Marriage. It's in the air. And in the courts. And all over the press. Marriage is a civil right, marriage is romantic .... and marriage is a contract with your partner. Unless you specify otherwise, the terms of the contract are pre-written by the state. This contract is the only contract most people enter into without reading or knowing the terms. In fact - where can one even find those terms? If you are considering marrying and/or domestic partnering, we encourage you to think about what you want your marriage or registered partnership to look like. Do the rights and obligations set by the state fit your relationship - or do you want to customize them?

More info here!

Join us July 25, 2013!

The LGBT Center

1800 Market Street

San Francisco, CA 94102

In this workshop, we will address:
- Why do a pre-nup? (Or not!)

- What can we address in a pre-nup?
- How can we go about creating a pre-nup?

Presenters are: Charles Spiegel (charlesspiegellaw.com), Heba Nimr (hebanimr.com), and Dylan Miles (milesfamilylaw.com)

Hey BALIF members! Did you know that almost half of BALIF membership is made up of law students? And with the National Lavender Law Conference being held in beautiful San Francisco August 22 through 24 - it is BALIF's goal this year to send as many law students to attend this exciting and invaluable event. Unfortunately, due to the high cost of registration, many law students are unable to attend. Therefore, BALIF is seeking the help of our generous members to donate a minimum of $135 (the cost of registration) to help support a law student to attend Lavender Law 2013. This year will be especially electrifying with the demise of DOMA and Prop 8 and we don't want our Bay Area law students to miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

If you are interested in making a donation or want more information about how you or your firm can help sponsor a law student, please email [email protected] or [email protected].

Hey Law Students and Bar-preppers! Save the date of Saturday August 10th from 1-3 at the Eureka Valley Recreation Center for some kickball awesomeness! Afterwards, join us for some stimulating beverages as well! This is a fantastic opportunity for new and veteran law students to meet up and engage in some friendly competition with one another. And for recent Bar-testers, this is a great way to blow off some steam. Bring a friend and let's play ball!

Attorney Daniel Dean of San Francisco was elected to serve a three-year term on the State Bar Board of Trustees.

Dean, was elected by attorneys in District 1, which covers Alameda, Contra Costa, Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Solano, and Sonoma counties. Dean is a civil trial attorney with Fotouhi Epps Hillger Gilroy Mau PC in San Francisco, representing both plaintiffs and defendants in personal injury, employment, medical malpractice, construction defect, business litigation and other matters.

Dean has served with a number of community and legal groups including as a board member and co-chairman of the Bay Area Lawyers for Individual Freedom, as co-chairman of the Minority Bar Coalition, and as a board member of the Bar Association of San Francisco. He is currently on the board of his alma mater, the University of San Francisco School of Law, and serves as a judge pro tem with San Francisco County Superior Court in its traffic and small claims departments.

The Transgender Law Center is proud to be one of the partners selected by the Folsom Street Fair to provide volunteers for the Folsom Street Fair and its baby brother, Up Your Alley.

To be a success, TLC needs BALIF members' help. TLC needs BALIF to step up and be a volunteer. It's easy, it's fun, and you'll still have plenty of time to enjoy the fair.

All you have to do is go to a brief orientation meeting, and then show up and work a shift. A variety of volunteer tasks are available. You'll meet terrific people and have fun while at the same time helping Transgender Law Center become a strong, solid partner of the Folsom Street Fair.

Up Your Alley is on July 28th and the Folsom Street Fair is September 29th. More information can be found here: http://folsomstreetfair.org/fair-faq.php

Please let Trans Law Center Board Member Shawn Demmons ([email protected]) know ASAP if you can volunteer for either event. TLC needs you, BALIF members!

The Bar Association of San Francisco cordially invites you to its third annual Minority Attorney In-House Counsel Diversity Awards Reception recognizing those who have demonstrated a sustained and meaningful commitment to increasing and retaining diversity in the legal profession. 

Awards will be presented to Nicole Harris of Pacific Gas and Electric Company as well as the AT&T Legal Department. 

This event is hosted by Davis Wright Tremaine and Latham & Watkins. 

Please RSVP by July 29, 2013.  

Latham & Watkins 
505 Montgomery Street, Suite 2000 
San Francisco, CA  

Event Code: D137404

On June 26, 2013 the United States Supreme Court issued the long anticipated rulings in the first marriage cases to reach the high court - United States v. Windsor, No. 12-307, and Hollingsworth v. Perry, No. 12-144.  Taken together, the decisions represent a significant step in the central civil rights issue of this era - the rights and responsibilities of same sex couples to marry and to raise children.

