winter 2003 vol.9 no. 3                                                                                                                      Return to Contents
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LAU 2003, San Antonio, TX

Rhonda J. Brashears
Chair, 2003 LAU Planning Committee

The 5th annual Legal Assistant University (LAU), a three-day CLE seminar sponsored by the Legal Assistants Division, was held in San Antonio, Texas on October 1-3. The seminar was attended by 245 legal assistants from all over Texas who enjoyed educational presentations selected from 63 topic/speakers over a 3-day period.
The 2003 LAU Planning Committee was headed up by Rhonda Brashears (Amarillo) and consisted of Javan Johnson (Longview) and Patti Giuliano (San Antonio), who were in charge of socials, Ellen Lockwood (San Antonio), who rounded up the speakers, Jennifer Barnes (Houston) and Kristy Ritchie (San Antonio), who were in charge of marketing, Star Moore (Fort Worth), who held down the fort at registration, and Jaime Moore (San Antonio), who had the enormous task of arranging for exhibitors and door prizes. Melissa Sherman, President of the Legal Assistants Division, served as board advisor. We were very fortunate this year to have Jim Hollerbach of Hollerbach and Associates serve on the committee as a public member. Norma Hackler and Trish Humber of Hackler and Associates were also indispensable in the planning of LAU. In addition, we had approximately 45 people from around the state who volunteered on-site to help out at LAU 2003. It is safe to say that LAU 2003 would not have been possible without the assistance of all these people.

Substantive legal topic presentations were presented beginning on Wednesday, October 1 and ending on Friday, October 3. Below please find several topics that have been summarized:
Susan Wilen, R.N., L.N.C., spoke on the ever-daunting task of reviewing medical records for us non-medical types. She gave a wonderful discussion on understanding what you have and what you still need to obtain to complete your review of medical records.
Stephen A. Spence, a private investigator, informed his listeners of several tricks of the trade to assist them in locating individuals as well as assets and also provided information on how to obtain information regarding an individual’s background with regard to personal litigation and any criminal records.
Jane S. Hall gave a very thorough and level-appropriate presentation on Termination and Adoption. Both the agency and the independent law firm aspects of adoption were covered. She stressed the areas in which we, as legal assistants, could make the process go much more smoothly. We were provided with: up-to-date case law, helpful organizations to contact, and a very useful checklist. It was very refreshing to attend a presentation that touched on the basics but was generally geared toward “experienced” legal assistants.
Judge Stansbury gave a very informative presentation on the extensive Family Law Legislative Updates. He touched on all of the areas that were changed by the legislature this year and gave us some background on the processes behind, as well as the reasoning for, some of the changes. The updates that contained extensive changes were covered in great detail.
A contrast and comparison of civil trials in the United States vs. Mexico was made by Attorney Marc Wiegand of Bracewell & Patterson, L.L.P. with the assistance of counsel Eduardo Flores and Jorge Mendez of Mendez & Flores, Monterrey, Mexico. The speakers provided helpful information helpful regarding jurisdiction, locating Mexican corporations, perfecting service of process on a Mexican company or individual, abstracting U.S. judgments and securing assets in Mexico. The speakers also covered important issues to consider when forming foreign companies. They also discussed the advantages and disadvantages of forming a corporation in Mexico versus the United States. The attorneys from Mexico provided a good deal of information about the courts in Mexico, the rules and logistics of a trial and the discovery process. The discussion was informal and allowed for student participation.
Mark Jones, a partner of the San Antonio office of Bracewell & Patterson, L.L.P., presented a lengthy discussion of the elements of a commercial lease. The students were provided with a wealth of information and insight on how to assist the client, whether lessor or lessee, in negotiating leases. The presentation included a discussion of landlord and tenant rights, construction issues, termination and default and provided an understanding of the factors considered when setting rental amounts.
We had plenty of wonderful speakers and CLE opportunities but we also had a lot of fun. The Wednesday night social was held at the Rio Rio Restaurant on the historic San Antonio River Walk. We had fantastic Mexican food, tasty margaritas, awesome entertainment with mariachis and an evening ride on a riverboat.
Thursday’s social was held at the Omni Hotel in the Penthouse. We again had great food and were entertained by The Oxymoron, a local San Antonio comedian group. The members of the group surprised a number of LAU attendees with silly stunts and conversation before they made their real identities known.
Friday’s luncheon with Grace Cisneros, a face reader, was definitely a learning experience. She informed many of the attendees how the features of a person’s face can reveal a good deal more about that person than one would normally assume.
The LAU Committee tried several new things this year. One of these was having an exhibitor sponsor breakfast-in-bed for the LAU attendees (attendees who were guests at the Omni Hotel signed up for “free” continental breakfast in their rooms on Friday morning). This year’s sponsor was Cook, Cutaia & Johnson of Houston. Breakfast-in-bed was very well received by both the sponsor and the attendees. Several of the exhibitors provided the attendees with substantive continuing legal education topics as part of their exhibit package. There were 5 exhibitors who presented substantive topics on Thursday, October 2. Other companies sponsored the Wednesday Welcome Social with two sponsoring the bus transportation to the River Walk. The law firms of Jenkens & Gilchrist and David, Cedillo & Mendoza sponsored tables at the Friday attendee luncheon. Please see the complete list of all of the sponsors in this issue of the TPJ. Even if you did not attend the LAU seminar, we would appreciate your using, or recommending, these companies for legal services for your immediate needs or those in the future. Please support those companies that support the Legal Assistants Division.
I hope those of you who were able to attend LAU gained as much from it as I did. Be watching for details regarding LAU 2004 in Fort Worth — it will be just as worthwhile. See you there.

Thanks to Our LAU Vendors

Texas Paralegal Journal © Copyright 2003 by the Legal Assistants Division, State Bar of Texas.

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