Dear Fellow:

The Spring Meeting in Boca Raton was a special event. Executive Director Dennis Maggi and his staff did their usual flawless job while making it all look easy. President-Elect Sam Franklin put together a program that was as good as I have seen. Many Fellows and their guests took the time to say as much to me during the meeting and since with emails and phone calls.   

When I first wrote this letter my plan was to describe what each of the speakers discussed. I realized, however, that the best way for you to know what you missed is to watch these wonderful presentations. Go to the College’s website and click on the YouTube icon on the home page. They can also be found if you Google ACTL YouTube. Trust me, you will not be disappointed in choosing any of these talks for your viewing. But I have to suggest that if you watch only one of the speakers, my vote would be to watch Judicial Fellow Justice C.J. Seitz introduce Bryan Stevenson and watch Bryan’s remarks. You will be glad you did.   

Since I last wrote you, the Board unanimously approved two white papers while we were in Boca, and both are posted on the College’s website. One is the Public Defenders Committee’s paper on Public Indigent Defense.  I would like to thank Chair of the Public Defenders Committee, Brendan O’Neill, for his leadership in both preparing this paper and in organizing a webinar that the Foundation has funded. That webinar will be broadcast from Fordham University Law School. Two distinguished professors will speak on implicit bias in jury trials and jury selection. Public defenders from all over the country will have the benefit of their wisdom.   

The White Paper on Campus Sexual Assault Investigations confronts an extremely complicated issue. The paper fairly takes into account the interests of the complaining party, the accused and the institution and makes recommendations that are consistent with our mission. I would like to thank Chair of the Task Force on the Response of Universities and Colleges to Allegations of Sexual Violence Pamela Mackey, Past President Earl Silbert, Regents Ritchie Berger and Liz Mulvey and Fellow Gil Sparks for their willingness to confront this issue and produce a paper of which all of us can be proud.   

I have continued to travel on behalf of the College. I was in NYC for the National Moot Court Competition where I participated as one of the judges in the finals won by Wake Forest. I then traveled to Toronto to attend the finals of Gale Cup Moot.  Last weekend I was in Ottawa for the finals of the Sopinka Cup, the national trial advocacy competition. After a short trip to visit the Downstate NY Fellows for their dinner, I was off to Fort Worth for the National Trial Competition where I presided over the final round. In between those trips I have been to South Carolina, Salt Lake City and have trips to Quebec, Maine, Virginia, Maryland and the 6th Circuit Regional Meeting in Kentucky before the end of April. It has all been such a meaningful experience. The best part is to see up-close how Fellows are moving forward the mission of the College by their educational and pro bono activities. I am happy that the eBulletin is doing such a great job at spreading the good news.

Thanks to all,

Polls are opening on Thursday, April 6. Be prepared. You will need your login credentials and you can view the instructional video that shows the steps to complete the online poll. Click here to view the video.  You will receive an e-mail when the polls open.

Change of Address for National Office

As of June 1, 2017, the National Office will have a new address. The new address is: 1300 Dove Street, Suite 150 Newport Beach, CA 92660. Please use this address for all billing and correspondence. Phone, fax and email remain the same. To keep up with the College on social media, follow the College on  Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, @actl.

The Power of an Hour campaign was launched at the 2016 Annual Meeting in Philadelphia. The goal of the 2016-2017 campaign is to have all Fellows contribute the equivalent of one billable hour (or more) to the U.S. or Canadian Foundations. As President Dalton travels around both countries throughout his term, he will remind Fellows of this opportunity to give to the Foundations' worthy projects. Through your support, the Foundation is better equipped to extend the College's reach in supporting worthwhile projects.

The Foundation accepts applications from College committees and organizations requesting funding for proposed projects that are consistent with the College's objectives. The Foundation's Trustees welcome project proposals with potential to leverage its investments through model programs capable of replication in other jurisdictions. The application must be completed and submitted to nationaloffice@actl.com. Click here to download the application.

If a State or Province Committee is interested in hosting a CLE program for public service lawyers, the Foundation can provide a grant of up to $2,000 without a formal application. A Chair should provide basic details and the amount needed in an inquiry to the National Office, nationaloffice@actl.com.  

