Vol. 75, No. 2, February
2002
Controlling Your Future
By becoming active in the State Bar you are, in
fact, controlling the future of the profession.
by George C. Brown,
State Bar executive director
A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO I WAS TALKING WITH A State Bar past
president and I asked him why he had wanted to become president of the
Bar. After all, here was a person, like so many others, who had given up
a substantial amount of income and family time (another president called
it the most expensive hobby he'd ever had) to spend anywhere from
one-quarter to one-half of his time for a year serving as president.
Quite simply he stated, "Because I wanted to be able to control the
development of my profession." This was not exactly the "to give back to
the community and the profession" comment I was used to receiving from
lawyers who were active in the association.
If you think about it, though, he's right. Whether your intention is
to give back to the community and the profession, by becoming active in
the State Bar you are, in fact, controlling the future of the
profession.
For example, February is High School Mock Trial Competition season.
As you read this, 1,700 students from 135 high schools around the state
are preparing to compete in high school mock trials, coached by 200
teachers and nearly 700 lawyer-coaches. Are the lawyers and judges who
coach and judge these student competitions giving back to their
community through their service? Most emphatically, yes. Are they
controlling the development of the legal profession as they provide
their expert advice to these high school teams? Yes, again. They are
educating these students about the nature and values of the profession
through their coaching; they are demonstrating that lawyers are expected
to and do perform public service in their communities; and they are
demonstrating that we live in a nation ruled by laws. And they are doing
this all with future members of the profession and potential future
leaders in their communities.
There are other ways lawyers control the future of the profession by
getting involved with the State Bar. Lawyers who serve on committees
that develop and manage programs as diverse as the Fee Dispute
Resolution Committee, the CLE Committee, and the Media Law Relations
Committee improve the competency of the members and the image of the
profession in the eyes of the public and the media. Members who serve on
section or division boards help develop and improve the law, educate
members about new law, and provide expert advice to policymakers and the
courts through lobbying and amicus curiae briefs.
February also begins the time for getting involved in the Bar next
year. This month's newsletter provides a volunteer sign-up sheet for
service on any of the Bar's 29 committees. President-elect Pat Ballman
already is thinking about appointments that begin in July. February also
is the time to consider getting active on your section or division
boards or even running for the Board of Governors if your district is up
for election this year. It's your future.
Wisconsin
Lawyer
