Join us TOMORROW at the Crystal Tea Room for the introduction of our 98th Chancellor, Katayun Jaffari! The evening will start with a meet-and-greet, followed by a program and a reception featuring an open bar and heavy hors d'oeuvres.
Congratulations to Renee Garcia, recipient of the 2024 Justice Sonia Sotomayor Award, and Joseph Tate, recipient of the 2024 Citizens Bank Achievement Award! We will also recognize Zoe Bertrand, winner of the Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Legal Writing Competition, as well as celebrate our 2024 50- and 60-Year Club inductees.
Registration will close TODAY AT 5 P.M. Doors open at 4:30 p.m., and the program will begin at 5 p.m. sharp, with the reception to follow.
Renew your Philadelphia Bar Association membership for 2025 today! Don't miss out on amazing member benefits like the latest Bar news, upcoming networking opportunities, CLEs, discounted services, and much more!
News
Join your colleagues and friends at any of these upcoming Section holiday parties!
Criminal Justice Section Annual Reception – REGISTER NOW
Tue, December 17, 2024
5:30 PM - 7:30 PM
State Civil Litigation Section Annual Reception & Holiday Party – REGISTER NOW
Wed, December 18, 2024
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
The Philadelphia Bar Association is seeking a Policy and Legal Services Department Coordinator to provide critical scheduling, database and record keeping, and organizational support for the Association’s Board of Governors, Lawyer Referral and Information Service and Fee Disputes Program, as well administratively support the Director of Policy and Legal Services. The ideal candidate will have experience in legal or nonprofit administration, and calendar, database and project management.
The Philadelphia Bar Association invites you and your guest(s) to experience an eye-opening journey at this pivotal moment in U.S.-Cuba relations. The specially designed program will explore Cuba's rich and varied cultural heritage and go beyond tourist corridors by engaging with local scholars, attorneys, entrepreneurs, musicians and artist who will offer in-depth commentary on the Cuban legal and political system, economics, art, history, architecture and religion.
You do not want to miss this opportunity to experience the best of Cuba with the ability to earn CLE credit (pending)! SPACES STILL AVAILABLE, BUT ACT NOW – THE DEADLINE TO SECURE YOUR SPOT IS December 12!
All ballots must be cast by Tuesday, December 10 at 5:30 p.m. Winners will be announced during the reception at the Annual Meeting. Participating in the elections is your chance to have a say in the future leadership of our community. Use this guide to make an informed decision and cast your ballot.
Meet your compliance requirements with us!
The Commission on Judicial Selection and Retention of the Philadelphia Bar Association evaluates the qualifications of persons seeking election or appointment to the Philadelphia Common Pleas and Municipal Courts, and to Pennsylvania Appellate Courts when the candidate has a principal office or chambers in Philadelphia.
Individuals who are considering filing for the 2025 primary election as judicial candidates or who wish to be considered for appointment, should visit the Judicial Commission page on the Philadelphia Bar Association website to obtain a Judicial Evaluation Questionnaire, the Commission’s Guidelines for Evaluation of Attorney and Judge Candidates, and the Bylaws of the Philadelphia Bar Association.
In order to ensure that each candidate receives a full and fair evaluation, the completed and signed questionnaire with writing samples should be returned by TOMORROW to the Judicial Commission at judicialcomm@philabar.org
Under the Commission’s Guidelines, any candidates who do not participate in the Commission’s evaluation process will receive “Not Recommended” ratings if they continue to pursue either appointment or election.
It is that time of year again where YLD partners with Temple University to support the Bradway High School Mock Trial, and we need your help!
There are a few opportunities available to support with mock trial bootcamp for youth who are participating in the upcoming competition this year. One session will be in-person at Temple University on Saturday, December 7th from 10am-3:30pm, and the other will be virtual on Zoom on Saturday, December 14th from 10am-11:30am.