Committees Offer Fellows Opportunity to Serve

Each spring, the President and President-Elect appoint members to the College's committees. General committees each have a specific mandate that guides their work, while state and province committees focus on local outreach and the nomination of new Fellows. The work of the committees is the backbone of the College. If you are interested in serving on one of the College's 34 general committees and 61 state and province committees, please contact National Office, nationaloffice@actl.com. A list of committees and their mandates is available on the College website.

Teach Overseas Through Visiting Professorships

The Visiting Professorships for Senior Lawyers, organized through the Center for International Legal Studies (CILS), in cooperation with law faculties in Eastern Europe and the former republics of the Soviet Union, will offer short-term appointments to senior lawyers in spring and autumn 2018. A senior lawyer has accumulated at least 15 years of significant practice experience in the area in which he or she proposes to lecture. The teaching term may be from two to six weeks. The subject areas are not limited, but there is special interest in corporate and business law, intellectual property, arbitration and criminal procedure. The purpose of the seminars will be to introduce particular areas of common law legal systems to the law students and the junior faculty of the host university. Click here for more information or to submit an application. Contact South Carolina Committee Chair and International Committee member Thomas H. Pope, III or Dennis Campbell, CILS Director with any questions.

Judiciary Committee Seeks Help To Spread Adoption of 24 Principles for Reforming Civil Justice System

The Judiciary Committee needs your help. It is undertaking an important effort to spread the knowledge and adoption by all of the states in their rules of civil procedure of the 24 principles for reforming our civil justice system. These principles were formulated after eight years of intensive study, experimentation and revision by the College Task Force on Discovery and Civil Justice and IAALS (the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System). The principles, as approved by the Board  of Regents, informed the heart of (a) the 2015 amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure; (b) similar changes to the civil rules in several states; and (c) a new report of the national Council of Chief Justices, “ Call to Action: Achieving Civil Justice For All.”  Consistent with Rule One which requires that civil cases be “just, speedy and inexpensive,” and the related purpose of increasing access to justice, the Judiciary Committee has been tasked with urging all state courts to adopt similar rule changes and with providing assistance in accomplishing those changes. To accomplish this task the committee needs at least one Fellow from each state that has not yet acted on these changes to volunteer to confer with their state’s Chief Justice and/or head of the state’s Civil Rules Committee in order to offer the College’s knowledge and experience to help the states adopt and apply as many of the principles as possible. The Judiciary Committee and Task Force members have much background and a substantial number of white papers that can provide great assistance to the states in fulfilling the Counsel of Chief Justices’ “Call to Action.” If you are willing to help in this significant effort at civil reform (which will additionally elevate the recognition and appreciation of the College) please contact Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Holme ( richard.holme@dgslaw.com; 303. 892.7340), who can provide you with background and a collection of critical materials, and your State Chair.  

Wake Forest Wins 67th National Moot Court Competition

Law student teams from Wake Forest and Ohio State competed for the College’s coveted Davis Cup trophy and other prizes in the final round of the 67th annual National Moot Court Competition, held February 2, 2017 at the New York City Bar Association building in Manhattan. The final championship round followed more than five months of preparation and arguments by 185 teams from over 120 law schools across the country. The top two teams from each of 14 regional competitions advanced to the February final rounds. After an hour of superb arguments by both teams, Wake Forest University School of Law prevailed, sweeping honors for best team, best brief and best oralist, awarded to Wake Forest’s Mia Falzarano. Her teammate Blake E. Stafford (also the primary brief writer) was selected as runner-up for best oralist. Matthew Cloutier rounded out the Wake Forest championship team, coached by Professor John Korzen. The winning Wake Forest team was also given the Fulton Haight Award of $2,500. President Bart Dalton was one of six judges for the championship final round. He was joined by Hon. Raymond Lohier, judge on the U.S. of Appeals for the Second Circuit; Hon. Ellen Gesmer, Associate Justice, Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York State, First Department; Hon. Jenny Rivera, Associate Judge of the Court of Appeals, State of New York; Hon. Brian M. Cogan, Judge, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York; and John S. Kiernan , President of the New York City Bar Association and a partner at Debevoise and Plimpton. The hypothetical appellate case involved two issues steeped in the internet era: (1) the constitutionality of a state’s sales and use tax against an internet-based seller lacking a physical presence in the state, and (2) the scope of the “private citizen search” exception to the Fourth Amendment in the context of electronic devices. The College co-sponsors this competition with the New York City Bar Association. Past winners of the competition’s best oralist award are Past President Joan Lukey and David Weinstein, chair of the National Moot Court Competition Comittee. A list of winner teams in previous years’ competitions is on the College’s website. The winning Wake Forest team were introduced and honored at the North Carolina Fellows meeting held March 23 – 26 at the Inn on Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC.   

