January 2, 2014

In this Issue

Magistrate Judge Opening - 1/17
WTP Timers Needed for State Finals - 1/10
Equality Award Nominations Sought - 1/3
Nominations for NHBA Board of Governors
Volunteers Needed for Disciplinary System - 12/12

SOLACE - Support is there for you
Fred Upton Memorial Service - 1/11
Character & Fitness Cmte Vacancies - 1/15
Suggested Reading
Thank You to Our Sponsors!

Applications are now being accepted for the vacant full-time magistrate judge position at the US District Court for the District of New Hampshire, expected to be filled by spring 2014. The current salary is $160,080, and the term of office is eight years.

A comprehensive public notice and an application for the magistrate judge position can be obtained in the clerk's office, 55 Pleasant St., Concord, NH, or online by accessing the "Mag Judge Announcement" icon on the court's home page.

Applicants must personally apply (no nominations will be accepted) by Jan. 17, 2014. An original and 13 copies of the completed application should be submitted in an envelope marked MERIT SELECTION PANEL-CONFIDENTIAL to: Daniel J. Lynch, Chief Deputy Clerk, United States District Court, 55 Pleasant St., Room 110, Concord, NH 03301. Applications will be confidential unless an applicant consents to disclosure.

Selected applicants will be interviewed only by members of the Merit Selection Panel and the judges of the US District Court for the District of New Hampshire. Interview deliberations will remain confidential.

WTP Timers Needed for State Finals - 1/10

Volunteers are needed to serve as timers for the state finals of the We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution program on Friday, Jan. 10, at the Legislative Office Building in Concord.

The competition will begin at 9 a.m. and end at 3:30 p.m.

Volunteers are needed all day, but volunteers for just morning or afternoon sessions are also welcome.

Session	Orientation Time	Competition Time
Morning	9 a.m.	10 a.m. - 12 noon
Afternoon	12: 30 p.m.	1:30 - 3:30 p.m.

Attorneys signed up as timers may be asked to move into the role of judge in the event of cancellations.

For more information or to volunteer, contact LRE coordinator Robin Knippers.

Equality Award Nominations Sought - 1/3

The NH Bar Gender Equality Committee is seeking nominations for its Philip S. Hollman Gender Equality Award. The award will be presented at the 2014 NHBA Midyear Meeting on March 7.

The award recognizes an individual or organization that promotes gender equality through leadership and educating others. Nominees can be Bar members, law firm or court employees, or employees of state departments or agencies that are part of the legal system.

Please send nominations by Jan. 3, 2014, to the Gender Equality Committee Liaison, Rosemarie Atwood. Please include a brief description of the nominee's qualifications for the award. Nomination Form.

Nominations for NHBA Board of Governors

The NH Bar Association Board of Governors is accepting nomination petitions for vice president, governor at large (two vacancies, three-year terms), county governors representing Belknap, Carroll, Cheshire (special election to complete one-year term), Hillsborough North, Hillsborough South, Strafford and Sullivan counties, and an association delegate to the American Bar Association House of Delegates. To be on the ballot for the April 2014 election, nominations must be submitted by March 1, 2014, to Secretary, NH Bar Association, 2 Pillsbury St., Suite 300, Concord, NH 03301-3502.

Governors representing a county must have at least 10 signatures and officers or governors at-large must have at least 25 signatures. Download the petition from the Bar's website.

Volunteers Needed for Disciplinary System - 12/12

The NH Supreme Court seeks volunteers to serve on the committees that make up the New Hampshire Attorney Discipline System. While applications are welcome at any time, beginning in January 2014 there will be openings for attorneys and non-attorneys to serve on two of the three committees that are part of the system: the Professional Conduct Committee and the Hearings Committee. There is a particular need for non-lawyer committee members. A description of the Attorney Discipline System and of the role of each committee, as well as an application, can be found on the Attorney Discipline System website, www.nhattyreg.org, at "Volunteer Opportunities."

Anyone interested in being considered for appointment to a committee should complete the application and submit it to Janet F. DeVito, general counsel, New Hampshire Supreme Court Attorney Discipline Office, 4 Chenell Dr., Suite 102, Concord, NH 03301.

SOLACE - Support is there for you

SOLACE stands for Support Of Lawyers/Legal Personnel All Concern Encouraged, a mutual help network supported by members of the New Hampshire Bar Association.

Whenever you learn of a lawyer, judge, courthouse or law firm employee or family member who has suffered a loss, illness or injury and has an unmet need, let us know and we will distribute the request through an e-mail to all participating lawyers in the NHBA. It can be a need for clothes due to a fire, a need for blood due to an injury or illness, a need for transportation or lodging during a hospital stay in a city away from home, or any of a myriad of other unique or unusual needs.

This will not be a listserv for public service announcements nor will it be a prayer list. It will also not be a cash fundraiser nor an employment recruiting tool. It will be set up only to serve immediate needs that have arisen as a result of a crisis event in a colleague's life.

Use the SOLACE form to request assistance.

Fred Upton Memorial Service - 1/11

Frederic K. Upton, a past president of the New Hampshire Bar Association and a major figure in the New Hampshire legal community for many years, died Dec. 2, 2013, at his home in Exeter. He was 94. Upton obituary. The family requests that donations may be made to the Frederic Upton Justice Fund at the NH Bar Foundation.

Donate online. (specify the Upton Fund in the message area).

If you have a story about Fred Upton, please send your remembrances to news@nhbar.org for possible inclusion in an article in the January issue of Bar News.

A memorial service is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 11, at St. Paul's Church, Park Street, Concord.

Character and Fitness Committee Vacancies - 1/15

The NH Supreme Court is seeking two new members for the Supreme Court Committee on Character and Fitness.

The committee conducts investigations and makes recommendations to the Supreme Court regarding the character and fitness of persons applying to become members of the New Hampshire bar. The committee's duties are set forth in New Hampshire Supreme Court Rule 42 (II), which was recently amended to add one additional attorney and one additional non-attorney to the committee. The appointments are for three-year terms and are renewable.

Attorney applicants must have been active members of the New Hampshire bar for at least five years, should be practicing lawyers with a well-developed understanding of the ethical issues presented by being a member of the bar, and should have an interest in legal education and bar admission requirements. Non-attorney applicants should have at least five years of work experience relevant to the tasks of assessing an individual's good moral character and fitness to practice law.

Committee members attend four meetings per year to consider applications and to interview applicants. More formal hearings may be scheduled as necessary.

Anyone interested may download an application form from the New Hampshire Supreme Court website, or request it from Sherry M. Hieber, general counsel, NH Supreme Court Office of Bar Admissions, at (603) 224-8806 or shieber@nhoba.org. Contact Hieber with any questions and send completed applications to her at 4 Chenell Drive, Suite 102, Concord, NH. 03301 by Jan. 15.