winter 2003 vol.9 no. 3                                                                                                                      Return to Contents
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Notice of Election

Jennifer Fielder
Elections Committee Chair
512/482-9291 / jfielder@r-wlaw.com

The election of directors to the Board of Directors of the Legal Assistants Division of the State Bar of Texas from District 2, District 4, District 6, District 8, District 10, District 12, District 14, and District 16 will be held April 16, 2004, through May 1, 2004. All active and freelance members of the Legal Assistants Division of the State Bar of Texas in good standing as of February 1, 2004, will be eligible to vote online at the Legal Assistant Division’s website (in the Members-Only section). All voting must be completed on or before 11:59 p.m., May 1, 2004.

Each potential candidate must satisfy the following requirements:

a. Eligibility Requirements. The candidate must satisfy the eligibility requirements of Article III, Section 3 and Article IX, Section 1 A and Section 4 of the Bylaws and Rule V B, Section 5c of the Standing Rules.
b. Declaration of Intent. The candidate must make a declaration of intent to run as a candidate for the office of director through an original nominating petition declaring such intent that is filed with the Elections Subcommittee Chair in the candidate’s district pursuant to Rule V B, Section 5 of the Standing Rules.
c. Nominating Petition. The original nominating petition must be signed by and must be submitted to the Elections Subcommittee Chair in such district, on or before March 17, 2004. The number of signatures required on the original nominating petition shall be as follows:

Number of Number of
Registered Voters Signatures
Within District Required

0 - 50 5 signatures
51 - 100 8 signatures
101 - 150 10 signatures
151 - 200 12 signatures
201 - 250 15 signatures
251 - 300 18 signatures
301 + 20 signatures

Beginning on February 16, 2004, each Elections Subcommittee Chair shall prepare and forward, upon request, the following materials to potential candidates for director in their respective district at any time during the nominating period:
a. A copy of the List of Registered Voters for their district;
b. A sample nominating petition; and
c. A copy of Rule VI of the Standing Rules entitled “Guidelines for Campaigns for Candidates as Director.”

To request information from the Elections Subcommittee Chair for your district contact:

District 2: Shelley Smith, 214/346-9449 (Dallas county) shelley214@yahoo.com

District 4: Jennifer Fielder, 512/482-9291 (Austin area) jfielder@r-wlaw.com

District 6: Beth Arnold, CLA, 806/762-5281 (Lubbock area) barnold@cdmlaw.com

District 8: Amy Mabray, 361/575-0551 (Victoria area) azmabray@cce-vic.com

District 10: Ledena Howard, 409/886-7766 (Beaumont area) ledenah@hotmail.com

District 12: Kim Thornburg, 940/390-0683 (Denton area) kim.thornburg@dentoncounty.com

District 14: Linda Slayter, CLA, 903/597-8311 (Tyler area) lindaslayter@potterminton.com

District 16: Donna Crafton, CLA, 915/546-8313 (El Paso area) dcra@scotthulse.com

The following timetable is provided to guide you through the election process.

February 1, 2004:
In accordance with the Standing Rules V B, Section 5e, the voter registration deadline shall be February 1 of each year.

February 16, 2004:
Contact the Elections Subcommittee Chair for your district and request a nominating petition and, at your option, prepare a short resume to attach to such nominating petition. Each candidate should include enough copies of the resume for each member of the candidate’s district.

Brochure or Resume: A brochure or resume pertaining to each candidate for director may be enclosed with the ballot and shall be prepared and furnished to the Elections Subcommittee Chair at each candidate’s own expenses. Such brochure or resume shall be received by the Elections Subcommittee Chair sufficiently in advance to be included in the mailing of the ballots. Such brochure or resume shall not exceed two 8 1/2” x 11” pages or one 8 1/2” x 14” page.

Campaigning: After the signatures on the Nominating Petition have been verified (March 19, 2003), the nominee may begin actively campaigning. Solicitation by mail is proper, provided that such mailing be on personal stationery or employer letterhead (provided that the employer’s permission has been obtained). Candidates themselves, in addition to the above, may campaign by personal solicitation. The full expense of such mail solicitation shall not exceed the sum of $500. However, to the fullest extent possible, all communications and solicitations, whether by letter or card or telephone, should concentrate on the candidate’s merits and should avoid criticism of the other candidate or candidates. The excessive use of telephone solicitation by persons other than candidates through the use of WATS lines and similar organized solicitation is discouraged.

March 17, 2004:
Return your Nominating Petition, properly completed, and at your option, with a sufficient number of copies of your resume or brochure for members in your district, to the District Subcommittee Chair. (Any petition received after March 17, 2004, will not be accepted. Faxed, Xeroxed, or telecopied nominating petitions cannot be accepted as proof of a candidate’s eligibility for nomination.)

March 26, 2004: Elections
Subcommittee Chair, after verifying signatures on the Nominating Petition, will forward a draft of the ballot to the Elections Chair.

April 6, 2004:
Elections Committee Chair shall forward ballots to the Legal Assistants Division Coordinator for printing.

April 16, 2004:
Postcards mailed for Director Election. Voting begins online.

May 1, 2004:
Deadline for voting for Director Election. All voting must be completed on or before 11:59 p.m., May 1, 2004.

May 3, 2004:
The Legal Assistants Division Coordinator with the Elections Subcommittee for District 4 will cause such ballots to be tabulated and notify the active candidates of such election results.

If you do not have access to the Internet at home or the office, you can access the LAD website at your local library. If you have any questions, feel free to contact the Elections Subcommittee Chair for your district.

NOTICE OF NOMINATIONS/ELECTION OF PRESIDENT-ELECT

Pursuant to Standing Rule XIV of the Legal Assistants Division of the State Bar of Texas, notice is hereby given of an election for the office of 2004-2005 President Elect. This election will be held by mail during the month of January 2004 by the Board of Directors.

Qualifications for serving as President Elect of the Legal Assistants Division are contained in Standing Rules XIV as follows:

XIV. OFFICERS
B. ELIGIBILITY

1. Any current or past Director who is currently an active member of the Division is eligible to be elected as President or President-Elect.

Any qualified individual who is interested in running for office of President Elect should forward a one-page resume, together with a letter of intent to run, to the nominations committee at the following address NO LATER THAN JANUARY 15, 2004.

Kim Cantu, CLA
McKool Smith
300 Crescent Court, Suite 1500
Dallas, Texas 75201
kcantu@mckoolsmith.com

In the event the Board elects an individual who is currently serving as a Director, a vacancy will be declared in the district in which that individual serves. An election will be held to replace the outgoing Director (President Elect) at the time the elections for the Board of Directors are regularly scheduled.

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

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