Northwestern Earns 5th National Trial Competition Title

In the final round of the 42nd Annual National Trial Competition, Douglas Bates, Garrett Fields and Stacy Kapustina of the Pritzker School of Law at Northwestern University faced Amarto Bhattacharyya and Jordan Dickson of the Georgetown University Law Center, in what was a thrilling close to three days of fierce competition.  President Bart Dalton ably presided over the final round on Saturday, April 25, and over 20 members of the National Trial Competition Committee served as scoring judges. In a hard-fought final featuring outstanding trial advocacy, Northwestern edged Georgetown and was awarded the Honorable Terry R. Parker Championship Trophy at the awards banquet on Saturday evening.  Bhattacharyya of the runner-up Georgetown team was selected as the Best Oral Advocate and received the George A. Spiegelberg Award. This was Northwestern's fifth national championship (1992, 1997, 2002, 2011, 2017), tying Stetson University for the most all time. Chicago-Kent College of Law and Baylor Law School are close behind with four national titles each. The National Trial Competition (NTC) is sponsored and organized by the College and the Texas Young Lawyers Association. The 1975 brainchild of Past President David Beck, the NTC is the largest and finest law school mock trial competition in the nation, truly earning the title "National Championship." Many of the TYLA Committee served as witnesses and provided the competitors with lively and tough challenges on the witness stand. The College plays a critical role in the success of the NTC. The final and regional case problems were drafted by Fellow Pamela Robillard Mackey who provided an intricate set of facts, exhibits, legal issues and interesting witnesses for the competitors. The NTC committee is chaired by N. Karen Deming who has worked tirelessly with President Dalton, incoming chair R. Gary Winters, Regent Liaison Kathleen Flynn Peterson and Dennis Maggi, Executive Director on the planning and coordination of the competition.  Her stirring remarks, as well as those of President Dalton, to the competitors at the awards banquet will be long remembered. Also remembered will be Winters’ emails which helped ensure the Fellows involved in the 14 regional competitions were on top of their games. Over 300 schools started the journey in the February regional competitions with 26 teams reaching the finals. This year over 263 Fellows of the College served as judges in 413 regional trials. In Fort Worth, NTC Committee members and other Fellows actively participated in almost all of the trials and often, two Fellows served in the same trial.  Plans are already underway for the 2018 Competition. Stay tuned for emails next year so you can participate as a judge in one of the regional rounds. One of the most rewarding activities a Fellow can participate in is the National Trial Competition.

Northeast Fellows Present Region 12 Public Service Award to Francis X. Bellotti

Fellows from across New England gathered on January 27, 2017 at the annual Black Tie dinner. Highlighting the evening was the presentation of the Region Twelve Public Service Award to College Fellow and former Massachusetts Attorney General Francis X. Bellotti. Retired Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (and former Attorney General for the State of New Hampshire) David Souter made the presentation, recognizing Bellotti’s lifelong contributions in furthering the fair administration of justice.  Justice Souter and Bellotti have been close friends since their days as Attorneys General. President-Elect Sam Franklin honored the meeting with his attendance and participation.  

