Orange County Bar Association

October 2022 President’s Page - October Is a Time to Volunteer and Give Back to Our Community

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by Daniel S. Robinson

Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Ukraine, especially the many families emigrating in the midst of this brutal and unjustified war. The OCBA encourages all members who want to help support nonprofits providing critical resources and relief to those in need to visit our Community Outreach page at www.ocbar.org/Get-Connected/Committees/Community-Outreach.

October Is a Time to Volunteer and Give Back to Our Community

I want to start this October with some wonderful news! For those who haven’t heard, I’m happy to report that on September 18, 2022, Governor Newsom signed AB 2958 (the subject of my September column).

I want to give a special thanks to Nikki Miliband, Scott Garner, MC Sungaila, all of the members of the OCBA’s State Bar Task Force, and all others who volunteered over the last few years to help us ensure California’s meaningful safeguards prohibiting non-lawyers from practicing law and owning law firms remain in place. I also want to applaud the efforts of Consumer Attorneys of California and the chairs of the Legislature’s Judiciary Committees, Assemblyman Mark Stone and Senator Tom Umberg, for helping advance this important bill through approval.

The hard work of these leaders is a perfect segue for the focus of this month’s column: celebrating volunteerism and Pro Bono Month in October.

The Orange County legal community is on a fast track to a post-pandemic recovery. In my conversations around the county, I often hear from attorneys who have big deals happening again, back-to-back trials coming up, or a pile of appellate briefs that need drafting. In the middle of his 1932 campaign for president during the Great Depression, Franklin Delano Roosevelt closed his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago stating, “Out of every crisis, every tribulation, every disaster, mankind rises with some share of greater knowledge, of higher decency, of purer purpose.”

Despite everyone resuming their busy schedules, I’m inspired by the many members of our Bar who are always able to find time to give back to the community.

For example, on October 11, 2022, Crowell & Moring partner Rick McNeil will be honored at the 2022 Volunteer Recognition Reception at Turnip Rose as the 2022 Harmon G. Scoville award honoree. Rick is a former board member, former section leader, and current committee co-chair for the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. Everyone who knows Rick is thrilled for him to receive this well-deserved honor. He’s an individual with an extraordinary capacity to volunteer and take on civic responsibilities above and beyond his day job and duties to his family. Rick will be joining an impressive group of Scoville honorees who have made significant contributions to Orange County legal community. The complete list is available at https://www.ocbar.org/About/History/Harmon-G-Scoville-Award.

Another example is the OCBA Legislative Resolutions Committee, which spent September 16-18, 2022, in San Diego representing the OCBA at the annual Conference of California Bar Associations. For nearly three days, chair Ryan Dean and his delegation of OCBA representatives volunteered their time by huddling in a conference room and debating the merits of various legislative resolutions.

Another great example of volunteerism is the 2023 OCBA Leadership Election which, by the time you’re reading this, should be concluded. I want to thank and congratulate all the 2023 Secretary and Board Member candidates who ran in this year’s election. No matter the outcome, your efforts to contribute to the leadership of this incredible organization are deeply appreciated.

There are still many OCBA leadership opportunities available at the section level. Section leadership elections follow a staggered schedule from October through December 2022, with the section leaders taking office in January 2023 for a one-year term. October 10, 2022, is the nomination deadline for the leadership of the following sections: Appellate Law, Business & Corporate Law, Corporate Counsel, Criminal Law, Environmental Law, International Law, Tax Law, and Workers’ Compensation. October 24, 2022, is the nomination deadline for the following sections: Banking & Lending, Commercial Law & Bankruptcy, Elder Law & Special Needs, Immigration Law, Intellectual Property & Technology Law, Labor & Employment Law, Real Estate Law, Tort & Trial, and Trusts & Estates. November 7, 2022, is the nomination deadline for the following sections: Business Litigation, Construction Law, Conservatorship Guardianship & Protective Proceedings, Entertainment Sports & Marketing Law, Family Law, Health Care Law, Insurance Law and Solo Practitioner/Small Firm.

For those who’d prefer to provide legal assistance to indigent members of our Orange County community, the OCBA’s pro bono webpage provides numerous opportunities. You can help victims of domestic violence at Human Options or Laura’s House. You can take on a case representing individuals facing housing, health, discrimination, and other issues through Public Law Center or Community Legal Aid SoCal. You can help provide legal assistance to veterans through the Veterans Legal Institute, or individuals facing deportation and detention through the Orange County Justice Fund. You can volunteer to help make a difference in the lives of abused and abandoned children through Court Appointed Special Advocates of Orange County (CASA). You can also volunteer to mentor and help underprivileged high school students in Orange County through the many programs offered by Project Youth. Or you can volunteer as a judge or assistant in mock trial programs for high school students run by the Constitutional Rights Foundation. These are just a handful of the numerous incredible organizations making a difference every day in the lives of Orange County residents.

The vitality of our Orange County community depends on individual efforts to advance the common good and promote civic values in our county. Wherever your interests may lie, the OCBA Board of Directors encourages all OCBA members to consider volunteering in our legal community.

Daniel S. Robinson is the 2022 President of the Orange County Bar Association. He is a partner at Robinson Calcagnie, Inc. where he represents plaintiffs in consumer and personal injury cases. He can be reached at drobinson@robinsonfirm.com.