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Week of January 21, 2008

Austin Bar Foundation Gala: An Evening in the Orient, SATURDAY

Date: Saturday, Jan. 26
Time: 6:30 p.m. Silent Auction & Cocktail Reception; 8:00 p.m. Seated Dinner
Location: Four Season Hotel, 98 San Jacinto

The Bar Foundation Gala brings you not only great entertainment and food, but also the opportunity to WIN, WIN, WIN! Live and silent auctions offer you several chances to take home awesome prizes ranging from sports memorabilia to vacation packages.

To view the prizes you can claim as your own (for the right price), click here for the live auction items. Please also visit the silent and super silent pages.

Don’t forget that you must be present to win. If you need a last minute ticket, contact DeLaine Ward at the Bar office at 472-0279.

Also, this year the silent auction will be closing at 7:45, so don’t be late!

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Breakfast with the Judiciary, January 23

Date: Wednesday, Jan. 23
Time: 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.
Location: Austin Bar Seminar Room, 816 Congress Ave., Suite 700
Cost: $20, prepayment required
Speaker: Judge William Wayne Justice
RSVP to Debbie Kelly at Debbie@austinbar.org

Don’t start your day on an empty stomach! Join Judge William Wayne Justice of the U.S. District Court, Western District of Texas for a hot breakfast.

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Austin Under 40 Awards Nominations Due, January 23

Austinites will gather at the Austin Music Hall Friday, March 7 to honor our city’s best and brightest at the tenth annual Austin Under 40 Awards. Hosted each year by the Young Women’s Alliance and the Young Men’s Business League, the Au40 Awards recognize Austin men and women under the age of 40 who have achieved extraordinary professional success while simultaneously demonstrating outstanding community service.

Visit the Austin Under 40 Awards Web site to submit a nomination and learn how the process works. The deadline is Wednesday, Jan. 23, so please submit your nomination before then. Question can be e-mailed to Bill Conover, Taylor Henderson or Laura Robertson at Nominations@AustinUnder40.org.

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Austin Bar’s FREE Fourth Friday, January 25

Date: Friday, Jan. 25
Time: noon
Location: Austin Bar Association, 816 Congress Ave., Suite 700
Speaker: Warren Vavra
Topic: Local Rules
CLE: 1.0 hours
Cost: Free with lunch included. Thank you to our sponsors Strasburger & Price
RSVP: Receptionist@austinbar.org

Join the Bar and Warren Vavra for a free hour of CLE covering Local Rules. Enjoy saving a buck over lunch!

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Make a Big Difference as a Big Brother or Big Sister, January 28

Date: Monday, Jan. 28
Time: noon
Location: Austin Bar Association, 816 Congres Ave., Suite 700
Topic: Make a Difference Through Partnership between Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Texas and AYLA--Brown Bag Lunch

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Texas and AYLA are recruiting attorneys to be friends and mentors to Central Texas schoolchildren. Join them for an informational Brown Bag Lunch to find out more.

"Bigs" typically meet with their "Little" once per week for about an hour during the school year. These visits take place at the child's school, most often during the child's lunch hour. There are several participating schools located throughout Austin, typically only a few minutes away from downtown.

Please contact Tracie Guthrie at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Texas, Partnership Coordinator, at 472-5437 x237 or Mike Johnson at mjohnson@thomsoncoe.com with the AYLA Mentoring Committee for more information.

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Texas Bar Foundation Fellows Chair Visits Austin, January 29

Date: Tuesday, Jan. 29
Time: 5:30 p.m. to 7:30
RSVP: Pasha Moore at the Texas Bar Foundation office at 512/480-8014 or pmoore@texasbar.com

Melody Wilkinson of Fort Worth, chair of the Fellows of the Texas Bar Foundation, will be hosting a reception for Fellows and nominated potential Fellows in the Austin area. During the reception, Wilkinson and Texas Bar Foundation staff will provide an update on the Texas Bar Foundation and its charitable work throughout the state.

For more information on this upcoming reception or becoming a Texas Bar Foundation Fellow, contact Pasha Moore at the Texas Bar Foundation office at 512/480-8014 or pmoore@texasbar.com.

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Federal Bar Association Luncheon with U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Craig Gargotta, January 30

Date: Wednesday, Jan. 30
Time: 11:30 a.m.
Location: Austin Bar Association, 816 Congress Ave., Suite 700
Cost: Free for Federal Bar Association members and $10 for non-members
RSVP: Please reply to imelda_tovar@fd.org with your RSVP by Friday, Jan. 25. Space is limited, so please RSVP early.

Please join the Federal Bar Association along with the Bankruptcy Section of the Austin Bar Association for lunch with Judge Craig Gargotta, who will share his perspectives from the bench.