Puerto Rico Fellows Gather, Host Senior Federal Judge

Members of the Puerto Rico chapter held a luncheon Feb. 23, 2017, where the guest of honor was Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico Daniel R. Dominguez, who gave a presentation on injunctions. A great time was had by all who attended. Puerto Rico Fellows are planning to hold a seminar in August on the changes from the last two years to the Federal Rules of Civil and Criminal Procedure.

Updates from General Committees

Access to Justice and Legal Services: The committee is coordinating an appellate advocacy training program that is scheduled to take place on June 23, 2017, at the University of Texas Law School. The format currently planned will include a lecture on oral argument and presentation, followed by a mock appellate argument to a panel of appellate judges, review of a videotape of the actual argument of the case presented and then a panel discussion with the judges and advocates. Public interest and legal aid lawyers, law students and faculty will be invited to attend. The program will be videotaped so that it can be posted on the ACTL website and form the basis for future ACTL programs. The committee continues to work with the National Legal Aid and Defender Association (NLADA) to locate impact assignments that can be handled by Committee members or Fellows. Fellows Shulamith Simon and Barry Abrams (along with other Blank Rome lawyers) are working on this project with representatives of NLADA Member, Legal Services of Eastern Missouri. Recent activity involved providing the NLADA member with legal analyses of potential federal judicial and administrative remedies and identification of required factual and legal requirements for each.  

Federal Criminal Procedure: The committee’s major project is its ongoing work to survey and assess the impact of the “Yates Memo”—a policy announced by the Department of Justice in in September 9, 2015 formally describing new policies for “Individual Accountability for Corporate Wrongdoing.” The new policy was directed to companies under investigation for alleged criminal conduct. The Yates Memo laid out a new rule: “in order to qualify for any cooperation credit, corporations must provide to the Department all relevant facts relating to the individuals responsible for the misconduct . . .” (emphasis supplied). Since companies typically obtain those facts through internal investigations conducted by counsel under the protection of the attorney-client privilege and the work product doctrine, the Yates Memo raised a serious concern among many members of the Federal Criminal Procedure Committee: that the Department of Justice was, in effect, requiring companies to waive the attorney-client privilege in order to resolve criminal investigations favorably. The DOJ’s official position is that the new policy is not intended to change DOJ’s existing policy against requiring privilege waivers. But the experience of a number of members of the committee suggests that that message is not reaching rank-and-file prosecutors in the U.S. Attorney’s Offices around the country. To determine whether there has in fact been a de facto change in policy, the committee resolved to survey Fellows from as many states as possible to hear first-hand their experiences dealing with prosecutors in the wake of the Yates Memo. The committee has designed (and refined) a survey designed to seek information about that issue. Over the course of fall 2016, information was gathered from State Chairs on Fellows in their jurisdictions who focus on criminal defense. Once the final results have been gathered, a subcommittee will be formed to review the results, with the aim of being able to produce a report by the late spring 2017.

Heritage Committee: The committee is continuing its practice of recording interviews with Past Presidents. Past President David J. Beck was interviewed at the Philadelphia meeting.

Legal Ethics and Professionalism: The committee is working to organize the College’s Code of Pretrial and Trial Conduct professionalism vignettes into a program format for broad distribution. The committee is developing an electronic database by working with Regents and State and Province Chairs as well as Inns of Court, State Bar Associations and other organizations. The committee is also working on developing at least one new vignette per year to keep the library up to date on new topics.

Public Defenders: The committee received approval to fund a webinar on the issue of implicit bias in jury trials and jury selection. As of January 18, 2017, the webinar is scheduled for the second week of May 2017 at Fordham University Law School in New York City. 

Special Problems in the Administration of Justice (U.S.): The committee has continued its challenge as unconstitutional the four-year delay in deciding appeals from the denial of benefits for disabled veterans. Somewhat incredibly, the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC) has refused to address the delay issue under the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution and has rejected all the veterans’ claims. The CAVC, an Article 1 Court, has held that only a delay that is tantamount to a refusal to act by the VA is actionable. With every petition filed, the VA moves the veterans’ appeals to the next stage so the court can find no such delay. Fortunately for three veterans, the next stage meant a payment and they were paid in full. The committee is now filing appeals in the Federal Circuit for the remaining claimants. Fellows Stephen D. Raber of Williams & Connolly, Elizabeth V. Tanis of King & Spalding and J. Denny Shupe of Schnader Harrison have led the efforts.   

