The Virginia Bar Association                                                         March 5, 2013
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 The independent voice of Virginia lawyers 
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Advocacy, Professionalism,

Service, Collegiality

In This Issue
VBA Leadership Conference
Welcome, new members
125 attend mediation training
Online CLE catalog grows
Going after new lawyers
Miscellany
Best Places to Work in Virginia  

 

Best places to work 
Are law firms good places to work? Employees in at least three Virginia firms think so.
  
One law firm in each size, based on employee numbers, received recognition in the 2012 Best Places to Work in Virginia rankings. This is the third time that Virginia Business and Best Companies Group compiled the list. Law firms on the list are:
  
Small (15-99 workers): Mercer-Trigiani, Alexandria, ranked 27th;
  
Mid-Size (100-249): Vandeventer Black LLP, Norfolk, ranked fifth;
  
Large (250 and up): Kaufman & Canoles, P.C., Norfolk, ranked 20th. 
  
Board, section chairs
learn keys to successful year 
The VBA Leadership Conference informs section chairs about the workings of the 2013 Chair Pete JohnsonVBA and puts them on a path toward  success in leading their councils and sections.
  
The Feb. 26 event, coordinated by Board of Governors Chair Pete Johnson, featured President Tom Bagby, a legislative overview from VBA lobbyist Jay Spruill, division summaries from Jim Guy and Travis Hill, and an introduction of the VBA staff. Section chairs developed their work plans and consulted with their liaisons on the Board of Governors.
  
  
Upcoming events
  
March 11
Williams Mullen offices
Richmond, VA
 
March 15
Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia
Norfolk, VA
  
Book rooms
 
May 10-11
Duck, NC

 

Register now

  
May 17-18
Duck, NC
  
Save the date
  
July 18-21
123rd Summer Meeting
Hot Springs, VA
 

  

 

Register now
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Consider a gift in 2013 
to The VBA Foundation 
Donate Now button -- The VBA Foundation
The good works of the VBA are augmented by your generosity.
 
Donations to The Virginia Bar Association Foundation support educational and charitable programs and projects of the VBA. Grants help finance Law School Council educational advancement, the Legal Food Frenzy Project, the National Moot Court Competition and the Ask A Lawyer project, among others.
 
The VBA Voice.
  

The Virginia Bar Association

We welcome you to join the VBA

 
 
Welcome, new members
During February, 13 individuals joined or reactivated their membership with the VBA.
 
Share this email with your associates and colleagues and encourage them to join. Send them to the sign-up page to apply for membership.
  
 The VBA Voice
 
  The sages say March comes in like a lion and goes out like a
  lamb.
  
  At the VBA, that saying is reversed. After a successful
  legislative session in January and February, a bit of calm 
  arrives. By the end of March, planning is in high gear for
  annual projects, meetings and conferences.
  
  In this month's newsletter, see what the lamb brought in -- and
  determine how you can add your roar to the king of the jungle,
  the big cat that is the VBA.    
  
Ramp up to 7th Annual Legal Food Frenzy

To accomplish a goal of raising the equivalent of 1.5 million pounds of food, Legal Food Frenzy organizers need you to help promote the friendly competition.

 

It runs April 1-12 and is open to lawyers, judges and law students and faculty across Virginia. Law firms, solo practitioners, legal departments in government offices and agencies, law schools, courts and corporate counsel units are invited to register at www.LegalFoodFrenzy.com.

 

One way to spread the word is through kickoff celebrations across the state. The first is March 5 in McLean. Others follow in Richmond on March 11 and in Norfolk on March 15. All will feature Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli as special guest. Please follow the links and RSVP to the event you can attend.

 

The Legal Food Frenzy is a collaborative effort involving the Office of the Attorney General, the Federation of Virginia Food Banks and The Virginia Bar Association Young Lawyers Division.   

 

 


 Joint ADR and mediators set up training
On March 2, about 125 mediators and attorneys gathered at the University of Richmond for a daylong presentation by Sharon Strand Ellison on "Powerful Non-Defensive Communication."
 
Powerful Non-Defensive Communication 3/2012Participants learned to identify ways to avoid pitfalls in communication practices, such as "I messages," to enhance a mediator's success.
 
