e-Journal
03-22
Images from the 2012 Court Advocacy Day on March 19 at the Statehouse.
Photos by Jeff Thiebauth.
MBA and BBA lead lobby day for court funding
The Massachusetts Trial Court will lose the ability to both
deliver justice and ensure security within their walls if the
Legislature does not approve adequate funding for fiscal 2013. That
was the message delivered by court leaders and lawyers at a Court
Advocacy Day hosted by the Massachusetts Bar Association and the
Boston Bar Association at the Grand Staircase of the Statehouse on
March 19.
"Losing more than 17 percent of court personnel directly affects
our ability or deliver justice in ways that are all too familiar to
you and your colleagues," Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice
Roderick L. Ireland said. "Inadequate funding has made access to
justice all the more harder."
The Trial Court Department is asking for $593.9 million in
"critical funding" it needs to preserve the integrity of the
courts. Gov. Deval L. Patrick recommended level funding the courts
when he released his state budget proposal in late January. The
House and Senate will start debating the budgets in April and May,
respectively.
"Our message today is pretty simple… supporting the courts
request for $593 million is essential," MBA President Richard P.
Campbell said.
Following the speaking program, attendees met with their local
legislators to emphasize the need for $593.9 million in
funding.
Click here to view event images.
Court Advocacy Day complements the Massachusetts Bar
Association's comprehensive public awareness campaign on
underfunded courts. In addition to a statewide billboard campaign
on this topic, the MBA has posted videos on YouTube and conducted
outreach to members of the legal community and other key community
leaders and groups. All stress the importance of adequately funding
the state's third branch of government. For more information on the
March 19 event or the MBA's overall campaign on underfunded courts,
visit www.massbar.org/courtfunding.
Join us at MBA Annual Dinner on May 31
Consider sponsoring our premier event
The Massachusetts Bar Association will hold its 2012 Annual
Dinner on Thursday, May 31 at the Westin Boston Waterfront, 425
Summer St., Boston. The event will feature the presentation
of the Legislator of the Year Award to Speaker Robert A.
DeLeo and the annual MBA Access to Justice Awards.
Attend this annual event as a sponsor. Sponsorship opportunities to
consider include:
- Platinum Sponsor ($5,000)
Table for 10, full page ad in dinner program, firm logo projected
at the dinner, sponsorship level recognition in Lawyers
Journal and displayed on MBA website
- Gold Sponsor ($3,500)
Table for 10, 1/2 page ad in dinner program, firm logo projected at
the dinner, sponsorship level recognition in Lawyers
Journal and displayed on MBA website
- Silver sponsor ($2,500)
Table for 10, 1/4 page ad in dinner program, firm logo
projected at the dinner
Click here to register for the MBA's
2012 Annual Dinner online. For a printable PDF outlining
sponsorship opportunities and table reservation information,
click here. For additional information, call
(617) 338-0543.
Member Appreciation Reception
Network with MBA and Worcester County Bar members next Thursday, March 29
Join the Massachusetts Bar Association and Worcester County Bar
Association at a FREE Member Appreciation Reception and
Networking Event from 6 to 8 p.m. at The Citizen, 1 Exchange
St., Worcester.
This event will feature passed hors d'oeuvres. Cash bar
available.
Space is limited; R.S.V.P. today.
MBA to host second Gateway Cities forum on April 30
Following the success of its debut forum in Dartmouth on Jan.
26, the Massachusetts Bar Association will host its second Gateway
Cities forum in Worcester on Monday, April 30 beginning at 5 p.m.
in the Jury Room at the Worcester Trial Court.
"Like with the first forum, the focus of the Worcester event will
be to identify ways in which attorneys can lend their expertise
with issues affecting Gateway City communities across
Massachusetts," said MBA President Richard P. Campbell, who set
Gateway Cities as a prioritized initiative.
Massachusetts' Gateway Cities are those mid-sized cities whose
residents are experiencing significantly higher rates of
unemployment and a stalemate in social, economic and civic
innovation. Some examples are Brockton, Fall River, Lawrence,
Springfield and Worcester.
Margaret D. Xifaras, who practices in New Bedford, and Francis A.
Ford, who practices in Worcester, have led the MBA's Gateway Cities
initiative.
Ford will serve as moderator at the April 30 event. Area leaders
who have long worked with the issues impacting the state's Gateway
Cities will share their insight and be part of the conversation to
pinpoint ways in which the legal community can help address these
issues.
Confirmed speakers to date include:
- Massachusetts Secretary of Education S. Paul Reville;
- Massachusetts Sen. Harriette L. Chandler (D-Worcester);
- Benjamin Forman, research director, MassINC;
- Craig Blais, executive vice president, Worcester Business
Development Corporation; and
- Michael F. Collins, MD, University of Massachusetts senior vice
president for Health Sciences and chancellor of UMass Medical
School.
Look for more specifics in e-Journal and in other
e-communication in the coming weeks.
Members interested in
attending, click
here.
Featured member benefit: New Lawyer Referral Service web site
Expand your client base as an MBA LRS member; check out the new www.masslawhelp.com
The Massachusetts Bar Association's Lawyer Referral Service, one
of the largest referral services of its kind, has launched a new website to
help connect members of the public with an attorney in their area
who has the knowledge they need.
The user-friendly website, offered as a public service of the MBA,
provides the public with answers to the most common legal questions
in the areas of family law, labor and employment, estate planning,
real estate, consumer protection, personal injury, criminal law,
personal finance, business, individual rights, government benefits
and services and immigration.
The website also makes it easy for the public to contact
the MBA's LRS to find an attorney.
Go to www.masslawhelp.com to view the new public
site, or to sign up to become a member of the MBA's LRS. Also, link
the LRS site to your website to provide your clients with answers
to frequently asked questions, as well as how to prepare for their
first meeting with an attorney. The website replaces the MBA's past
practice of distributing printed client pamphlets.
RENEW YOUR LRS MEMBERSHIP OR
SIGN UP NOW
Current LRS members can avoid any interruption in their
membership by renewing before the March 31 deadline. The cost of
joining the LRS is either $100 or $150 depending on how long you
have been admitted to practice. Just one LRS referral can cover the
cost of your annual membership in both the MBA and the LRS.
For more information, click here.
Upcoming CLE seminar and program schedule
Learn the implications of the Anti-Bullying Law at the March 30 "Taking on the Anti-Bullying Law from All Angles" seminar.
To register for the following
programs, call MBA Member Services at (617) 338-0530,
[e-mail membership] or visit the
CLE Web site. Scroll down for program
details, including dates and registration details.
Recorded session available for purchase
after live program through MBA On Demand.
Real-time webcast available for purchase
through MBA On Demand.
UPCOMING PROGRAMS
It's Confidential -- Privilege Law in
Massachusetts 
Thursday, March 29, 4:30-7 p.m.
MBA, 20 West St., Boston
Taking on the Anti-Bullying Law From All
Angles
Friday, March 30, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
MBA, 20 West St., Boston
UPCOMING CONFERENCES
Criminal/ Immigration Law Training
Conference 
Wednesday, May 9, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
MBA, 20 West St., Boston
GP Solo Symposium 
Thursday, May 10, noon-5 p.m.
Lombardo's, 6 Billings St., Randolph
33rd Annual Labor &
Employment Law Spring Conference
Friday, May 18, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
Colonnade Hotel, 120 Huntington Ave., Boston
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Unable to attend these seminars? Purchase the recorded session
available after the live program through
MBA On Demand and watch the presentation from the comfort of
your home or office.
To view a listing of current programs offered on MBA On Demand, click here.
Section News: Upcoming meetings and special section events
Join in the March 27 Access to Justice and Business Law section council meetings. Attend the March 28 Family Law Section Council meeting.
Access to Justice Section Council
meeting
Tuesday, March 27, 6-7:30
p.m.
MBA, 20 West St., Boston
The next meeting of the Access to
Justice Section Council is scheduled for Tuesday, March 27 from 6
to 7:30 p.m. All section members are invited to attend.
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Business Law Section Council
Meeting
Tuesday, March 27,
6-7:30 p.m.
MBA's Western Mass. office, 73 State St., Springfield
The next meeting of the Business Law
Section Council is scheduled for Tuesday, March 27 from 6 to 7:30
p.m. at the MBA's Springfield office. Professor Eric J. Gouvin of
the Western New England University School of Law will speak about
innovative programs for teaching transactional law both at his
school and across the nation and suggest ways the bar can support
those efforts.
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Family Law Section Council
meeting
Wednesday, March 28,
5:30-7 p.m..
MBA, 20 West St., Boston
The next meeting of the Family Law
Section Council is scheduled for Wednesday, March 28 from 5:30 to 7
p.m. All section members are invited to attend.
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LPM Tip
Learning to communicate with clients in the age of information overload
The widespread adoption of e-mail in the workplace has made
written communication with clients much simpler and faster. Prior
to the 1990's, if you wanted to write to a client, you had to print
out a letter, address an envelope and pay for postage. Electronic
communication changed all that. Now with a few simple clicks, your
message is not only on its way but in the inbox of the recipient in
a matter of seconds. On top of that, social media and other on-line
content has created an explosion of information that is readily
available right in a browser window.
Overall, the advent of e-mail has been a huge improvement for most
lawyers. But as with any new technology, there have been a host of
unintended consequences as a result of change in how we
communicate. One large unintended consequence is that most
attorneys are put in the position of having much more to read (and
less time to read it). Since sending an e-mail message is so easy,
clients and lawyers alike have more to communicate. Even worse is
that electronic communication has created much higher expectations
about how quickly one might receive a response.
The end result is that you need to employ a new set of
communication strategies if you want your messages to break through
the "noise." This is true whether you are communicating with
prospective clients and referral sources or with active clients
with live matters.