Teaching of Trial and Appellate Advocacy: The committee is sponsoring the following programs: June 23, 2017- Appellate Practice Program focusing on oral argument at the University of Texas with American Academy of Appellate Lawyers; July 14, 2017 - One Day Boot Camp Trial Training Program in the Ceremonial Courtroom of the U.S. District Court in San Francisco. The program is being coordinated with Northern California Committee State Chair William P. Keane and Teresa M. Caffese. This program is co-sponsored with the ABA Litigation Section, and with the San Francisco Bar Association managing the event.; November 17, 2017 - Mega Legal Services Program One Day Boot Camp Trial Training in the ceremonial courtroom U.S. District Court Northern Division of Maryland.

Updates from State & Province Committees

Alabama: A panel of Alabama Fellows, along with the Hon. Carole C. Smitherman, Judge, Tenth Judicial
Circuit, Birmingham, Alabama participated in the Mandatory Professional Training Program at Cumberland School of Law on January 20, 2017. The program is an ethics seminar and the Fellows' panel discussion used the Code of Pretrial and Trial Conduct ethics vignettes. Approximately 60 new inductees attended the half day program. 

Arkansas: The 2017 version of the “Nuts and Bolts” Trial Seminar is being planned for April 20-21, 2017. The panel discussion for the Arkansas Bar Annual Meeting is planned to be next presented at the 2018 annual meeting.

Connecticut: The committee held a CLE Seminar March 17, 2017 with Connecticut Legal Services and New Haven Legal Aid. The seminar focused on the authentication and use of electronic evidence. Honorable Robert Nastri, Jr., a judge of the New Britain District Superior Court, participated in the panel discussion.

Delaware: At the request of the Chief Justice of the Delaware Supreme Court, the committee participated in a project to evaluate the judicial process in Delaware by interviewing judges and practicing lawyers. President Bart Dalton and Fellow Thomas J. Allingham II have led this process and other Fellows participated in conducting interviews tabulating interview responses and drafting a report on the results. The entire process is under the direction of the Chief Justice. Over 100 judges and members of the judiciary were interviewed in person.    

District of Columbia: On March 30, 2017, the District of Columbia State committee sponsored a panel discussion on “Leaks, the Media and the Law” at American University Law School. June 16, 2017 will be their Annual D.C. Trial Techniques CLE Training Session.  

Florida: Fellows Theodore C. Eastmoore and Patricia D. Crauwels have agreed to serve as the Florida representatives to the national “Call to Action” committee to improve the state court judicial systems. The Florida Access to Justice Committee has been working to identify suitable projects for the Florida Fellows. A working sub-committee composed of Darryl M. Bloodworth, Sylvia H. Walbolt and George E. "Buddy" Schulz, Jr. have been discussing pro bono opportunities for Florida Fellows with the Florida Bar Foundation and Florida Legal Services staff. The committee is also very enthused about the Veterans’ project which ACTL is developing.  

Hawaii: Judicial independence has come under attack in the State Legislature. The Hawaii chapter is working in cooperation with the Chief Justice of the Hawaii Supreme Court, the Hawaii State Bar Association, the American Judicature Society and the Judicial Selection Commission to oppose these measures. At the University of Hawaii William S. Richardson School of Law, members of the Hawaii chapter led by former State Committee Chair Michael K. Livingston have worked to develop a Trial Skills Course and to fund a new Advocacy and Trial Practice Building and associated curriculum.

Idaho: Idaho State Committee Vice Chair and Outreach Liaison Gary L. Cooper has been working on a project to provide training to advocates and judges in the tribal courts for the three tribes in Idaho, the Shoshone-Bannock, the Coeur d’Alene and the Nez Perce. This will serve as the pilot project for the other Idaho tribes and perhaps for tribes in Wyoming and Montana, who have expressed an interest in this project, and would provide an opportunity to work with Fellows in Wyoming and Montana.

