OSB Public Affairs Committee Will Hear Legislation Proposals April 15
All OSB groups intending to propose legislation for the 2017 legislative session should have submitted their proposals to the board’s Public Affairs Committee through the Public Affairs department by April 1 for approval and pre-session drafting and filing.
The Public Affairs Committee will conduct a legislative forum on April 15, at which these bar groups will present their proposals and others will have an opportunity to comment. The committee will take these comments into account in deciding whether to recommend to the Board of Governors approval of bar sponsorship of the bills before them.
Contact Public Affairs at pubaff@ osbar.org for more information.
Section Invites Student Submissions for Writing Contest
The OSB Constitutional Law Section invites submissions for its 2016 Constitutional Law Writing Contest. The contest is open to all students enrolled in an Oregon law school as of Sept. 15, 2016.
Papers should be an essay or article on a contemporary state or federal constitutional law issue, with a length of 10-15 double-spaced pages. Papers must be original work and prepared by one author only. A panel selected by the Constitutional Law Section executive committee will judge papers based on originality, style, accuracy and clarity.
The first-place prize includes a cash award of $1,000, publication of the paper in the section’s newsletter and an invitation to be recognized and to present the paper at the section’s annual continuing legal education event. The second-place winner will receive a cash award of $500. The section may publish other papers in its newsletter, even papers that do not receive a prize.
The deadline for submission of a paper is 5 p.m. on Sept. 15. Authors should email the paper, along with the author’s full name, phone number, email address, law school and class, to section liaison Paul Nickell at pnickell@osbar.org.
To be eligible for a prize, an author must provide permission to the section to publish the paper in its newsletter.
May 10 is Filing Deadline for OSB Board of Governors Candidates
The Oregon State Bar is currently seeking candidates for the Board of Governors. There are four board positions open to active bar members in regions 1, 3, 4 and 5. The board consists of 19 members, 15 active bar members and four members of the public. Board terms are for four years and begin on Jan. 1, 2017.
The board has five regular meetings a year, on a Friday and occasionally on the following Saturday morning. Nearly half of the meetings are in the Portland area and the remainder at locations around the state. Board committee meetings are held at the bar center in Tigard three to four weeks prior to regular board meetings. Board of Governor members serve as liaisons to the Professional Liability Fund, bar sections and committees, as well as numerous other groups.
For more information or to print a copy of the candidate statement, go to www.osbar.org/leadership/bog. You can also contact Danielle Edwards at dedwards@ osbar.org or (503) 431-6426.
LRAP Applications Due April 15
If you work in public service — as a public defender, district attorney or for a civil legal services provider — you probably know about trying to balance crushing debt with a meager salary. That’s why the Oregon State Bar created the Loan Repayment Assistance Program.
LRAP offers up to $7,500. Participants may receive the loans for three years, as long as they stay in qualifying employment. Application deadline is April 15.
For more information on the Loan Repayment Assistance Program, visit www.osbar.org/lrap, or contact LRAP Coordinator Catherine Petrecca at cpetrecca@osbar.org or (503) 431-6355.