A great way to serve the LGBT legal community and become more involved in BALIF is to join BALIF's Board of Directors. BALIF's Directors are elected by the BALIF membership, and each Director holds office for two years. Any BALIF member is welcome to run for the Board or nominate another BALIF member. BALIF's bylaws reflect the Board's commitment to "equality, parity, and diversity," and we specifically encourage people of color, women, and transgender and/or gender non-conforming individuals to run for the Board. All Directors must attend BALIF's Board Retreat the weekend of April 25, 2015 

To run for the Board or nominate someone else, please send a candidate statement of up to 250 words to Pete Catalanotti (secretary@balif.org) and BALIF's Administrator, Katie Carlson (balif@balif.org) by March 15, 2015 at 5:00 pm. BALIF's bylaws require gender parity on the Board, with a certain number of positions allocated to Directors who identify as male, female, and gender non-conforming. So if you are seeking a position, please indicate the category with which you identify.

Elections will be online starting on April 1, 2015 and there will be an opportunity to vote in person at BALIF's annual general membership meeting on Wednesday, April 15, 2015 from 6 - 8:30 p.m. The results will be announced at the end of the meeting.

Questions about the Board? Thinking about seeking a position? Feel free to contact Peter Catalanotti at secretary@balif.org 

When:  Thursday, March 19, 2015; Thursday, May 14, 2015; Tuesday, June 16, 2015; Thursday, July 16, 2015; and Thursday, August 20, 2015

Time:  12:30 pm to 2:00 pm

Where: San Francisco City Club (155 Sansome, 10^th Floor)

What: Gourmet buffet lunch with other partners and firm owners

Cost: $40 payable by cash or check only

BALIF has created the BALIF Partners Exchange to bring together our members that are looking to network and exchange business and ideas.  This event is exclusively for BALIF members who are partners or ownersof their firm with 7 year or more of experience. 

March's luncheon topic:  What is the relevance of being an LGBT attorney? Does it help or hurt with business development and/or recruiting employees? What is the continuing significance of BALIF? Or is it premature to even ask the question given the pendency of the marriage cases?

Space is limited so only the first 11 to RSVP to jdupree@fddcm.com may attend. 

RSVPs being accepted for Thursday, March 19, 2015 only.  

Calling all BALIF mentors, mentees, and law student members -- please join us for a happy hour on April 2. For law students, this will be a great opportunity to meet and mingle with LGBT attorneys and other law students before you leave for the summer. We'll also celebrate BALIF's mentors and mentees and honor this year's BALIF Mentor of the Year with an award. And of course, there will be free drinks and food. Hope to see you there!

When: Thursday, April 2, 2015

Where: The Patriot House, 2 Embarcadero Center, SF

Time: 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm

MARCH 6 - San Francisco - Bay Area Lawyers for Individual Freedom (BALIF) filed an amicus curiae brief yesterday in the United States Supreme Court in the consolidated cases Obergefell v. Hodges , Tanco v. Haslam, DeBoer v. Snyder, and Bourke v. Beshear, in support of the Petitioners' positions that the Fourteenth Amendment requires a state to license a marriage between two people of the same sex and to recognize a same-sex marriage lawfully licensed and performed out-of-state. BALIF's brief argues that it is the duty of the courts to decide the equal protection challenge, that the marriage bans are unconstitutional applying even the most deferential rational basis review, and that the bans inflict profound legal, economic, and emotional harm on same-sex couples and their children.

"Contrary to the Sixth Circuit's holding, it is the role of the judiciary to evaluate the constitutionality of state provisions and not to defer the question to the state voters and legislators who enacted them," said Leah Nutting, BALIF's Amicus Committee chair. "Fundamental rights such as the right to marry cannot be denied by majority vote. The institution of marriage is too special and the harms caused by the bans are too costly to just 'wait and see' for the democratic process to recognize that right."

Thirty bar associations and legal organizations from around the nation joined BALIF in signing the brief. The coalition of amici includes state, metropolitan, local, and minority bar associations and local non-profit organizations. The brief was filed with pro bono support from Jerome C. Roth and Amelia L. B. Sargent of the law firm Munger, Tolles & Olson.

Removal Defense Waivers and Prosecutorial Discretion: Getting the Results You Want in Immigration Court

• Wednesday, March 11, 5:30-7:00pm
• Presented by Gene Sverdlov, Esq. - Law Offices of Gene Sverdlov
• 1.5 General CLE Credits

Substance Abuse in the Legal Profession: Prevention, Detection, and Treatment

• Thursday, March 26, 5:30-7:30pm
• Presented by David Mann - Northern California Consultant to The Other Bar
• 1.5 Substance Abuse CLE Credits

All Classes take place at:

Bar Association of San Francisco

301 Battery Street, 3rd Floor, Board Room

San Francisco, CA 94111

To RSVP

Email:

mcle@alrp.org

Call: 415-701-1200 ext. 303 

The Liberty Mutual Insurance Group - A Fortune 100 Company!

Responsibilities

• Perform legal research utilizing both written and electronic sources.
• Assist attorneys in brief and opinion writing. Prepare draft memos.
• Gather and compile facts and relevant case information.
• Draft pleadings and motions.
• Assist attorneys in preparing for depositions and trials.

Qualifications

• Member of the National LGBT Bar Association.
• Completed two years at an ABA accredited law school; graduation scheduled for spring 2016.
• Excellent writing skills.
• 3.0 GPA on a 4.0 scale or the equivalent.
• Ideally some exposure to civil litigation.

How to Apply

• To apply, you must submit a cover letter, resume, three references and a copy of your transcript to: libertymutual@lgbtbar.org
• Please write "Liberty Mutual Law Clerk" in the subject line of the email.
• All materials must be received by 5:00 p.m. EST on March 13, 2015.
• Interviews will be conducted the week of March 23, 2015.
• Finalists shall be selected and notified on or before April 3, 2015.

If you have any questions regarding the application process, please contact Nicole Britton-Snyder at nbrittonsnyder@sfbar.org.

Nicole Britton-Snyder, Esq.

Diversity Pipeline Programs Manager 

Justice & Diversity Center, The Bar Association of San Francisco 301 Battery Street, Third Floor 

San Francisco, CA 94111 
Tel: 415-782-8914 

nbrittonsnyder@sfbar.org | www.sfbar.org/diversity

BALIF's twitter feed is up and running.  Follow us to see BALIF news, event info, #ThrowbackThursday posts, and more.  Just click the Twitter button in the right hand column of the newsletter or here.

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 technology@balif.org or balif@balif.org.

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 membership@balif.org.

Can't wait to hear your great news!

Meaghan Zore 

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 JOBS from the menu on the left.