Letters

The Wisconsin Lawyer welcomes letters to the editor on any law-related subject, whether that subject has been a topic of a Wisconsin Lawyer article. The magazine publishes as many letters in each issue as space permits. Please limit letters to 500 words; letters may need to be edited for length and clarity.

Letters responding to previously published letters and to others' views should address the issues and not be a personal attack on others. Letters endorsing political candidates cannot be accepted.

Please mail letters to "Letters to the Editor," Wisconsin Lawyer, P.O. Box 7158, Madison, WI 53707-7158, fax them to (608) 257-5502, or email them.

Wisconsin Lawyer is Online

The full text of the Wisconsin Lawyer is on WisBar, the State Bar's homepage on the World Wide Web. The online magazine offers our readers an experience that traditional print does poorly or cannot do at all. And, you'll find it online at least a week in advance of receiving your print edition.

The online publication gives readers:

• instant access to the full text of select cases, supreme court rules and orders, Wisconsin statutes, related forms and other material on the Internet that doesn't fit the space constraints of the print publication;
  
  
• easy access to the magazine's staff, editorial board and authors via email;
  
  
• an archive of select indexes of back issues (or use WisBar's search engine) to help locate previously published articles; and
  
  
• an audio version of each month's feature story using Real Audio, a technology that allows you to listen to other sound and music recordings on numerous WWW sites.

I owe special thanks to WisBar webmaster Pat McKenna and the Wisconsin Lawyer staff for their enthusiasm for taking the magazine online. We are excited about learning more about the transition from print to online publishing and how we can use this technology to enhance your Wisconsin Lawyer experience. Please tell us what you think about the Wisconsin Lawyer online.

Joyce R. Hastings
Editor, Wisconsin Lawyer

Wisconsin Lawyer Online - Fantastic

I think the State Bar has done a fantastic job with the electronic Wisconsin Lawyer. I visited the website and I liked the way the articles have been enhanced with links (to the Rules of Professional Conduct, for example) to other relevant materials. The electronic magazine is simply excellent.

Robert V. Petershack
Madison

Campaign Increases Candidate's Respect for Members, Opponents

When I was nominated to run for president-elect, I dreaded campaigning. I thought it would be gauche to ask people for their votes, stressful for someone who values privacy and physically taxing.

Instead I found it enjoyable. My admiration and respect for my opponents steadily increased. So did my respect for the members whom I found to be courteous, hospitable and strongly interested in the issues. Dialogues taught me how thoughtful and insightful members are.

I think Susan Steingass will make an excellent president. I look forward to helping her in any way I can.

I thank members for giving me the honor of running, and for an experience that I will always value highly. There is no bar I would rather be a member of.

John H. Lederer
Oregon

Wisconsin Bar Provides Guidance

President Saichek should be extremely proud of the reports from the Commission on Violence and the Justice System and the Commission on the Judiciary as a Co-equal Branch of Government. * Thanks for sending me a copy. I know the documents will be guidance for us in several of our current projects.

Wisconsin is the strongest example that I use when talking about the mandatory bar. You all do such good work (of course I'm partial, having grown up in Monroe).

Howard P. Olsen Jr., President
Nebraska State Bar Association

• Download Commission on Violence Final Report*
  
  
• Download Commission on the Judiciary as a Co-equal Branch
  of Government Final Report*
  

* Requires Acrobat Reader. Go to the WisBar Toolbox and download it NOW!

Need an Acrobat tutorial? Go to the WisBar Toolbox

Candidate Vows to Stay Involved with Bar, Urges Others to Do Same

I had the honor of nomination to the office of treasurer of our association. Though unsuccessful, I am grateful for this opportunity. During the campaign I traveled and met with many of you at your local bar association meetings. Having met with you has made the campaign worthwhile for me. From Milwaukee to Lincoln and La Crosse to Sheboygan, I am impressed with the large numbers of our profession who are committed to professional excellence and who give of their time in state and local bar activities as well as volunteer their time in their communities. While I was running my own campaign, I was managing a campaign for a friend who was making his first bid for alderman in Racine. Thankfully, he succeeded.

With members who serve as volunteers as much as our members do, we have reason to be proud. I am proud. Having served this association in almost as many capacities as there are, and in some of those capacities having traveled the country, I can tell all of you that our State Bar of Wisconsin is regarded as one of the best and the envy of the rest, many of which have more members and greater resources.

To those who supported my candidacy, volunteered time and resources, and to those of you who voted for me, please accept my sincere thanks. Do not be discouraged. I believe that we will be well served with Terry Gherty as treasurer.

I also congratulate Susan Steingass. It was indeed a pleasure getting to know her as we traveled the state. I pledge to her my support and urge all of those who supported me to do likewise. To my friends Sherwood Zink and John Lederer, just as Susan, thank you for your warmth and friendship traveling this harsh Wisconsin winter. But now I call upon you and your supporters to join me in support of Susan and Terry. I specifically ask that all of you stay involved in the association; it needs your views and perspective. Defeat is disappointing, but I implore you not to become discouraged. We have achieved our reputation in the nation's legal community by accommodating diverse views and we cannot afford to lose either of you.

To the governors who have served this year and have not been reelected, no words can express how disappointed I am at your loss and how much President Saichek and I have appreciated your support. As chairperson of your board, I am truly honored to have been your selection. More important, I have appreciated your diligent efforts, your thoughtful discussion, your disagreement on issues without acrimony, and the resolve of our differences by consensus. Our members should know of your dedication to the office you have held, and I am proud to tell them. Do not become discouraged by the result of one election; stay involved.

As for me, I will practice what I preach.

Robert R. Goepel
Racine

Wisconsin Lawyer