Recognizing VBA leaders
across the Commonwealth

By the time this message reaches the membership, the Association will have held its annual Leadership Conference on Thursday, February 27. This event brings the entire VBA leadership together to discuss goals, initiatives, and ideas for the new bar year and to learn about the current status of the Association's legislative agenda, among other things.

The leadership commitment of these volunteer lawyers is extraordinary, and I want to take this opportunity to specifically recognize the chairs of the Association's substantive law sections, commissions, coalitions, and committees and to thank them for their outstanding service on behalf of the VBA. These leaders play instrumental roles in developing and advocating for the VBA's robust legislative agenda each year and in creating the exceptional general session and CLE programming for which VBA meetings are well known.

The leaders of these groups in 2014 are the following:

Administrative Law	JoAnne L. Nolte (The Nolte Law Firm, P.C.)
Appellate Practice	Jeffrey M. Summers (The Law Office of Jeffrey M. Summers, PLLC)
Bankruptcy Law	Robert S. Westermann (Hirschler Fleischer PC)
Business Law	John Owen Gwathmey (Troutman Sanders LLP)
Civil Litigation	Richard H. Ottinger (Vandeventer Black LLP)
Construction and Public Contracts Law	W. Ryan Snow (Crenshaw, Ware & Martin, PLC)
Corporate Counsel	Dennis P. Smith (Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond)
Criminal Law	Denise Lunsford (Albemarle County Commonwealth Attorney's Office)
Domestic Relations	Christine M. Corey (Law Offices of Deanna D. Cook, PC)
Elder Law	Paula L. Peaden (Parker, Pollard, Wilton & Peaden, P.C.)
Environment, Natural Resources and Energy Law	Darin K. Waylett (McGuireWoods LLP)
Health Law	Alan S. Goldberg (Alan S. Goldberg Attorney & Counselor at Law)
Intellectual Property and Information Technology Law	R. Braxton Hill, IV (Christian & Barton, LLP)
Judicial	Judge Pamela S. Baskervill (Petersburg Circuit Court)
Labor Relations and Employment Law	Harris D. Butler, III (Butler Royals, PLC)
Real Estate	Katja H. Hill (LeClairRyan)
Taxation	Neil L. Rose (Willcox Savage)
Transportation Law	Gregory P. Cirillo (Wiley Rein LLP)
Wills, Trusts & Estates	Katherine E. Ramsey (Hunton & Williams LLP)
Commission on the Needs of Children	Margaret I. Bacigal (Univ. of Richmond School of Law)
Committee on Federal Judgeships-Eastern District	C. Thomas Ebel (Sands Anderson PC)
Committee on Federal Judgeships-Western District	Frank W. Rogers, III (Mundy, Rogers & Associates, LLP)
Committee on Nominations to Virginia Commissions & Appellate Courts	John K. Burke, Jr. (Setliff & Holland, P.C.)
Committee on Special Issues of National & State Importance	David Craig Landin (Hunton & Williams LLP)
Joint Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee	Jeanne F. Franklin (Franklin Solutions)
Judiciary Committee	David G. Shuford (Dominion Resources Services, Inc.)
Virginia Family Law Coalition	Cheshire I. Eveleigh (Wolcott Rivers Gates)

Please join me in extending deep gratitude to these individuals (and their employers) for their tremendous contributions to the work of The Virginia Bar Association.

John L. Walker, III