Fifth Annual Spend a Day with a Judge Contest

ArkBar’s Legal Related Education Committee chaired by Beverly Brister hosted its fifth annual Spend a Day with a Judge contest. The contest, available statewide to all high school students, has both an essay contest and a courtroom artist contest.

The theme for the essay competition parallels the American Bar Association’s Law Day Theme. Law Day is celebrated annually on May 1st nationwide. This year’s theme was “Cornerstones of Democracy: Civics, Civility, and Collaboration.” Contest winners are selected in a blind selection process, and essays are judged based on content, word choice, grammar, and mechanics. Artists are judged based on story, focus, depiction, clarity, color, contrast, artistic representation, and authenticity.

New 2023 Arkansas Form Book and Arkansas Business Associations Handbook

The new 2023 Arkansas Form Book was released at this year’s Annual Meeting. After four years of work by the following contributing authors, you now have access to either an electronic or print copy of the entire 1500-page book of forms or you can purchase by topic. Also released was the new Arkansas Business Associations Handbook. This handbook, together with the Arkansas Form Book—Business Organizations Edition, provides the perfect system to guide you in advising your business clients, whether their entities are corporations, limited liability companies or partnerships.

To order visit https://www.arkbar.com/for-attorneys/resourcesnav/publications/practice-handbooks.

Thank you to the 2023 Arkansas Form Book Authors

Robyn Allmendinger

Martha Ayres

Kelsey Boggan

William J. Butt II

Leslie Copeland

Grant Cox

J. B. Cross, Jr.

Nathan Culp

Chad L. Cumming

Thomas Daily

Lyndsey Dilks

Adam Franks

Robert J. Gibson

Stephen R. Giles

Nicole Gore

Adrienne Griffis

John Wesley Hall

Gregory T. Jones

Joe Kolb

Angela Mann

Gerry Schulze

Robert Serio

Carrie E. Smith

Madeline Taylor

Michael Thompson

Robert Tschiemer

Cathy Underwood, Editor

Jillian Wilson

Thank you to the 2023 Arkansas Business Association Handbook Authors

Robyn Allmendinger

Brady Brown

Dominic Dachille

Nicole Gore

Justin Lee

Michael McGill

Rebecca Roberts

Top winners received prizes, including a gavel, a state constitution, a certificate and, most importantly, the students got to “spend a day with a judge.”

This year’s winners of the essay contest were: first place, Sydney Massey from eStem High School; second place, Deerga Ramu from Bentonville High School; and third place, Rhealyn Schmidt from Walnut Ridge High School. This year’s winner of the artist contest was Alejandra Avilla from Fayetteville High School.

Host Judges were: Judge Amy Johnson, Judge Shawn Johnson, and Judge Butch Hale. Special thanks to Chad Cumming and Gill Ragon Owen, P.A. for hosting our breakfast and to Chief Justice Dan Kemp for hosting the students at the Arkansas Supreme Court.

Thank you to our Patron and Benefactor Members

Sustaining contributions are monetary contributions made in addition to membership that support Arkansas Bar Association programs. These funds generated by our Patrons and Benefactors allow the Association to continue to expand the programs and resources that we make available to our members. Your involvement makes the Association stronger, enables us to provide networking opportunities, including those with law students–the future of our profession, and allows for quality training, CLEs, and other benefits that meet the needs of our members, regardless of the number of years they have been in practice.

Please consider contributing if you have not done so already. To view the list of current sustaining members and to make a contribution please visit https://mx.arkbar.com/Attorneys/ Membership/Sustaining-Contributions.

Thank you to the following members who were inadvertantly left off of the list in the Spring 2023 issue of the magazine: Benefactors: Judge Mary Spencer McGowan, Joshua L. Potter and William Zac White; Patron: Evelyn E. Brooks.

