For Immediate Release
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CONTACT: Christi Powers
State Bar of Wisconsin
(608) 250-6025 |
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Bakke assumes top legal post in State Bar
August 1, 2000 - Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief
Justice Shirley Abrahamson swore in Attorney Gary Bakke of New Richmond
as the 45th president of the State Bar of Wisconsin on Thursday, June 29
in Madison. Bakke officially took office July 1.
Bakke has a long record of activity in State Bar, serving as chair of
the Family Law and Law Practice Management sections, but only recently
considered running for president of the State Bar, a statewide
association with nearly 20,000 members. According to Bakke, the legal
profession is ripe for change and he is eager to help shape it.
"My philosophy is that the status quo is not an option. I decided that
it was a good time to try to lead the profession in the direction I
think it needs to go."
Bakke has seen vast changes in the legal profession in the past 35
years. For example, as there are fewer "hometown attorneys" who serve
all the legal needs of the community, there are more individual
attorneys with greater degrees of specialization in a particular area of
law. Furthermore, there are a growing number of people who choose to
represent themselves in court, seek legal advice on the Internet, or
choose to settle their disputes outside of court through mediation and
arbitration.
One of the significant current legal trends is the worldwide movement
toward consolidating legal and accounting issues, providing for one-stop
shopping for clients, according to Bakke. "This is a huge unresolved
political issue in the American legal system, but the rest of the world
has already moved significantly in that direction," Bakke said.
Although Bakke sees the legal profession evolving rapidly, he is
optimistic about the future: "We, as lawyers, have the ability to be
good counselors and problems-solvers, and to be cost-effective and
efficient."
Bakke said that as lawyers begin to grapple with global changes in the
business world, he advocates looking to the future, rather than the past
for answers. "Lawyers cannot only be dispensers of information. We must
add experience, knowledge and problem solving to our services," Bakke
said. "We need all the resources of a Renaissance man or woman."
Bakke is passionate about the law, and even more so about his family.
His wife Debbie, two grown daughters, ages 37 and 24, and two young
sons, ages 12 and 7 help him keep work in perspective and provide him
with the balance necessary to maintain a healthy lifestyle. A former
marathon runner and competitive ski jumper, Bakke enjoys physical work
as his "recreation."
Bakke would like to see more lawyers follow his lead by balancing their
lives between work, family and recreation to maintain a healthy outlook.
During his term as president, Bakke hopes to engage his colleagues in
discussions about the various pressures they face. He hopes the added
attention on lifestyle issues will benefit attorneys, as well as the
public they serve.
Bakke, a native of Menomonie, graduated from UW Law School in 1965 and
has practiced in New Richmond ever since. He left his original firm in
1985 and partnered with George Norman, and Thomas Schumacher to
establish Bakke Norman S.C., with offices in Baldwin, Hudson, Menomonie
and New Richmond. Bakke can be reached at the New Richmond office at
(715) 246-3800.
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