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    Wisconsin Lawyer
    August 01, 2001

    Wisconsin Lawyer August 2001: Legal News and Trends

    Legal News & Trends

    Court schedules hearing re Office of Lawyer Regulation, seeks volunteers for investigative committees

    Keith L. Sellen
    Keith Sellen
    When the Wisconsin Supreme Court established the new lawyer regulation system last fall, it began accepting comments to improve the new system. Almost a year later, the components are in place and training is complete; however, district investigative committees are in need of public and lawyer involvement.

    "With the implementation of any new program, there is a need to assess progress and to make necessary adjustments," said Director Keith L. Sellen, Office of Lawyer Regulation (OLR). "While the basic structure and procedures of the new lawyer regulation system are sound, some adjustments are required to update references to the new system in other rules, to clarify specific authorities and responsibilities under the rules, and to make improvements based on the first year of experience." The court will consider three petitions relating to the lawyer regulation system in September.

    The court seeks comments on these petitions and on Supreme Court Rules chapters 21 and 22. Written comments may be submitted by Aug. 31 to Cornelia Clark, Clerk of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, P.O. Box 1688, Madison, WI 53701-1688. The court will hold a public hearing in the Supreme Court Room in the State Capitol at 9 a.m. on Sept. 20.

    District Investigative Committees. District investigative committees are an important part of the OLR system, making the initial investigation and recommendations in grievance matters. "The district investigative committees are in desperate need of public applicants for 2001 in districts 4, 10, 11, 13, 14, and 16," says Appointment Selection Committee cochair Michelle Behnke. "Nominations and, hence, appointments for these districts are not complete for terms that were to begin Jan. 1, 2001. Public members from all walks of life are eligible to apply, but we especially need public applicants who are active in their communities and willing to participate in public service."

    "While the most pressing need is for public members in the districts mentioned above, we need both lawyer and public applicants for all districts for 2002," added Behnke. Lawyers must have at least five years of practice experience and no record of public discipline.

    Send a letter of interest and/or resume to: Appointment Selection Committee, c / o Cornelia Clark at the address listed above, fax to Clark's attention at (608) 267-0980, or email cornelia.clark@courts.state.wi.us. For more information about the role of district investigative committees and the OLR, visit www.wisbar.org/newscenter/disc.html.


    Seminar examines how the Bill of Rights affects our daily lives

    Well beyond its 200th anniversary, the Bill of Rights remains the cornerstone of the rights, privileges, and freedoms upon which all citizens depend. Attend the "Private Rights, Public Good: The Bill of Rights in Our Lives" seminar on Oct. 12 - 13 at the Midwest Express Center in Milwaukee. This two-day forum will focus on heightening your awareness of the Bill of Rights and how it affects our lives today.

    Sponsored by the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters with support from the State Bar Law-related Education Committee, presenters will examine the Bill of Rights through the use of timely, interrelated themes including the drug war, free speech, privacy, and property rights. Keynote speakers include U.S. Senator Russ Feingold, U.S. Rep. James Sensenbrenner, Wall Street Journal editor John Fund, and Wisconsin Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson.

    For more information, visit www.wisconsinacademy.org/fallforum, call Michael Goodman, at (608) 263-1692, or email conference@wisconsinacademy.org.


    U.S. Senate designates National Court Reporting & Captioning Day

    The U.S. Senate designated Aug. 3 as "National Court Reporting and Captioning Day" in honor of the individuals who preserve our nation's history as the true guardians of the record. By passing this resolution, the Senate also recognizes the pressing need for more closed captioners to fulfill the requirements of the 1996 Telecommunications Act and provide communication access to hard-of-hearing people.


    Court helps youth take responsibility for municipal violations

    By bringing the court into the community, Milwaukee Municipal Court is giving young offenders a new opportunity to deal with outstanding warrants and suspensions to resolve their violations and avoid arrest.

    In a pilot project designed to make the court experience less threatening, Milwaukee municipal judges are hearing juvenile cases on a rotating schedule on select evenings at Journey House, a social service agency that provides youth and family programs.

    Juveniles who commit municipal violations - like disorderly conduct or loitering in schools, fights, truancy, curfew violations, and retail thefts - usually must participate in community service or pay a civil forfeiture.

    "We have ten thousand outstanding warrants for juveniles," according to Hon. Vincent Bobot. "These young people get tickets and respond by throwing them away. When that happens, they are subject to arrest. We want them to take responsibility and take care of those citations before that point."

    Bobot explained that the community sentence provides a positive way to pay the community back for the violation and create a meaningful experience that puts young people in touch with positive roles models, adult and young adult volunteers.


    Bottle of pillsABA policy relieves legal barriers to pain management for patients

    Recent studies show that despite the availability of effective drugs, doctors often do not treat pain adequately because, among other reasons, they fear legal complications. To address this problem, the ABA adopted a policy in 2000 to urge the removal of legal barriers to quality pain management. Resources are available through the ABA's Division for Media Relations and Communications Services. For information, contact Tina Lanier at (202) 662-1792 or tlanier@staff.abanet.org.


    Women in the legal profession underrepresented

    Although they account for nearly 30 percent of all lawyers and are on the brink of becoming the majority of entering law students this fall, women remain significantly underrepresented in positions of status, influence, and economic rewards in the legal profession. This is the conclusion of a report published this year by the ABA Commission on Women in the Profession. The Unfinished Agenda: Women and the Legal Profession examines a range of issues including the unique challenges facing minority women lawyers, "family friendly" schedules, and work-life balance. To view the report, visit www.abanet.org/women, or contact JoEllen Zacks at (312) 988-6141 or zacksj@staff.abanet.org.


    Need help using MS Word?

    For a free Microsoft® Word® Legal User's Guide, visit http://officeupdate.microsoft.com/legal. This legal user's guide contains step-by-step instructions to build legal documents in Microsoft Word 97 or Microsoft Word 2000.

    Chapters focus on basic formatting; legal numbering; understanding styles; sections, section breaks, and headers-footers; complex legal documents; tables in the legal environment; tracking changes; troubleshooting; and document corruption.
    No copyright restrictions apply; the guide can be printed and copied.


    Statute changes passport issuance for children

    Effective July 2, any person applying for a U.S. passport on behalf of a child under age 14 must demonstrate that both parents consent to the issuance of a passport or that the applying parent has sole authority to obtain one. If the second parent is unable to appear when the passport application is filed, the applying parent may provide the absent parent's written statement of consent. The new requirement lessens the possibility that a U.S. passport might be obtained to further an international parental child abduction.

    In 1999, as part of the FY 2000 and 2001 Foreign Relations Authorization Act, P.L. 106-113, Congress enacted Section 236, Issuance of Passports for Children Under Age 14. On June 4, 2001, the Department of State published as a final rule (66 FR 29904), the regulation implementing this program.

    The statute does not provide for notification of the nonapplying parent when a passport application is filed, nor does it apply to the passport applications of children over age 14. Parents and their attorneys who are concerned that a child under age 18 may become the victim of an international parental child abduction should request that the child's name be included in the passport name check system through the State Department's Children's Passport Issuance Alert Program. This program may be reached at (202) 663-2613 or fax (202) 663-2674. Send written communications to: Office of Children's Issues, Bureau of Consular Affairs, U.S. Department of State, 2401 E Street NW, Suite L127, Washington, DC 20524.

    For more information about the two-parent consent requirement, contact Sharon Palmer-Royston, chief, Passport Legal, at (202) 663-2430, or Consuelo Pachon, attorney adviser, at (202) 663-2431.


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