NOTICE OF DIRECTOR ELECTION
Melanie Langford, ACP, Elections Committee Chair, 210.281.7063 mlangford@akingump.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 3, 2009, through April 18, 2009. All active members of the Paralegal Division of the State Bar of Texas in good standing and registered to vote as of January 26, 2009, 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., April 18, 2009.

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 4, 2009. The number of signatures required on the original nominating petition shall be as follows:

Beginning on February 1, 2009 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, CLA, 713/241.1028 (County of Harris) sherry.contreras@shell.com

District 3: Maranna Horn, 254/965.6141 (Counties of Callahan, Comanche, Eastland, Erath, Hood, Johnson, Jones, Palo Pinto, Parker, Shakelford, Somerville, Stephens, and Tarrant) maranna_horn@yahoo.com

District 5: Melanie Langford, CLA, 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: Darla Fisher, 432/683.3351 (Andrews, Coke, Concho, Crane, Crockett, Ector, Glasscock, Howard, Iron, Loving, Martin, Midland, Mitchell, Nolan, Pecos, Reagan, Reeves, Runnels, Schleicher, Sterling, Sutton, Taylor, Terrell, Tom Green, Upton, Val Verde, Ward, and Winkler) dfisher@lcalawfirm.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: Stephanie Hawkes, RP, CIPP, 214/596.5143 (Counties of Brooks, Cameron, Hidalgo, Jim Hogg, Kenedy, Starr, Webb, Willacy, and Zapata) stephanie.hawkes@nissan-usa.com
 

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

• February 1, 2009: In accordance with the Standing Rules V B, Section 5e, the voter registration deadline shall be February 1 of each year.
• February 1, 2009: 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 March 25, 2009 (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 13, 2009), 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 4, 2009: 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 4, 2009, will not be accepted. Faxed, Xeroxed, or telecopied nominating petitions cannot be accepted as proof of a candidate’s eligibility for nomination.)

March 13, 2009: Elections Subcommittee Chair, after verifying signatures on the Nominating Petition, will forward a draft of the ballot to the Elections Chair.

March 25, 2009: Elections Committee Chair shall forward ballots to the Paralegal Division Coordinator for posting.

April 3, 2009: Postcards mailed for Director Election. Voting begins online.

April 18, 2009: Deadline for voting for Director Election. All voting must be completed on or before 11:59 p.m., April 18, 2009.

April 19, 2009: The Paralegal Division Coordinator with the Elections Subcommittee Chair for District 5 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.

Texas Paralegal Journal © Copyright 2008 by the Paralegal Division, State Bar of Texas.

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