Accolades

The UA Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law’s Jessup International Trial Team won the First Place Memorial Award at the Jessup Regionals competition hosted by the University of Denver Sturm College of Law Feb. 25. The American Bar Association Law Student Division has named the U of A Student Bar Association the 2023 Best Student Bar Association and the recipient of the 2023 Dean Henry J. Ramsey, Jr. Diversity Award. John Rouse of McGlinchey Stafford received CABA’s 2023 Service Award. John E. Tull III of Quattlebaum, Grooms & Tull PLLC was recently appointed to the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Review Working Group by Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin.

Appointments And Elections

John Rouse of McGlinchey Stafford has been elected to the Board of Directors of the Capital Area Bar Association (CABA).

WORD ABOUT TOWN ahubbard@arkbar.com

Quattlebaum, Grooms & Tull PLLC is pleased to announce that Rachel A. Sullivant has joined the law firm as an associate in the firm’s Northwest Arkansas office. Rebecca Hurst and Jim Smith have joined Conner & Winters as partners in the firm’s Fayetteville office. Rose Law Firm announced that Bourgon Reynolds will serve as the managing member of the firm’s Northwest Arkansas office in Rogers.

National High School Mock Trial Championship

Arkansas hosted the National High School Mock Trial Championship in Little Rock in May. Thank you to all of the volunteers who made this event a success, especially Jordan Tinsley (pictured far right), President of the Arkansas Mock Trial Foundation, Inc., and Anthony L. McMullen, Board Secretary and Host Director (pictured far left).

Celebrating 50 Years

Congratulations to the following members who have been admitted to the practice of law in Arkansas for 50 years. A celebration was held at the Lodge at Mt. Magazine State Park in April.

Charles A. Banks

Judge Ben T. Barry

Stephen Bennett

Ralph J. Blagg

Chauncey Brummer

C. Douglas Buford, Jr.

Anthony B. Cameron

Andrew L. Clark

David R. Cravens

Charles D. Davidson, Sr.

James M. Duckett

Forrest Eugene Dunaway

Edward Allen Gordon

David Greenbaum

Justice James H. Gunter, Jr.

Judge David F. Guthrie

John Wesley Hall, Jr.

David Michael Hargis

Joseph Hill

Robert Howard Hopkins, Sr.

Hon. Michael E. Irwin

Charles Cole Jeffries, Jr.

Fred C. Kirkpatrick

Thomas L. Mays

Henry N. Means III

Walter A. Murray

Wyck Nisbet, Jr.

Richard P. Osborne

Thomas L. Overbey

Judge William P. Rainey

John Boyd Robbins

Stephen M. Sharum

Theodore C. Smith

(Ret.)

The Arkansas Bar Association congratulates the Honorable Joyce Williams Warren for being inducted into the 2023 Arkansas Women's Hall of Fame

Hon. Jim D. Spears

James D. Sprott

L. David Stubbs

Zachary David Wilson

William G. Wright

It was great to celebrate 125 years of the Arkansas Bar Association with everyone who could come to Annual Meeting in Hot Springs! Thanks to Molly and Chris McNulty, we had excellent programs. Joe Kolb’s touches on the celebration dinner made the event grand, and the slide shows of pictures from the past illustrated the connections (and the fun!) that our members have with each other. And the video clips from those who were inducted last year into the Legal Hall of Fame reminded us of the difference that we can make in the world.

Now that the party is over, we are back at work making sure the Association is responsive to and meeting your needs.

We sent you a survey in April asking about your challenges, your needs, and your expectations, and you responded! In fact, we had twice the participation that the experts told us to expect. The results we have received are packed with a LOT of information. We need to break the information down into bite-size pieces and decide what is actionable now and what needs to be developed in the future.

Approximately 25 of our leaders and the Membership Value Task Force met on July 28 for a retreat (which is a nice way of saying a “workday”). They rolled up their sleeves and dug through the survey results. Our goal was to assist the Task Force in its duty to make recommendations to the Board of Trustees at its August meeting. We have so many talented people who are working on this, and I am excited to see the outcome.