The training program was co-sponsored by the Joint ADR Committee of the VBA and Virginia State Bar and the Virginia Mediation Network. Because of the sponsorship, Joint ADR Committee members could attend at the discounted VMN member rate.

 


What's new on VBA Online CLE?
If you were not able to attend the VBA's 123rd Annual Meeting in January, you can still benefit from the excellent programming presented in Williamsburg.
  
Just go to VBA Online CLE.
  
Select from among about 60 presentations and download the program in video or audio format -- whichever is most convenient. VBA members always get a discount on this reasonably priced service. Plus you get access to all the written materials. Non-members are encouraged to shop and sample the quality of VBA programming, too.VBA Online CLE logo
  
Some recent additions to the catalog from the Annual Meeting:
Civil Litigation and Construction and Public Contracts Law: State and Federal Court Practice Update: Evidence, Arbitration, Jurisdiction and Venue. 1.5 CLE Credits 

 

 

General: Managing the Client by the Zealous Young Lawyer. 1 CLE Credit

 

Health Law: ACA/PPACA/Health Care Reform: A New Beginning!   1.5 CLE Credits

 

Labor Relations and Employment Law: Developments and Expectations: Labor and Employment Law in 2012 and the President's Second Term. 1.5 CLE Credits

 



First Day in Practice YLD new lawyer signup
  
Young Lawyers help sign up new admittees
Several VBA Young Lawyers Division members congregated at the Greater Richmond Convention Center on March 1 to introduce The  Virginia Bar Association to new lawyers.
  
During their morning break at the rescheduled First Day in Practice Seminar, participants who passed the bar last fall were encouraged to investigate the value of the VBA with introductory memberships. YLD members and VBA staff collected 17 applications to join.  
  

Miscellany

 

CHANGED JOBS: Alyssa Carducci Embree joined Williams Mullen in Norfolk as an associate in its finance and real estate practice. She is a member of the VBA Real Estate Section.

 

PROMOTED: Jessica B. Summers is an associate at Paley Rothman in the Washington, D.C., area, and a member in its employment law practice group. Previously she was a law clerk with the firm.

 

NEW FIRM: A law firm started in April 2011 in Henrico County has become Roth Doner Jackson Gibbons Condlin PLC with the addition of new partners. According to the Richmond Times-Dispatch, most of the firm's 11 lawyers formerly worked at Williams Mullen. VBA members at the firm are Andrew M. Condlin, Sean Gibbons, Jennifer D. Mullen and Benjamin Crumpler

 

GET INVOLVED: All VBA members are invited to take part in a Northern Virginia Pro Bono Hotline event from 6 to 9 p.m. March 21. The VBA Young Lawyers Division will host the event at the law offices of Blankingship & Keith in Fairfax. Dinner and drinks will be provided. To sign up, please contact Laura Golden Liff at [email protected]

 

IN THE NEWS: Husband and wife members Rhodes Ritenour (LeClairRyan) and Alana Ritenour (McCandlish Holton) are featured in a newspaper article about their involvement in The Diabetes Support Group for Greater Richmond.  

 

CONTEST FINALIST: Carrie Coyner, founder/owner of Rudy Coyner, law practice, is one of three individuals being considered for the Pediatric Connection Community Leader Award. The winner, chosen by the Richmond chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners, will be named March 21.  

 

NEW SHAREHOLDER: Juanita F. Ferguson was named a shareholder of Bean, Kinney & Korman, PC, in Arlington. Formerly she was an associate. In the VBA, she served in 2012 as secretary of the Construction and Public Contracts Law Section Council. 

The Virginia Bar Association is the largest statewide voluntary group for lawyers, judges and law professors.
Some notices from the VBA are sent to our membership exclusively by email, such as notices of section meetings and other VBA news. We respect our members' right to privacy, but should you elect to remove your email from our distribution, please be advised that you may miss important information from the VBA.

 

Save 30%

 

Brooks Brothers Spring Corporate Shopping Event 

  
VBA members qualify for special savings year 'round with a
Brooks Brothers logo
Corporate Membership Card. But for one day this month, the discount is doubled on all regularly price items at any U.S. or Canadian Brooks Brothers store or online at BrooksBrothers.com.
  

Enroll for a Corporate Membership Card online or by phone, using the VBA ID number and PIN code found on the VBA Member Benefits page. Existing cardholders should renew.

One Day Only: Thursday, March 14, 2013