Full Report - the Missouri Bar

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area in the spring of 2010. The program concluded
with an expert giving tips on how lawyers can
prepare for disasters.
• Other expert speakers provided valuable information
on legal technology, practice management and
ethics.
• The MoBarCLE Garage Sale offered educational
materials at bargain prices.
• The Ethics Rock presentation at the Saturday
plenary session featured an entertaining way to
learn about ethics. An acoustic guitarist played
song parodies featuring ethical dilemmas that
were discussed by an ethics expert with audience
participation.
• A golf outing on the beautiful Payne Stewart Golf
Course and a cruise on Lake Taneycomo rounded
out some of the social and recreational events.
• A variety of receptions were offered for socializing
and talking shop.
• Thousands of dollars in prizes were given away
during the event, including a vacation trip to the
U.S. Virgin Islands.
Spring and Fall Committee Meetings
Jefferson City is the host for the two regularly-planned
meetings of the more than 60 committees and sections of
The Missouri Bar. These committees are largely responsible
for the enormous number of programs and services
the state bar regularly provides to its members and to the
public.
Shortly after the start of each new bar year – which
officially begins at the conclusion of the Annual Meeting
– many committees gather in mid-November for the Fall
Committee Meetings. This gathering gives committees the
chance to get organized and map out plans for the bar year
ahead.
In mid-May, committees again gather for the Spring
Committee Meetings. Once again, committee members
from all corners of the state converge on Jefferson City for
a mid-year assessment of progress on committee projects.
At both gatherings, many of The Missouri Bar’s substantive
law committees also organize and present educational
programs for their members and others in attendance.
As with all Missouri Bar gatherings, the Spring and Fall
Committee Meetings give members the chance to take
advantage of practical, timely educational opportunities,
contribute to the betterment of the profession and the laws
of our state, and enjoy the camaraderie of colleagues – a
winning formula that enhances both professional and personal
enrichment.
Committees and Sections
The Missouri Bar is justifiably proud of the vast array of
materials, programs and services it makes available to both
its members and the general public. However, it is clear
that, absent the hard work of state bar committees and sections,
both the quantity and quality of these efforts would
be significantly diminished.
In fact, absent the thousands of men and women who
make up the various Missouri Bar committees and sections,
it would be impossible to sustain the ongoing activities
and services members have come to expect from their
state bar. The selfless donation of their time and talents
underpin these endeavors and allow for new, timely initiatives
to be launched on a regular basis.
All members of The Missouri Bar are encouraged to
participate in committee activities. In advance of the start
of each bar year (which commences at the conclusion of
each Annual Meeting), all members receive a committee
registration form. Simply by completing and returning this
form, lawyers may indicate their interest in serving on one
or more open enrollment committees dealing with substantive
areas of the law. Missouri Bar members may also join
any open enrollment committee at any time via The Missouri
Bar’s website at www.mobar.org.
In addition to open enrollment committees, several
other committees feature memberships appointed by the
president of The Missouri Bar. Special committees are also
authorized from time to time by the Board of Governors to
address specific issues of concern.
Regardless of how they are constituted, it is clear that
Missouri Bar committees and sections are largely responsible
for the majority of the bar’s activities. These include:
the drafting of legislation for introduction before the
Missouri General Assembly; the development of continuing
legal education programming and publications; efforts
to increase public understanding of the justice system;
helping educators teach their students about the justice
system; coordinating a variety of programs designed to
help lawyers improve the efficiency of their practices; and
countless more.
Most Missouri Bar committees and sections meet twice
each year – once at the Fall Committee Meetings and again
at the Spring Committee Meetings. Held in Jefferson City,
these meetings are accompanied by educational programming
offered by several committees.
Many of the state bar’s substantive law committees and
sections also organize and present educational programming
during The Missouri Bar Annual Meeting each fall.
The creation of listservs has greatly facilitated the work
of committees and sections and improved communica-