Fellow, is listed incorrectly as a Nevada Life Fellow.
John E. Osborn, Massachusetts Life Patron Fellow, lives in Siasconset, MA.
Gordon S. Rather, Arkansas Fellow, was omitted from the Roster.
Errata from the 2008 Roster
Salvador E. Casellas, Puerto Rico Life Fellow, is listed incorrectly as Salvador E. Casellas-Toro.
E. Norman Veasey, Delaware Sustaining Life Fellow, is listed incorrectly as a Life Fellow.
The Fellows deeply regrets these errors.
If you would like to report an error or update information in the Roster, please contact the Fellows office at 1-800-292-5065 or send us an email.