Paralegal Division 2008 Annual Meeting
by Susan Wilen, San Antonio
and Sheila Veach, CP, Lubbock
The Annual Meeting of the State
Bar of Texas was held at the
George R. Brown Convention
Center in Houston Texas on June 26-27,
2008. Over 60 hours of Continuing Legal
Education (CLE) were provided for the
diverse populations of 1,615 attendees,
including attorneys, paralegals, and students,
from all parts of the State of Texas.
The Paralegal Division of the State Bar
of Texas provided four hours of CLE at the
Annual Meeting on Friday, June 27, 2008.
The first presentation, “What Lawyers and
Paralegals Need to Know About Complying
with the Texas Disciplinary Rules” was
given by Judge Tracy Christopher of the
295th District Court in Houston. Her
remarks focused on the ethical considerations
for professional boundaries of paralegals
to prevent and avoid the illegal practice
of law. She emphasized the importance
of attorney signatures on pleadings,
not paralegals’, and the perception of
inappropriate solicitation of clients. In the
courtroom, she reinforced the need for
decorum of paralegals in dress and deed,
but also recognized their substantial contributions
as extra eyes and ears for the
attorneys during a proceeding.
Next, Brant J. Stogner, an attorney at
Hays, McConn, Rice & Pickering, P.C.,
addressed “What to Look for in Medical
Summaries; Paid or Incurred Medical
Expenses: Why They Matter.” He provided
a legal overview of the changes in HB 4
(Tort Reform) which subsequently
changed the recovery of medical or health
care expenses as “limited to the amount
actually paid or incurred” by the plaintiff.
The importance of this change in the law
to paralegals is how it relates to how medical
records are analyzed and how future
depositions of written questions are structured.
Lastly, Warren Cole, an attorney in
Houston, and Tom Vick, an attorney from
Weatherford, addressed the need and
opportunities for “Pro Bono Opportunities.”
A brief video featuring Harriet
O’Neill, Justice of the Texas Supreme
Court, was shown indicating that Legal
Aid in Texas helps 100,000 clients per year.
This, unfortunately, reflects only 20% of
the actual need in the state. Mr. Vick discussed
the recent events in Eldorado,
Texas regarding the pro bono representation
of the children seized from the Fundamentalist
Church of Jesus Christ Latter
Day Saints (FLDS) by Child Protective
Services of the State of Texas. He
described the pro bono effort by attorneys
in the state as the largest single pro bono
effort ever accomplished in the State of
Texas. With pro bono service being a
major focus of the Paralegal Division, this
presentation gave substance to the efforts
being made throughout the state to provide
legal services to those who cannot
afford them.
Paralegals who attended these presentations
gained new insights that were applicable
to how they function on a daily basis
and provided a window to opportunities
for substantive professional contributions
in the future.
The 2008 Annual Meeting and Luncheon
of the Paralegal Division of the State
Bar of Texas was also held on Friday, June
27, 2008, at the Brown Convention Center
in Houston Texas, as a part of the State
Bar of Texas Annual Meeting.
As attendees arrived at the Convention
Center and entered the Paralegal Division’s
Annual Meeting and Luncheon, they were
greeted by vendors with their tables of
information and goodies, which included
everything from cookies and candy to
cups, notepads, and pens, business cards
and brochures, among lots of other items.
As attendees made their way to their
seats, each attendee was greeted by fellow
members of the Paralegal Division from
Houston and the surrounding area, many
of whom they had met or knew from previous
meetings.
The Paralegal Division meeting began
with a “State of the Division” address by
Patricia (Patti) Giuliano, 2007-2008 President
of the Paralegal Division. Patti
reminded us of the various events of the
past year, including the trip to Ireland.
The incoming 2008–2009 President Rhonda
Brashears, CP, and President Elect
Stephanie Hawkes, RP, CIPP, were introduced
to the attendees. Outgoing
2007–2008 Parliamentarian Robert Soliz
read the Rules of Order.
