Our final blog post of 2017 highlighted an upcoming event I’m really enthusiastic about. I’ll be moderating a panel at the ABA-GPSolo/GLSA 2018 Joint Spring Meeting (April 25-28, 2018) in New Orleans. This is the GLSA’s (Group Legal Services Association) annual educational conference.
Why am I so excited? Well, it will be held during Jazz Fest in New Orleans! Why wouldn’t I be excited?!
In all sincerity, I’m thrilled to be sharing the panel with some awesome lawyers. Our group has worked diligently to create a valuable presentation for our audience.
Five individuals, with little prior knowledge of each other, have come together through solid teamwork to create a coherent presentation underlining the obstacles facing client access to justice and some steps to improve access.
What started as “legal technology and the access to justice” has morphed into a topic of technology and awareness building to bridge the access to justice gap.
I can’t wait to meet my teammates and the readers of this blog post in person! Allow me to introduce you to the team:
Sarah is a shareholder in the Riggs, Abney, Neal, Turpen, Orbison & Lewis law firm and has been with the firm since 1997. Sarah received her J.D. from Creighton University Law School in 1994, and a BA in Religious Studies in 1991 from Regis College in Denver, Colorado. Sarah is the firms’ LegalShield Supervising Attorney where she manages LegalShield front line 20+ attorneys and staff in day-to-day operations. She has also spearheaded the firms’ involvement in raising community awareness about the availability of legal services. Sarah has coordinated a quarterly “Law Day” program with Denver’s nonprofit organization, Warren Village, for the specific purpose of offering legal access to single parents who are transitioning to self-support through education, training, and commitment.
Wayne is the managing partner of Maguire Schneider Hassay, LLP. He joined the firm in 1998, and became a partner in 2004. He has been with the firm almost 20 years, practicing in the areas of personal injury, probate, and collection, plus he lectures regularly on the non-traditional delivery of legal services. His firm services the legal needs of over 36,000 Ohioans as part of legal service plan, LegalShield.
Wayne and I are sort of kindred spirits, although we approach legal technology and access to justice a bit differently, since I don’t practice. In a Law Practice Today article from last year, Wayne stated “Client-facing tech is the norm in so many professions. Can you imagine working with a bank that does not have client-facing technology? No. Yet law lags far behind.” Let’s work to correct this, Wayne!
Kerry began his own practice, Lavelle Legal Services, in 1989, focusing primarily on matters of tax law. Today the firm, now known as Lavelle Law, Ltd., has grown to include 22 attorneys with practice groups in tax, business law, commercial real estate, estate planning, criminal law, home health care, small business, gaming law, bankruptcy, corporate formation, family law, litigation, grocery law, employment law, residential real estate, securities, and LGBT law. He is the author of The Business Guide to Law: Creating and Operating a Successful Law Firm, published by the Division. In 2016, Kerry was designated a Top 100 Attorney in Illinois by Super Lawyers. In 2015, his firm was one of 13 law firms nationally to receive the Beacon of Justice Award for pro bono service from the National Legal Aid & Defender Association (NLADA).
Tony is the managing partner of Clayton, Fruge & Ward. He graduated from Southern University’s Law Center in 1991 and was admitted to the Louisiana State Bar that same year. While establishing his private practice, Tony has had the privilege of also being involved in other areas of the legal profession, including District Court Judge for the Louisiana Supreme Court and Special Prosecutor for East Baton Rouge Parish.
Moderator / Panelist, Nick Rishwain:
I am the Vice President of Client Relations & Business Development for Experts.com, an online marketing platform for expert witnesses and consultants. In my free time, I am quite active in social media. In 2015, I founded and co-host a live video vlog, LegalTechLIVE, which advocates for and highlights the advancements in the legal technology sector. Additionally, I co-host SocialChatter, a live, weekly, social media news show.