We have new form books! It was clear in the survey that our members want a comprehensive library of legal forms to assist them in providing excellent service to their clients. I am so pleased to say we have just completed that! Our new form books made their debut at the 125th Annual Meeting. A sincere thank you to all who spent countless hours preparing and updating the forms. Please see the list of contributing authors on page 4. The form books are available for purchase at a discounted rate for members, either electronically (and downloadable) through Fastcase, or you can request them in print format through https://www.fastcase.com/ shop/?publishers=arkansas-bar-Association.

It is so valuable to be connected to a network of attorneys to whom you can reach out, give and receive referrals, and help each other excel. “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor.” Eccl. 4:9. We want to connect and work with you, and help you connect with other attorneys and professionals who may help you. So we are asking if you have a local bar association meeting, or need a speaker, or if you are willing to host a local social event, we would love to have an opportunity to come. Please reach out and let us know.

For 125 years, the Arkansas Bar Association has supported attorneys who are making a difference in the world. Mother Teresa said, “None of us, including me, ever do great things. But we can all do small things, with great love, and together we can do something wonderful.” We want to continue supporting lawyers who wish to serve in government as well as who desire to give back to their communities and state in other ways. Our third Public Service Academy will be kicking off soon. Please consider participating and encourage your colleagues to apply.

We will also soon be taking applications for the second class of our Legal Hall of Fame. Please think about people you know who have made a difference and watch for the nomination forms. Let’s honor and spotlight them.

I would be remiss if I did not mention our continuing efforts to be fiscally responsible. We have worked closely with the Arkansas Bar Foundation and have reached an agreement regarding our physical building that has allowed us to continue to use the Bar Center, to reduce our physical footprint, and to bring our rental expenses down in line with current market rates. We are in the process of reviewing our existing programs to determine their continued viability and worth. Our Board of Trustees has been very diligent and hard at work to make sure we are being good stewards of the trust which you, our members, have placed in the Association.

As Ruth Bader Ginsburg said, “If you want to be a true professional, do something outside yourself.” The Bar Association is working hard to help you excel, connect, and make a difference. But this is not only the job of the Board of Trustees. It is the job of each one of us. We need you, our members. We need your participation, your ideas, your voices, your concerns, and your engagement. Please encourage attorneys around you to join the Arkansas Bar Association. And not just to join, but to become active and to benefit from the Association.

Because we are stronger together. Together, we can help each other excel, connect, and make a difference. ■

The Young Lawyers Section had a successful 125th Annual Bar Meeting in June, and we celebrated a great year under the leadership of Will Ogles. Will’s guidance allowed us to update and complete “18 & Life to Go: A Legal Handbook for Young Arkansans,” which we plan to distribute at area high schools in the fall.

Additionally, our signature spring event, Wills for Heroes, provided estate planning documents for over 70 first responders and their families just one day after a devastating tornado hit parts of Arkansas. SimpleWill played a significant role by providing an online platform to generate the estate planning documents, and the Young Lawyers Section expresses gratitude for their support.

The Executive Council of the Young Lawyers Section will be returning with familiar faces and welcoming new members. Frank LaPorte-Jenner will serve as Chair-Elect, Dominique Lane as Secretary/Treasurer, and Breanna Hendrix and Grace Fletcher will assist with engagement.

The Young Lawyers Section has big plans, including organizing exciting social events and meaningful pro bono opportunities to grow the organization and serve our communities. We aim to add social events across the state throughout the year and continue partnering with Legal Aid of Arkansas and Arkansas Access to Justice.

YLS plans to host free legal answers clinics in Rogers and Little Rock in collaboration with Arkansas Access to Justice. We will announce the dates soon and encourage members to watch for additional volunteer opportunities throughout the year.

The Young Lawyers Section acknowledges that our success would not be possible without the wonderful section members. We invite members to get more involved in YLS by reaching out with event ideas or expressing interest in contributing to the organization’s activities. We encourage everyone to follow their social media accounts to stay updated on upcoming YLS events.

Overall, the Young Lawyers Section is enthusiastic about the future, and we look forward to continuing our achievements and striving for new heights under the leadership of this Executive Council.

You can reach Caroline Kelley at ckelley@mwlaw.com and 479-464-5688.

2023-2024 YLS Executive Council

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