From the Chair

This past year has been a busy one for the ISBA Standing Committee on Government Lawyers. We presented the “Ethics Extravaganza,” a live seminar providing 4 hours of PMCLE credit. The Extravaganza was well received by the audience, and the Committee hopes to continue presenting it in future years. We are also producing a webinar regarding cameras in the courtroom. The program will feature a panelist from the news media, one from the area of criminal law, and one from the judiciary (a special guest from the Illinois Supreme Court). This CLE webinar will be broadcast live online on June 3, 2015, and it will be recorded and available on the ISBA website free of charge for ISBA members. It will be moderated by Committee member Evan Bruno. The Committee is also producing a second webinar to discuss the timely topic of concealed carry permits, including a discussion of the changing law in this area, moderated by Committee member Justin Leinenweber. Keep watching the ISBA website for details of this event, currently scheduled for August 2015.

In addition to these CLE events, the Committee is pleased to bestow the inaugural Roz Kaplan Award, an honor which recognizes a government attorney’s dedication to public service. The award is presented in memory of Ms. Kaplan, a former member of the Committee, who exemplified the best of government attorneys. She lost her battle with cancer a few years ago, and the Committee is extremely proud to present this award in her honor. The recipient will be announced by the ISBA and the award will be presented at the ISBA Annual Meeting, June 18-20, 2015, at the Grand Geneva Resort and Spa in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.

Throughout the year, the Committee also published “The Public Servant,” the Committee’s newsletter which has the mission to provide government attorneys with information useful to them in their public practice. Many volumes of the newsletter are available on the ISBA website, free of charge. The Committee would be remiss if it did not commend Lynn Patton and Kate Kelly, the editors of the newsletter, for their tireless efforts. While we did not always make things easy for them, they persevered and produced a number of outstanding issues.

The Committee also provided commentary to the ISBA Legislative Affairs Department on proposed legislation that could affect government lawyers. We used our unique perspective as public servants to help shape the ISBA’s opinions on House and Senate Bills.

On a personal note, serving as the Chair of the Committee this year has been very rewarding. I wish to thank everyone on the Committee for their hard work and dedication to the ISBA and the Committee. I am excited for Marylou Kent as she takes the helm of the Committee as the 2015-2016 Chair, starting at the ISBA Annual Meeting in June. I look forward to continuing to work with each member of the Committee as the ex-officio member next year. ■