Top Story
Election Results:
Kelly Frels (Houston) and David McAtee (Dallas) Win President-elect Campaigns for State Bar and TYLA, respectively.

Election results are in for the 2003-2004 State Bar of Texas and the Texas Young Lawyers Association President-elect candidates and directors races. (election info.) Read more about Frels and McAtee now.

Feature TYLA Project
Law for the Clergy: Free CLE Seminar May 15

By TYLA Staff - Sometimes TYLA projects are accomplished quietly and without much fanfare. Unlike other much publicized TYLA programs--e.g. the On-line Judicial Directory or College for a Day programs, many projects receive little press. One such project is the "Clergy and the Law" seminar, which deals with legal issues religious professionals (or the attorneys representing them) may encounter. (more info)

Featured Local Affiliate

Shannon Dacus - Smith County YLA
This month’s featured leader is Shannon Dacus, president of the Smith County Young Lawyers Association (SCYLA), which is based in Tyler. Shannon has been instrumental in reviving a local young lawyers organization that had faded away in recent years. Shannon’s non-Presidential time is spent as an associate at the law firm of Ramey & Flock, where she primarily practices in toxic tort litigation defense. She also acts as counsel for local school districts on a variety of topics, including employment issues, contract negotiations and disputes, personal injury claims, and district policies. (Click here for full article.)

Goin' It Alone ... the Coachless Trial Team
There are schools with highly developed trial advocacy programs, who have key law professors or seasoned attorneys--experts in their field and highly skilled in the art of trial competitions--who act as coaches and consistently bring their law students to the final rounds of the National Trial Competition (NTC) or other major mock trial tournaments. This is not their story. Rather, this is the story of a few highly disciplined and determined law students who made it on their own. (Click here for full article.)

Good Folks To Know
By Robert Witte - An old saying goes, "it's not what you know, but who you know." Although one cannot overlook, nor understate, the importance of substantive knowledge in the practice of law, those practitioners who become familiar with certain key people in and around the practice of law will benefit significantly. Taking the time to get to know these individuals will benefit your practice. (Click here for full article.)

Texas Law Help - www.texaslawhelp.org
A new legal website for low-income Texans was launched May 1. Texas Law Help, sponsored by the Access to Justice Commission, Legal Services Corporation and Texas Equal Access to Justice Foundation, provides information on a wide array of legal topics for the public. Volunteers are needed to help develop content in the following areas: family, consumer, public benefits, and employment. Future enhancements will include pro bono opportunities and information to help attorneys working on pro bono cases.

Reminder: Bar Dues Checkoff
Don't forget ... there is a simple way to support equal access to justice in Texas. When your State Bar dues statement arrives in May, participate in the voluntary $65 contribution to Access to Justice and support legal services to the poor.

The Deborah G. Hankinson Access to Justice Award will be presented at the Local Bar Leaders Conference in August to recognize the local young lawyer affiliates with the highest level of participation in the dues checkoff campaign. Please encourage lawyers at your firm and in your city to participate.