If you are available to volunteer for either, or both, bootcamp sessions, please complete the form below ASAP. We are also looking for attorneys who are interested in coaching high school mock trial teams this year—if you are interested, please also complete the form to potentially be matched with a school!
Feel free to reach out to Sydney Groll (Sgroll@sccalaw.org) with questions or concerns.
Features
We want to hear from you! Do you have a legal analysis article idea or a story to share about a memorable case, social issues, travel or even pop culture, fiction or poetry? Share your submission with us to be featured in a future issue of The Philadelphia Lawyer magazine!
Email communications@philabar.org with the subject line: Magazine submission
Members have access to HeinOnline archive collection of Philadelphia Bar Association publications. To access the archive, you must be a member of the Philadelphia Bar Association.
Our Summer 2024 edition includes tributes to Steve LaCheen, a longtime editorial board member of The Philadelphia Lawyer who died in May, from previous and current board members. This issue also includes side hustles and second careers submitted by members of the Association.
Perspectives
As president of the Philadelphia Bar Foundation, I am incredibly proud to reflect on the extraordinary success of our inaugural Philly Justice Ball. The event, held on November 9th, was a celebration of the Foundation’s 60th anniversary and a testament to the strength and resilience of our legal and civil aid communities. It was where we celebrated all that we stand for: justice, service, and collaboration.
Around Our Community
There will be four rounds of competition: Two on Saturday, January 11th, and two on Sunday, January 12th. Each round will last approximately three hours with a brief break in between each round. Food will be provided! We invite you to judge as many or as few rounds as you like. The tentative schedule for the weekend is as follows:
Saturday, January 11, 2025
8:00 - 9:00 | Check-in
9:00 - 9:15 | Judges Meeting
10:00 - 1:00 | Round 1
1:00 - 2:00 | Lunch & Judges Meeting
2:30 - 5:30 | Round 2
Sunday, January 12, 2025
8:45 - 9:00 | Judges Meeting
9:30 - 12:30 | Round 3
12:30 - 1:30 | Lunch & Judges Meeting
2:00 - 5:00 | Round 4
6:00 - 7:00 | Closing Ceremony
Please register and fill out the application below. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Kenneth Lynch directly at lynchk18@lasalle.edu or (570) -780 - 1024.
Wed. December 4
7:00pm - 9:00pm
Are you concerned about how to protect your family under the incoming administration? Philadelphia Family Pride board member and attorney Becca Nayak will host a legal webinar along with Nesta Johnson from NCLR and Thomas Ude from Mazzoni. Come with your questions and concerns.
RSVP to sandra@philllyfamilypride.org for the link.
Benefits and Partner Spotlight
Our Annual Partners and other benefit providers give Bar Association members access to discounts from local and national retailers, for legal and professional services and more!
DISCOUNTS INCLUDE:
Decisis is a fast, reliable legal research tool powered by LexisNexis - free for Philadelphia Bar Association members - a $1788 value! Search all courts and jurisdictions (Need a case outside Pennsylvania? Find it with Decisis™.)
To access the benefit login with your member account.
Featured CLEs & Events
This is the public interest legal community’s annual CLE program produced by the members of the Public Interest Section. Planned by public interest lawyers, this Public Interest Law Day focuses on current issues in the practice and advocacy of public interest law. Delivering public interest law to the indigent population is a job that is largely undertaken by the more than thirty public interest law organizations in the Philadelphia area, as well as the numerous volunteer pro bono attorneys. This day is designed to assist these practitioners and their colleagues in continuing to provide high-quality legal services to this under-served population. Experienced panelists will present a wide array of hot topics and cutting-edge issues affecting the pro bono legal community. In addition to attorneys in public interest practice, this program will be of interest to pro bono practitioners and private practice attorneys who are interested in learning more about public interest law and other timely issues affecting the pro bono community.
This full CLE day begins and ends with a plenary session, and affords attendees to choose, between 2 concurrent sessions in the late morning and afternoon.
Thanks to our sponsors:
