May 6 MBA Annual Dinner Canceled

Friday, March 20, 2020MBA President John J. Morrissey

Dear MBA members:

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Massachusetts Bar Association has decided to cancel this year’s MBA Annual Dinner, which was scheduled for May 6 at the Westin Boston Waterfront. We believe this unprecedented step is necessary to protect our members, employees, guests and event staff in light of the recommendations for social distancing and the guidance from state elected officials and health care professionals. The safety and well-being of all will always be our top priority.

We will be reaching out directly to all of the Annual Dinner sponsors and anyone who had already purchased a table or individual tickets to provide them with the option to receive a full refund or apply the sponsorship, table or tickets to the next Annual Dinner, which we anticipate will be in May 2021. We will provide refunds as quickly as circumstances allow, but we do ask for your patience as the MBA is working remotely during the period of voluntary quarantine. We have also decided that the award recipients who were slated to receive their awards at this year’s Annual Dinner will be honored at our 2021 Annual Dinner.

We do not take this action lightly. The MBA Annual Dinner is the highlight of the association year and provides an opportunity for the legal community to gather together and celebrate the many laudable successes of the bar and the judiciary, as well as our friends and allies in government. The loss of this opportunity to join together as a community is particularly painful this year as many people around the commonwealth, including MBA employees, are facing personal and professional challenges as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now more than ever we need to come together as a community to work together to face these challenges.

The MBA remains committed to supporting and fostering our community as much as possible, and we look forward to reconnecting in person again when this health emergency has passed. In the meantime, we have taken measures to provide the full support of the MBA to our members and community during this crisis. We encourage all members to take advantage of easily accessible Be-Anywhere Benefits, such as My Bar Access and MBA On Demand, to stay connected with other members. 

The MBA has also set up a COVID-19 News and Information web page, which features the latest updates from state and federal courts in Massachusetts, information about MBA programs and meetings, and other useful resources. The COVID-19 page also provides a link to allow you to directly communicate with MBA Leadership about questions and concerns regarding the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on your practice and clients. 

Finally, the officers met this week telephonically and voted to form a COVID-19 Task Force, which will be working with state and local officials to address issues affecting our members and clients during this crisis. 

If you have further questions about the Annual Dinner or any MBA program affected by the COVID-19 emergency, please contact MBA Member Services at (617) 338-0530, and memberservices@massbar.org. We will also continue to post updates about MBA programs and meetings on our website at www.MassBar.org.

Thank you for your patience, understanding and unwavering commitment to the MBA. 

Sincerely,

John J. Morrissey
President, Massachusetts Bar Association