Patti presented the Recipient of the
2008 Exceptional Pro Bono Service of the
Year Award to Constance (Connie) Nims
of Dallas, Texas, for her 30+ hours of pro
bono on behalf of the legal community. In
her address to the audience, Connie stated
that she could not imagine being part of
this profession and not giving back to
those in need.
The outgoing Directors from the oddnumbered
districts were introduced and
presented with plaques for their service to
the Division by out-going President Giuliano.
Those directors were: Deirdre
Trotter, CLAS, District 6 Director, Robert
W. Soliz, District 8 Director, and Mona
Hart Tucker, CP, District 14 Director. The
incoming Directors from the even-numbered
districts were introduced and
installed. In addition, it was announced
that the recipient of the 2007–2008 Award
of Excellence Recipient was Ellen Lockwood,
ACP, RP. Ellen received this award ,
not only for her service as a Chair of the
Paralegal Ethics Handbook Comittee but
also her numerous other contributions to
the Division. The Outstanding Committee
Chair awards were presented to Carolyn
B. Goff, Chair of the Ambassador Ad
Hoc Committee, and Jodye Kasher, CP,
Chair of the Public Relations Committee.
Each of these outstanding ladies have
made significant contributions to the
Division and the paralegal community as a
whole. Roy Wilson accepted an award on
behalf of Copy Solutions which was presented
in special recognition on behalf of
Copy Solutions as appreciation of for their
support of the Division and for a Paralegal
Division Sustaining Member who provided
providing the public relations materials
for the Paralegal Division during
2007–2008. Lastly, incoming President
Rhonda Brashears presented Patricia Giuliano
with a plaque for her service as the
Paralegal Division’s President, President
Elect, and District 5 Director.
Brashears then presented her vision for
the upcoming year and announced that
the next annual trip to Europe will be to
Greece on April 25–May 2, 2009. As president,
Rhonda’s goals include working to
enhance membership benefits through
additional continuing legal education and
pro bono service opportunities, working
to reach additional paralegals throughout
the state and grow Division membership,
and to with work the State Bar of Texas
and Texas attorneys to broaden the awareness
of the benefits of using a paralegal in
the legal practice.
Rusty Hardin, who was scheduled to
give the key note luncheon presentation,
was unable to depart Washington, DC due
to a problem with the airline, but the
Annual Meeting Co-Chairs, Jennifer
Barnes and Vanetta Murphree contacted
Richard “Racehorse” Haynes. Mr. Haynes
graciously accepted their invitation step in
as the keynote luncheon speaker. He
inspired us as paralegals and entertained
us with stories of his experiences with the
law and in the courtroom. He told stories
from incidents with judges and other
attorneys, interesting cases, and made us
laugh with references to past cases from
his personal experiences.
He reminded us of the importance of
our jobs and encouraged and inspired us
to work hard to help our attorneys to do
their jobs and to do them well.
The Paralegal Division expresses its sincere
thanks to all of its 2007–2008 volunteers.
The sponsors of the 2008 Annual Meeting
are listed below:
Gold Sponsors
National Registered Agents, Inc.
Houston Paralegal Association
Team Legal
Courthouse Connection
Nell McCallum Reporters
Hundt Reporting, LLC
Silver Sponsors
The Coole Company, Inc.
Robert Half Legal
Wray Wade Consulting
M&M Video Systems
Bronze Sponsors
Attorney Resource
NewLine Legal Practice Support
Blue Ribbon Legal
Houston Metropolitan
Paralegal Association
Keais
Apex Litigation
Signs
Innovative Legal Solutions, Inc.
Door Prizes
Fast Pace Reporting
Center for Advanced Legal Studies
Mystic Angel Creations
Peltier, Bosker & Griffin, P.C.
Jenkins & Kamin, LLP
Law Office of Mike Stocker
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