Make a difference – volunteer through the State Bar

The State Bar is recruiting applicants for approximately 200 volunteer positions on more than three dozen committees, boards and commissions. Groups with open positions range from committees dealing with access and fairness issues to section executive committees focused on particular areas of the law to a committee addressing questions of professional responsibility and conduct.

If your interest is the day-to-day delivery of legal services to poor and middle-income individuals, administering the IOLTA program or exploring ways to improve access to civil justice, positions on legal services committees are available.

Most of the appointments carry a three-year term, and the deadline to apply is Feb. 1. A complete list of openings, application forms and detailed committee information is available on the State Bar website’s Committees and Commissions page. Applicants can apply to a maximum of three committees but can only be appointed to one. The State Bar Board of Trustees will make the appointments next summer and committee terms begin Oct. 13, 2013.

Among the committees seeking applicants are:

• Courts/administration of justice committees that review proposed changes in civil procedure, alternative dispute resolution, appellate and federal rules, procedures and practices, as well as comment on proposed legislation governing these issues
• Insurance committees, which act as counsel to the board of governors on insurance matters and oversee the bar’s member group insurance programs, including life, accidental death and dismemberment, disability, personal auto and homeowners, long-term care, workers’ compensation, and professional liability
• Regulatory committees such as the Committee of Bar Examiners, Committee on Mandatory Fee Arbitration and Legal Specialization commissions, which are established by statute and oversee mandated admission, arbitration and certification programs of the State Bar
• The Council on Access and Fairness, which is devoted to increasing diversity in the legal profession

Applications also are available by calling the bar’s appointments office at 415-538-2370 or by faxing 415-538-2305.

Five positions, including the young lawyer position, will open on the ABA House of Delegates next August. All applicants, including incumbents eligible for reappointment, must submit the State Bar 2013-14 application by Feb. 1. State Bar delegates serve two-year terms and may serve three consecutive terms.  The State Bar does not reimburse its delegates for travel and meeting expenses. In addition, one lawyer position on the Judicial Council will be vacant.  Applicants must file the 2013-14 State Bar application by Feb. 1. Members serve staggered three-year terms that begin Sept. 15.

The Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation will have 11 openings on its 2014 roster; applications are due June 1, 2013, for terms that begin Feb. 1, 2014. In addition, two lawyer positions will be open on the 2014 Lawyer Assistance Program (LAP) Oversight committee. Members serve four-year terms that can be renewed.  Applicants including incumbents eligible for reappointment must submit the State Bar 2013-14 application by June 1, 2013.

Detailed information about the application requirements for these entities is available at www.calbar.org/appointments; select the link to Other Entity Appointments.