Maryland: The State Committee’s signature project the “Masters in Trial Practice” course is being taught on a weekly basis beginning in January for the benefit of University of Maryland and University of Baltimore third year students. Two Maryland Fellows volunteer to teach each class. The class meets every other week throughout the semester.  

Massachusetts: The Massachusetts State Committee has begun advance planning for its very first CLE program. The date has been established – May 15, 2017. The location has been established – Suffolk University Law School. The publicity and registration will be handled by the Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly. An experimental format will focus on a five year cycle: opening statements, then direct examination, followed by cross-examination, experts and then closing arguments. A reception will follow. The Maine State and New Hampshire State Committees have agreed to co-sponsor the event.  

Mississippi: The Mississippi State Committee (J. Cal Mayo, Jr.,Vice Chair) has been in touch with the Director of the Mississippi Judicial College to arrange bi-annual presentations to the Mississippi Circuit and Chancery Judges Association concerning ethics scenarios utilizing the College’s Judicial Vignettes.

Missouri: Spearheaded by Fellow Louis J. Leonatti, the committee completed the trial practice Intersession program at the University of Missouri Law School earlier in January. Former Missouri State Committee Chair Karl W. Blanchard, Jr. is trying to work out a program to assist veterans with obtaining health and other benefits via use of Fellows volunteering and not just funding.  

New Jersey: In the fall of 2016, Regent Robert E. Welsh, Jr., State Committee Chair S. David Osterman, and State Committee member William M. Tambussi met with the Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court, Stuart Rabner, and the Acting Administrative Director of the Courts, Glenn A. Grant to educate them about the College and to offer services on relevant state committees.  

Northern California: In coordination with Chair Paul Mark Sandler of the Teaching of Trial and Appellate Advocacy Committee, the Northern California Fellows are organizing a day-long, trial-training boot camp for young lawyers on July 14, 2017 in the Ceremonial Courtroom of the San Francisco federal courthouse. It is being co-sponsored by the San Francisco Bar Association and the ABA’s Litigation Section.

Ohio: A committee composed of Ohio Fellows, including two Judicial Fellows, and Ohio State Bar Association Members are preparing a report with recommendations to be presented to the Ohio Supreme Court during early 2017. Former Ohio State Committee Chair John D. Holschuh, Jr. provided an update of the committee’s work to the Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice in December 2016.

Oklahoma: The committee will provide judges and participants for the University of Oklahoma Law Board of Advocates spring competition.

Oregon: The committee currently has three CLE programs in line for presentation to the Federal Bar Association (Oregon Division) and the Oregon State Bar trial practices sections. The committee is currently scheduling annual receptions for the Oregon Trial Bench; a reception for Oregon Fellows with all federal and state judges; and a dinner meeting with the Chief Judge of the federal courts, the presiding judges of the Oregon Trial courts (county based), and appellate courts (Supreme Court and Court of Appeals).

South Carolina: In Spring 2017, the committee to honor senior Fellows will have a Fellows reception to honor Thomas E. McCutchen (a Fellow for six decades).  On Feb. 17, South Carolina Fellows and the Charleston School of Law sponsored a free seminar, the First Solomon Blatt Visiting Scholars CLE.

Utah: The committee is co-sponsoring a CLE program with the University of Utah College of Law on May 24, 2017. The topic is the subject of implicit bias. The Hon. Mark Bennett, a U.S. District Court Judge from Northern Iowa,  has written and spoken on this subject extensively and agreed to participate in the program. Fellows from the Utah chapter will participate in panel discussions and role playing in various vignettes.

Wyoming: The committee continues to support the annual trial practice training at the University of Wyoming Law School.