In order to manage the volume of messages that end up in one's
inbox each day, many people resort to skimming. So what are some
ways to make it easier for e-mail recipients to skim your
messages?
- Use descriptive subject lines that are likely to get the
attention of the recipient.
- When replying to an e-mail, consider changing the subject line
particularly if you are changing the subject.
- Make use of bulleted lists and other formatting tools like
underlining, bold, italics and even red text.
- Try to cover only one subject in each message and limit your
message to a few sentences. If you address several unrelated
issues in the same message, you increase the likelihood that the
reader will ignore at least one of them.
- If you need to provide a lot more depth, use links and
attachments to provide the reader with more detail. Don't overwhelm
them in the body of the message.
- If you do not get a response, consider resending the same
message indicating that it is your second attempt. People who
get too much e-mail everyday tend to ignore older messages once
they have moved down the queue considerably. A friendly "not sure
if you received this" is one way to get back to the top of the
queue.
Tip courtesy of Stephen Seckler, president, Seckler Legal
Consulting and Coaching.
Published March 22, 2012
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To learn more about the Law Practice Management
Section, which is complimentary for all MBA members,
contact LPM Section Chair Thomas J. Barbar or Vice
Chair Stephen
Seckler.
MBA co-sponsors 2012 Massachusetts Conference on Bullying
Conference featured keynote speaker Dean B. Eggert, Esq.
The Massachusetts Bar Association co-sponsored the "Bullying and
the Law: Policies, Programs and Best Practices" Conference on
Friday, March 16 at Harvard Law School.
The conference featured keynote speaker Dean B. Eggert, Esq., who
explained the law's response to bullying in the cyber age, by
reviewing and seeking to harmonize the legislative and judicial
responses to the new challenges presented by the bully and her
avatar.
Conference attendees also had the opportunity to attend workshops
including educators, attorneys, school counselors, resource
officers, nurses, other school climate leaders and community
members.
Nominate your colleagues for 2012 Excellence in the Law awards
Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly and the Massachusetts Bar
Association will honor the very best of the legal profession on
Thursday, May 10 from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at the Fairmont Copley Plaza,
138 St James Ave., Boston. The ceremony will include the recipients
of the Excellence in Legal Journalism Award, Daniel Toomey
Excellence Judiciary Award, Excellence in Pro Bono Award and
more.
Click here to nominate firms and individuals,
who go above and beyond on a daily basis, for Excellence in the Law
2012 awards.
Nominations are due by Friday, March 23.
News from the courts
Courthouse signs on camera use; SJC Committee on Model Jury Instructions on Homicide invites comments on proposed revised model jury instructions on homicide
Courthouse signs on camera use
A sign detailing the trial court
policy regarding the use of cameras in courthouses by the general
public has been developed and was posted by security on March
19.
The trial court decided to post the
policy as a result of the proliferation of electronic devices with
camera capability and a number of court proceedings impacted by
inappropriate camera use.
The sign specifies that the use of any camera, including those in
cell phones, tablets, or other electronic devices, is prohibited
inside a courthouse. It also indicates that cell phones must be
turned off inside a courtroom.
Court officers working in concert with the presiding judge may
determine a need to confiscate a device that is used in violation
of this policy and to require removal of the party from the
courtroom or courthouse.
The Supreme Judicial Court recently updated Rule 1:19 to address
the issue of electronic access to the courts for the news media.
The new rule, which becomes effective on July 1, 2012, will allow
news media to register with the Public Information Office in order
to use electronic devices in the courtroom.
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SJC Committee on Model Jury
Instructions on Homicide invites comments on proposed revised model
jury instructions on homicide
In 1999, Supreme Judicial Court justices approved and
recommended the use of Model Jury Instructions on Homicide (1999
Model Instructions). In 2010, the justices created a new committee
on Model Jury Instructions on Homicide (committee), and charged it
with reviewing and updating the 1999 Model Jury Instructions on
Homicide.
Because of the many relevant legal developments since 1999 and the
committee's decision to reorder some of the instructions, the
justices have authorized the committee to post the Proposed Revised Model Jury Instructions on
Homicide for public comment.
These revised instructions do not include instructions for motor
vehicle homicide; the revision of those instructions has not yet
been completed. The committee welcomes all comments pertaining to
the issues raised by this proposal and will make recommendations to
the SJC after reviewing the comments submitted. When submitting
comments, please clearly identify the page number, specific
instruction, and the specific language in the instruction that you
are commenting on; suggest alternative language, if appropriate;
and provide any applicable authority for your position.
Comments should be directed to The Committee on Model Jury
Instructions on Homicide, c/o Attorney Barbara Berenson, Supreme
Judicial Court, second floor, John Adams Courthouse, One Pemberton
Square, Boston MA 02108 on or before May 31; comments may also be
sent to [e-mail barbara.berenson]