MEMORANDUM

TO:

FROM:

SUBJECT: 2013 Annual Meeting of the American Bar Association and

Meeting of the House of Delegates

DATE: September 19, 2013

______

REPORT ON THE ABA ANNUAL MEETING

The 135th Annual Meeting of the American Bar Association (the “ABA”) was held August 12-13, 2013, at the Moscone Convention Center West in San Francisco, California. Wide varieties of programs were sponsored by committees, sections, divisions, and affiliated organizations. The House of Delegates met for one and a half days. The Nominating Committee also met.

The Nominating Committee sponsored a “Meet the Candidates” Forum on Sunday, August 11, 2013. The following candidates seeking nomination at the 2014 Midyear Meeting gave speeches to the Nominating Committee and to the members of the Association present: Patricia Lee Refo of Arizona and Mark I. Schickman of California, candidates for Chair of the House of Delegates; and Paulette Brown of New Jersey, candidate for President-elect.

THE HOUSE OF DELEGATES

The House of Delegates of the American Bar Association (the “House”) met on Monday, August 12, and Tuesday, August 13, 2013. Robert M. Carlson of Montana presided as Chair of the House.

The Travis Air Force Base Honor Guard presented the colors. The invocation for the House was delivered by Pauline A. Schneider of the District of Columbia. The Chair of the House Committee on Credentials and Admissions, Reginald M. Turner of Michigan, welcomed the new members of the House and moved that the signed roster be approved as the permanent roster for this meeting of the House. The motion was approved. .

Hilarie Bass of Florida, Chair of the Committee on Rules and Calendar, provided a report on the Final Calendar for the House, including recently filed reports. She moved to consider the late-filed reports, adopt the final calendar and approve the list of individuals who sought privileges of the floor. All three motions were approved. She also referred to the consent calendar, noting the deadline for removing an item from the consent calendar or from the list of resolutions to be archived. Later in the day, Ms. Bass moved the items remaining on the consent calendar. The motion was approved.

Ms. Bass noted that the deadline for submission of Resolutions with Reports for the 2014 Midyear Meeting is Wednesday, November 20, 2013, while the deadline for Informational Reports is Friday, December 6, 2013. She reminded the House that the Drafting Committee, chaired by Pamela Bresnahan, is available to assist anyone in drafting resolutions, and to feel free to contact the committee in preliminary drafting stages prior to the filing deadline.

In an effort to ensure that the members of the House are fully informed regarding future resolutions submitted for its consideration, Ms. Bass reported that the Rules and Calendar Committee is instituting the following definitions and procedures regarding resolutions. The term cosponsor will refer to an entity which has worked closely with the sponsoring entity to draft and develop the resolution and is identified as such by the printing deadline. Such entities will be included in the bound books and on documents such as the final calendar, daily journal or the “official” summary of action. The term supporter will be used to describe an entity which votes to endorse the resolution but has not been integrally involved with the original drafting. Such entities may be mentioned during the presentation of the resolution, but will not be included in the bound books or printed on documents such as the final calendar, daily journal or the “official” summary of action.

As to amendments and revisions, once a resolution has been filed and approved for calendaring, it becomes the property of the House of Delegates. To the extent that amendments are made and revisions are agreed to by all parties after the filing/calendaring deadline, the movant must provide an explanation to the House regarding why the revision and/or amendment was agreed to or made. This will provide the House with additional information helpful to ensuring that they are casting as informed a vote as possible.

Ms. Bass concluded by stating that the members of the House would receive additional information in the coming months regarding these new definitions which will be instituted for the 2014 Midyear Meeting.

For more details of the House meeting, see the following two-part report of the House session. The first part of the report provides a synopsis of the speeches and reports made to the House. The second part provides a summary of the action on the resolutions presented to the House.

I. SPEECHES AND REPORTS MADE TO THE HOUSE OF DELEGATES

Statement by the Chair of the House of Delegates

Robert M. Carlson of Montana, Chair of the House of Delegates welcomed the delegates and guests to the 135th Annual Meeting of the House of Delegates.He thanked the ABA Communications and Media Relations Division and House committees for assisting with the meeting, and announced that the Technology Committee would be reporting on the proceedings of the House via Twitter. Chair Carlson also extended a special welcome to the new members of the House.

Chair Carlson stated that beginning with the 2014 Midyear Meeting, the House of Delegates will receive the House book electronically but that members may still request a hardcopy book.

In his statement to the House, Chair Carlson discussed the procedure for addressing the business and calendar of the House.He also advised that Delegate-at-Large voting would close that day at 5:00 p.m.


Chair Carlson recognized the Fund for Justice and Education as the ABA’s charitable arm and urged member support of FJE.He also recognized the importance of the ABA Legal Opportunity Scholarship Fund, which is an FJE project.


Chair Carlson highlighted the important policy role of the House, identifying recent successes where the ABA urged Congress to support the Legal Services Corporation and the Violence Against Women Act.He encouraged all members to be active in the ABA Grassroots Action Team and participate in ABA Day in Washington, D.C.The next ABA Day will be April 10-12, 2014. Chair Carlson also recognized ABA Retirement Funds for its 50th anniversary and its service to the retirement needs of 37,000 legal professionals.

Statement by the Secretary

Hon. Cara Lee T. Neville of Minnesota, Secretary of the Association, moved approval of the House of Delegates Summary of Action from the 2013 Midyear Meeting, which was adopted by the House. On behalf of the Board of Governors, Secretary Neville presented and referred the House to Report Nos. 177 and 177A, the Board’s Informational and Transmittal Reports to the House. She moved to adopt the special list of committees and commissions as listed which was approved.

