Notice of District Director Elections, 2007–2008
Jennifer Fielder
Elections Committee Chair
512/236-9955
jfielder@riewelaw.com
The election of directors to the Board of Directors of the
Paralegal Division of the State Bar of Texas from District
1, District 3, District 5, District 7, District 11, District 13, and
District 15 will be held April 17, 2007, through May 2, 2007. All
active and freelance members of the Paralegal Division of the
State Bar of Texas in good standing and registered to vote as of
February 1, 2007, will be eligible to vote online at the Paralegal
Division’s website (in the Members-Only section). All voting
must be completed on or before 11:59 p.m., May 2, 2007.
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,
2007. The number of signatures required on the original
nominating petition shall be as follows:
Number of Registered
Voters Within District |
Number of
Signatures Required |
0 - 50
51 - 100
101 - 150
151 - 200
201 - 250
251 - 300
301 + |
5 signatures
8 signatures
10 signatures
12 signatures
15 signatures
18 signatures
20 signatures |
Beginning on February 16, 2007, 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, please contact:
District 1: Sherry Contreras, 713/241-1028 (County of
Harris) sherry.contreras@shell.com
District 3: Nichelle Boyland, 817/635-7055 (Counties of
Callahan, Comanche, Eastland, Erath, Hood,
Johnson, Jones, Palo Pinto, Parker, Shakelford,
Somerville, Stephens, and Tarrant) nboyland@
galyen.com
District 5: Melanie Langford, 210/224-2035 (Counties of
Atascosa, Bandera, Bexar, Comal, Dimmit,
Edwards, Frio, Gonzales, Guadalupe, Karnes,
Kendall, Kerr, Kinney, La Salle, Maverick,
Medina, Real, Uvalde, Wilson, and Zavala)
mlangford@akingump.com
District 7: Kathy Rieken, 806/468-3355 (Counties of
Armstrong, Briscoe, Carson, Castro, Childress,
Collingsworth, Dallam, Deaf Smith, Donley,
Gray, Hall, Hansford, Hartley, Hemphill,
Hutchinson, Lipscomb, Moore, Ochiltree,
Oldham, Parmer, Potter, Randall Roberts,
Sherman, Swisher, and Wheeler)
kathy.rieken@sprouselaw.com
District 11: Lee Bell Ulvestad, 432/684-5782 (Counties of
Andrews, Coke, Concho, Crockett, Ector,
Notice of District Director Elections, 2007–2008
Jennifer Fielder
Elections Committee Chair
512/236-9955
jfielder@riewelaw.com
Glasscock, Howard, Iron, Loving, Martin,
Midland, Mitchell, Nolan, Pecos, Reeves,
Runnels, Schleicher, Sterling, Sutton, Taylor,
Terrell, Tom Green, Val Verde, and Winkler)
lbell@cbtd.com
District 13: Judi Kleinschrodt, 409/849-5741 (Counties of
Austin, Brazoria, Colorado, Fayette, Fort Bend,
Galveston, Jackson, Lavaca, Matagorda, Waller,
Washington, and Wharton) judik@jrgpc.com
District 15: Patricia Gomez, 956/550-8373 (Counties of
Brooks, Cameron, Hidalgo, Jim Hogg, Kenedy,
Starr, Webb, Willacy, and Zapata)
p.gomez@torteyalawfirm.com
The following timetable is provided to guide you through the
election process.
February 1, 2007: In accordance with the Standing Rules V B,
Section 5e, the voter registration deadline shall be February 1 of
each year.
February 16, 2007: 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.
Brochure or Resume: A brochure or resume pertaining to
each candidate for director may be posted on the Paralegal
Division’s website (in the Members-Only section) and shall
be prepared and furnished to the Elections Subcommittee
Chair at each candidate’s own expense. Such brochure or
resume shall be received by the Elections Subcommittee
Chair or the Paralegal Division Coordinator on or before
April 6, 2007 (7 days prior to the posting of the ballots) 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 18, 2007), the nominee
may begin actively campaigning. Solicitation by mail is
proper, provided that any mailing is on personal stationery
or employer letterhead (provided that the employer’s permission
has been obtained), or any mailing or communication
by electronic mail is conducted by a member of the
Paralegal Division. No mailing or communication can be
conducted by any individual/entity not a member of the
Paralegal Division. 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. Directors
running for re-election cannot use Director communication
as a form of campaigning. Any incumbent director
must conduct his/her campaigning by personal, separate
communication. Candidates shall avoid personal campaigning
prior to 30 days before the date designated to mail
or post ballots or the next following business day when the
signatures on the nominating petitions for Director have
been verified.
March 18, 2007: Return your Nominating Petition, properly
completed, and at your option, with a resume or brochure (for
posting to the Paralegal Division’s website) to the District
Subcommittee Chair. (Any petition received after March 18,
2007, will not be accepted. Faxed, Xeroxed, or telecopied nominating
petitions cannot be accepted as proof of a candidate’s eligibility
for nomination.)
March 28, 2007: Elections Subcommittee Chair, after verifying
signatures on the Nominating Petition, will forward the Verified
Petitions to the Elections Chair.
April 3, 2007: Elections Committee Chair shall forward the
Candidate Listing to the Paralegal Division Coordinator for posting.
April 17, 2007: Postcards mailed for Director Election. Voting
begins online.
May 2, 2007: Deadline for voting for Director Election. All voting
must be completed on or before 11:59 p.m., May 2, 2007.
May 3, 2007: The Paralegal Division Coordinator with the
Elections Subcommittee Chair 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 Paralegal Division website at your local library.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact the Elections
Subcommittee Chair for your district.
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