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Watch a Movie, Eat Popcorn, and Earn Ethics CLE, February 1

Date: Friday, Feb. 1
Time: 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Location: Alamo Drafthouse South, 1120 South Lamar
Cost: $10 for Austin Bar Bankruptcy Section members and $15 for non-members
RSVP: Michael Baumer at baumerlaw@swbell.net or 476-8707
CLE: 2.5 hours

Join Professor Nancy Rapoport from the University of Nevada at Las Vegas as she presents the film, Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room. Earning Ethics CLE has never been this easy or fun!

Please RSVP to Michael Baumer at baumerlaw@swbell.net or 476-8707. A good count is necessary in case a larger theater is needed.

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Introduction to Naturalization, Friday, February 1

Time: noon
Location: Austin Bar Association, 816 Congress Avenue, Suite 700
Topic: Introduction to Naturalization
Speaker: Edna Yang, General Council, Political Asylum Project of Austin
CLE: 1.5 Hours
Cost: Free, lunch will be provided
RSVP to Michelle McFadyen at (512) 472-0279 or Michelle@austinbar.org

The Austin Bar Association is partnering with the Political Asylum Project to provide legal assistance to qualified applicants seeking U.S. citizenship. This training gives you not only 1.5 hours of CLE, but also the ability to help someone seeking to make America their home.

The training will cover the following:
a. Requirements of Naturalization
b. Frequently Seen Problems/Issues/Bars to Naturalization
c. How to Complete the Naturalization Application
d. General Format of the Naturalization Clinics - What to Expect on Saturday

Participants in this free CLE will be required to volunteer at one of the clinics to be held on Saturday, Feb. 2 and Saturday, Feb. 9 to complete the application for U. S. citizenship for a pre-screened applicant. Total attorney time for the training and the rendering of legal assistance will be two and one-half hours. Call DeLaine Ward at 472-0279 with any questions.

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AYLA Still Looking for Volunteer Mock Trial Judges, February 2

Date: Saturday, Feb. 2
Location: Travis County Courthouse at 1000 Guadalupe

AYLA is seeking volunteers willing to serve as judges for the Central Texas High School Mock Trial Competition on Saturday, Feb. 2. This competition allows teams of high school students from area schools to prepare and present all aspects of a mock trial (opening argument, closing argument, direct and cross examination of several witnesses). The winning team advances to the State Mock Trial Competition in Dallas with possible advancement to the national competition.

Mock trial experience is not necessary to serve as a judge. There is virtually no advance preparation needed (all judges will receive information describing the relevant issues). The time commitment is minimal--each round lasts approximately two hours--and CLE credit is available.

If you can volunteer a couple of hours on February 2 to help future lawyers, please contact AYLA Mock Trial Committee co-chairs Mike Johnson (mjohnson@thompsoncoe.com) or Nicki Grodner (ngrodner@velaw.com).

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It All Comes Together at Brackenridge, Deadline February 8

Sponsor Deadline: Friday, Feb. 8
Event Date: Friday, April 18
Location: Four Seasons Hotel, 98 San Jacinto Blvd.

Members of the Brackenridge Development Council are please to announce that Mayor Pro-Tem Betty Dunkerley will be honored at a special luncheon entitled “It All Comes Together at Brackenridge.” The Mayor Pro-Tem will be recognized for her strong advocacy on healthcare issues and for her leadership in providing solutions to preserve the fabric of our community’s safety net hospital.

Proceeds from the luncheon will allow Brackenridge, a member of the Seton Family of Hospitals, to take its medical innovation, academic medicine, and excellence in trauma and the neurosciences to an even higher level.

If interested in sponsoring a table, click here to view the different levels of sponsorship and for a sponsor form.

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2007-2008 ALA Compensation and Benefits Survey Now Available

The Austin Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators’ Compensation and Benefits Survey will be available through October 2008. An order form can be found by clicking here.

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Upcoming Meetings

SECTIONS:
Tuesday, Jan. 22 - Court Appointed Family Attorneys

Wednesday, Jan. 23 - Business, Corporate, & Tax Law Section Meeting

Thursday, Jan. 24 - Solo/Small Firm Section Meeting

Friday, Feb. 1 - Bankruptcy Law Section Meeting

COMMITTEES:
The following Austin Bar Committees are meeting at the Austin Bar office, 816 Congress, Suite 700. Parking is available in the adjacent garage, accessible from 9th Street. Please feel free to attend any that interest you. Since lunch is provided, please RSVP to receptionist@austinbar.org or call 472-0279 with your name and the name of the committee.

Tuesday, Jan. 22 - Bench Bar Committee Meeting

Tuesday, Jan. 29 - Judicial Affairs Committee Meeting

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Proud corporate sponsors of the Austin Bar Association