Deceased members of the House were named by the Secretary of the Association, Hon. Cara Lee T. Neville of Minnesota, and were remembered by a moment of silence. Chair Carlson also asked for recognition of those who had given their lives in defense of our freedom.

Chair Carlson recognized Wm. T. “Bill” Robinson III of Kentucky on a point of personal privilege to speak about the passing of Allan J. Joseph, former Treasurer of the Association. Mary Beth Clary of Florida was recognized to speak about Samuel H. Porter of Ohio. Lisa Tatum of Texas was recognized to speak about the passing of D. Gibson Walton of Texas, former member of the House of Delegates. Chair Carlson spoke in honor of Jeanne Gray, Associate Executive Director for ABA Public Services and recognized her dedication, generosity and professionalism to the ABA for 33 years.

Remarks by The Attorney General of the United States

The Honorable Eric H. Holder, Jr., Attorney General of the United States, addressed the House, which he thanked for its faithful service as stewards of the legal system.He stated how he appreciated ABA leadership on a range of issues, including gun violence prevention and human trafficking.He said that the ABA has led on issues of criminal justice and injustice, and that it is time for our federal government to follow this lead.


Attorney General Holder stated that the system of criminal justice is broken in many ways.A vicious cycle of poverty, criminality, and incarceration traps too many Americans and weakens too many communities.He stated that too many Americans are sent away to prisons for far too long. He also explained how it was time for the criminal justice system to address these inequities and unwarranted disparities, and no longer exacerbate them.


Attorney General Holder said that these justice issues have been important to him and President Barack Obama for many years.Striking the balance between protecting our communities and preserving values of fairness and equality is the focus of the Administration's policy.He said that the President will continue to reach out to Congress and state leaders to reduce violent crime and reform the criminal justice system.
Attorney General Holder said that the Justice Department's review of the criminal justice system over the last several monthshas found a range of obstacles and inequities in the federal system.As the “so called war on drugs” enters its fifth decade, new approaches and common sense solutions must be implemented. He announced to the House a range of new policy initiatives that the federal government would now accordingly undertake.


Some of these new initiatives involve efforts to focus on crime hotspots and encourage more local policing.Other initiatives relate to youth violence and the need to confront the school to prison pipeline. At 50 years, the promise of Gideon is not being met and indigent defense systems remain in a state of crisis. Attorney General Holder focused on the need for increased funding for federal public defender offices and increased pro bono service.

Attorney General Holder focused on the need to reduce incarceration rates in America and announced new Department of Justice policies related to mandatory minimum sentences, the prosecution of certain drug-related offenders, creating best practices for alternative programs such as drug treatment and community service programs, and the early release of elderly inmates.Attorney General Holder called on the ABA to support these efforts going forward.

Statement by the ABA President

ABA President Laurel G. Bellows of Illinois highlighted the many accomplishments of the bar year due in large part to collaboration with state and local bar associations and many Sections and Standing Committees. She thanked the ABA staff for being hard working, innovative, and dedicated to the mission of the ABA.

She stated that she has been on a mission this past year to remind every American lawyer that what lawyers do matters and that lawyers are a part of the fabric that holds society together. She has routinely witnessed how the fact that lawyers matter is reflected in the work of all of the members of the House and those who are engaged in the work of the ABA.

President Bellows highlighted some of the many accomplishments this year. Beginning with the progress made toward achieving gender equity in the legal profession, to the giant steps taken to combat human trafficking in our country, to searching for solutions to cyber-attacks and providing guidelines to lawyers on information security, and continuing our role to assure adequate funding for our justice system. She is particularly proud of the work of the Human Trafficking Task for creating and implementing an action plan for the past year. The House of Delegates passed resolutions adopting a uniform state law to prosecute the perpetrators of human trafficking and protect victims, worked to develop business conduct standards to remove slavery from corporate supply chains, labor and employment laws and training for employees to identify victims, a pro bono center, a website, the training of 500 legal professionals, among other successes. She acknowledged the social media campaign led by the YLD to raise awareness about gender equity issues.

President Bellows emphasized that lawyers matter by defending our inalienable rights, pledging loyalty to our clients, and being the advocates for the rule of law. She stated that a few long term fights ahead that will require the intention and persistence of lawyers will be in the areas of voting rights, racial discrimination, and attorney-client privilege.

She concluded by thanking the House for this year and the honor of serving as President. She described the ABA as being her teacher, energizer, source and force of many ideals, and a platform for harnessing the power of our profession. She reiterated how the great importance of lawyers as leaders is reflected in the work of the ABA, and through the love of freedom in the eyes of lawyers around the world. Our work proves to the next generation that lawyers will always matter.

ABA Medal Presentation

ABA President Laurel G. Bellows of Illinois introduced Hillary Rodham Clinton, former Secretary of State, as the recipient of this year’s ABA Medal. Secretary Clinton stated how grateful she is to receive the award. She values the award so much because she knows the important work that the ABA does.She reflected on the work of the first Commission on Women in the Profession which she chaired 25 years ago.


Secretary Clinton stated that the ABA helped start the movement for gender equality in the legal profession and continues to be at the forefront today to ensure equal work for equal pay. She said the ABA is also leading the way to combat human trafficking, and she appreciates the critical work the ABA ROLI and the World Justice Project are doing to advance the rule of law.