Please join BALIF and JAMS for a complimentary panel discussion that will address the immediate family law and financial planning implications of these decisions and the questions that remain.  Topics to be addressed include:

• Overview of Windsor and Perry rulings and questions that remain
• Key issues in pending Ninth Circuit cases
• Financial planning issues for California residents before and after DOMA, including estate plans, ERISA, and estate, income and gift tax issues
•  Issues for California employer benefit plans
• The impact of the cases on dissolution actions and resolving disputes in an ADR setting

Speakers:

Edward P. Joy, Attorney at Law, Estate Planning, Probate & Probate Litigation
Nickolas A. Kacprowski, Partner, Kirkland & Ellis LLP  

Hon. Catherine Gallagher (Ret.), JAMS  

Hon. Patrick J. Mahoney (Ret.), JAMS

Date and Time:
Wednesday, July 31, 2013
Registration:  5:00-5:30pm
Program: 5:30-6:30pm
Reception to follow.

CLE:

1.0 General MCLE credit to be provided.

Location:

JAMS

Two Embarcadero Center

Suite 1500

San Francisco, CA 94111

RSVP:

Please RSVP here.

Friday, August 9, 2013

8:30 a.m. until 10:30 a.m.

The Westin San Francisco Market Street

50 Third Street, Metropolitan I, 2nd Floor

San Francisco, CA

You are cordially invited to attend and/or present testimony at a significant public forum concerning the proliferation of Stand Your Ground Laws, which have substantially expanded the contours of self-defense law in over half of jurisdictions in the United States and received increased national attention in connection with recent high-profile cases.

Expert witnesses drawn from local and regional community and government stakeholders, law enforcement prosecutors, public and private criminal defense attorneys, and legal academicians will testify on the impact of Stand Your Ground laws in the Western region, where several states have enacted similar expanded self-defense statutes. 

Topics will include:

• The utility of Stand Your Ground laws from legal and policy perspectives
• The impact of Stand Your Ground laws on public safety
• The impact of Stand Your Ground laws on traditionally marginalized communities and racial and ethnic minorities
• The impact of Stand Your Ground laws on the criminal justice system, with a particular focus on law enforcement and the prosecutorial function

This hearing is free and open to members of the public and press, but, you must register today in order to reserve your seat. For more information on the August 9, 2013 Western regional hearing in San Francisco, or the National Task Force on Stand Your Ground Laws, generally, please contact: Rachel Patrick, Staff Director, ABA Coalition on Racial & Ethnic Justice, at: (312) 988-5408 or via email at: [email protected].

Friday, August 9, 2013

2:00 PM to 5:00 PM

Location:

Room 2006, 2nd Floor, Moscone Center West

Event Description:

On November 27, 1978, the nation's first openly gay elected official, San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk, and Mayor George Moscone were shot to death in City Hall by former city supervisor Dan White. In White's murder trial, the defense team successfully argued diminished capacity based in part upon his junk food diet. Was this right, or should White have been convicted of murder? Join the prosecution or defense team, and argue the case yourself, with help from leading trial lawyers Vincent Chang and Garrick Lew, Judge William Kelly, and trial consultants David Weinberg and Dr. Darlene Shelton.

Primary Sponsor:

Solo, Small Firm and General Practice Division

Primary Sponsor Chair:

Benes Z Aldana, Chair, APO, AE

Speakers: Vincent Chang, New York, New York; Honorable William Kelly, Kentwood, Michigan; Garrick Lew, San Francisco, California; Darlene Shelton, Guilford, Connecticut; David Weinberg, Guilford, Connecticut

Additional Sponsors:

Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section

Solo, Small Firm and General Practice Division

Section of Litigation

Young Lawyers Division

Commission on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity

Ticket Price:

Ticket Price: $90, Judges: $35, Govt Atty: $35, Young Lawyers: $90, Law Students: $0, Solo Practitioners: $35

2 or 3 offices available in prime Victorian in Castro. Share flat with estate planner/generalist and building with other attorneys. We are congenial, collegial, experienced and respectful.

Rents: 1,100 for smallest office; 1200 for med office and $1,400 for front parlor office (fireplace, etc.). Included in rent: shared reception/paralegal office and conference room, and small kitchen space. Not included in rent: utilities, and cleaning. Floor is well-wired for internet for easy plug and play.

Contact: Michael @ 415-861-9900

Have a job or need one? Civil procedure question? Need a

referral? Have something important to ask ... or news to tell? Want to get to our members quickly? Join our Listserv!

BALIF members should have received our invitation to join our newly-created Listserv. You must proactively respond to the request in order to be added to our Listserv. If you didn't get a request, please let us know by emailing [email protected] or [email protected].

We all love that section in our alumni newsletters that talks about who's doing what.

Well, we're introducing the BALIFBuzz to show-off all the great things that our members are doing.  BALIFBuzz will be appearing in the weekly BALIF newsletter.   

New job?

New client?

Promotion?

Court victory?

Significant settlement?

Baby on the way?

Recently married or engaged?

Speaking engagement?

Award, recognition, certification, or degree?  

Or anything else you're excited about...

Keep it to one or two lines.  Please send to [email protected].

Can't wait to hear your great news!

Lauri Bertolacci

BALIF Membership Chair

All job postings can be found here!  

BALIF membership must be current to view the job postings. Simply log into the BALIF website with your membership ID and password, and select the JOBS from the menu on the left.