The College recognizes extraordinary individuals and their important contributions to the law through three awards described below. A nominator need only submit a letter of support, and the award committee will complete an investigation before deciding whether to recommend the person to the Board of Regents. Please consider nominating a worthy recipient. You may send your letter to nationaloffice@actl.com or directly to the committee chair indicated below

Northern California, January 27: A beautiful California day welcomed President Bart Dalton and his wife Eileen to The City Club in San Francisco. The large crowd, including Past President Charles B. Renfrew and wife, Barbara, shared an outstanding meal and heard a great program. California Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye was the guest of honor. After dinner, President Dalton’s remarks addressed the role of the College in political issues, a timely topic. He assured the Northern California Fellows and guests that the College will take action when the mission of the promotion and protection of the rule of law is involved.  

Northeast Region, January 27: President Dalton was enjoying California, so President-Elect Samuel H. Franklin joined Fellows in Boston for the Northeast Fellows Black Tie Dinner at the Four Seasons Hotel.  Approximately 120 Fellows from Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut and the Atlantic Provinces gathered for cocktails and dinner. A hand puppet, engineered by Massachusetts State Committee Chair Tom Hoopes, allowed President Dalton to extend greetings to the crowd and President-Elect Sam was presented a bobble head doll and plastic gavel. On a more serious note, the after dinner program was highlighted by a presentation from retired Associate Justice David Souter to Fellow Frank Bellotti. Bellotti was the first recipient of an award created in his honor by the Massachusetts Fellows to recognize Fellows who have made a significant contribution to public service.

National Moot Court Finals, January 30: The National Moot Court Competition concluded with final rounds in New York City, January 30-February 2. This worthy competition has been sponsored by the College since 1952. President Dalton served as one of the judges on the panel to hear the final arguments and select the winners. The competition was excellent and was highlighted by outstanding performances. After the arguments and awards were given it was learned that the competing teams were from Wake Forest and Ohio State with Wake Forest prevailing. National Moot Court Competition Committee Chair David B. Weinstein and his committee deserve much credit for the success of the competition.

Utah, February 11: The Daltons joined the Utah Fellows for dinner in Salt Lake City where Salt Lake City Country Club hosted a welcoming group of 25 Fellows and their guests. The night was dedicated primarily to tributes to Fellow Gordon L. Roberts and deceased Fellow W. Eugene Hansen. They were great trial lawyers, but more than that, were gentlemen who had a tremendous impact both inside and outside of the legal community. It was a pleasure to hear about such exemplary Fellows. President Dalton shared comments about the diversity initiative. Utah is dedicated to making progress in this area. Past President Francis M. Wikstrom joined the group and took part in the tribute to Roberts.

New Jersey, February 15: The New Jersey Fellows Dinner at Rat’s Restaurant in Hamilton Township was attended by President-Elect Franklin and his wife, Betty. The venue was located on the Grounds for Sculptures, a sculpture park created by a member of the Johnson & Johnson family. The restaurant was named for the river animal, Rat, in the children’s novel The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame. Twenty-four Fellows and their guests joined the Franklins for cocktails, dinner and after dinner remarks.  The President-Elect spoke about the diversity initiative, improved communication efforts and the Foundation’s “Power of an Hour” campaign. Except for the storm related travel and delayed luggage issues, the trip to New Jersey was a great success.

Toronto, February 17: President Dalton traveled to Toronto to celebrate the Gale Cup. Prizes for outstanding oral presentation were awarded to the top participants. This competition is worthy of the College’s continuing support. Prior to the dinner, the Daltons visited Osgoode Hall, the home of the Ontario Appeals Court to hear arguments, one in French and one in English. The Honourable Malcom Rowe, a Puisne Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada, joined President Dalton at Osgoode Hall and then again at the dinner where he spoke to the group.

South Carolina, February 24: Palmetto Bluff hosted 35 Fellows and their guests. President Dalton was happy to attend the two-day meeting which included business, fellowship and southern hospitality. He especially enjoyed the 90-minute happy hour! South Carolina has strong leadership on the State Committee and is enthusiastically making great strides on the diversity initiative and with outreach and communications. The chapter presented a seminar to a standing-room only crowd.  Fifty Fellows have volunteered to mentor young lawyers. The Daltons enjoyed the black tie dinner before leaving to attend the Spring Meeting in Boca Raton, Florida. South Carolina is certainly an example of all that the College can be.