OCDLA Banquet and Auction Dec. 5
Steven Wax, director of the Oregon Innocence Project and long-time federal public defender in Oregon, has been selected to receive the Ken Morrow Lifetime Achievement Award from the Oregon Criminal Defense Lawyers Association.
A presentation will take place at the association’s banquet dinner and benefit auction Dec. 5 at the Benson Hotel in Portland. The event is open to the public.
Tickets start at $60. They can be purchased by calling OCDLA at (541) 686-8716.
Human Rights CLE Dec. 12
The Portland chapter of the National Lawyers Guild and American University College of Law Center for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law will host an all-day CLE event on Dec. 12 on “Human Rights in the U.S.: Incorporating International Law into Everyday Practice.” The program will provide public interest attorneys with practical strategies, sample arguments and resources to integrate human rights into daily work at the state and local level in the United States.
The event will be held 9 a.m.-5 p.m. at the Portland Building Auditorium, 1120 S.W. 5th Ave., Portland.
The cost for the day is $75 for legal aid lawyers, public defenders and guild members, and $150 for other OSB members, with $25 off if you register before Nov. 30. Registration is free to representatives of community organizations. Scholarships are available for legal aid lawyers, public defenders, new lawyers, legal workers and law students. To apply, contact Steven Goldberg at (503) 445-4622 or steven@stevengoldberglaw.com. For more information, visit www. portlandnlg.org.
Federal Judicial Conference Seeks Comments
The Judicial Conference Advisory Committees on appellate, bankruptcy, civil and criminal rules have proposed amendments to various rules and forms, and comments are now sought from the bench, bar and public. The comment period closes on Feb. 17, 2015.
More information, including a link to the drafted amendments, can be found at www.tinyurl.com/ProposedAmendments 2014.
LGBT Bar Association Develops Tools for Oregon Tax Attorneys
The National LGBT Bar Association has developed two new resources for navigating state tax laws for same-sex couples.
First, the Tax Equity Project, found at www.tinyurl.com/TaxEquityProject, brings together leading tax law professionals to resolve LGBT tax issues that clients and families are facing following the Supreme Court’s decision in U.S. v. Windsor. It is a forum for all practitioners and facilitates communication and shared information about federal tax law for married same-sex couples.
Also, the Online LGBT Tax Resource provides comprehensive, state-specific information about tax laws for LGBT couples in all 50 states. It can be found at www.lgbtbar.org/tax.
American Judicature Society Calls It Quits
On September 26 the board of directors of the American Judicature Society approved a plan to dissolve the society and wind up its affairs. Recently other entities have joined the American Judicature Society’s mission to ensure that the nation’s justice system is fair, impartial and effective. In the near future, AJS will reach out to these entities in an effort to ensure the continued operation of its Center for Judicial Ethics and Judicature, which serves as a forum regarding all aspects of the administration of justice and its improvement.
The American Judicature Society’s board of directors decided that rather than operate on a limited scale, and rather than duplicate the work of other similar entities, the organization should find new homes for its core functions. To this end, AJS and the National Center for State Courts have entered into a memorandum of understanding that transfers AJS’s Center for Judicial Ethics to NCSC and ensures that the center’s work will continue.
AJS is also in the process of finding new homes for its publication, Judicature, and the society’s Internet resource known as Judicial Selection in the States.
Reminder: Mandatory eFiling Coming Dec. 1 for 11 Circuit Courts
A reminder that mandatory eFiling will be required beginning Dec. 1 for attorneys filing cases in the 11 circuit courts that currently have the Oregon eCourt system. For more information about the requirements, the system rollout and training opportunities, see www.osbar.org/courts/efiling.html.
