Tcl - Taking a Stand - the Cba and Politics - April 2007 - Cba President's Message to Members

• Publication year: 2007
• Pages: 5
• Citation: Vol. 36 No. 4 Pg. 5

36 Colo.Law. 5 Colorado Lawyer 2007.

2007, April, Pg. 5. TCL - Taking a Stand - The CBA and Politics - April 2007 - CBA President's Message to Members

The Colorado Lawyer
April 2007
Vol. 36, No. 4 [Page 5]

In and Around the Bar
CBA President's Message to Members

Taking a Stand - The CBA and Politics

by Elizabeth A. Starrs

Our recent participation in the "Vote No 40" campaign made me think about the CBA's involvement in political issues - what it has been and what it should be. My research on this subject involved reviewing the minutes of CBA Board of Governors and Executive Council meetings contacting the American Bar Association, reading past issues of The Colorado Lawyer, and talking with several former CBA Presidents. I also have had the assistance of CBA Executive Director Chuck Turner, CBA Assistant Executive Director Dana Collier Smith, and CBA Director of Legislative Relations Michael Valdez in this endeavor

The original CBA Bylaws stated the following as the CBA's mission

to advance the science of jurisprudence, promote the administration of justice, encourage legal education, record the history of the profession, secure legislation, stimulate good relations among the members of the profession, and preserve "the honor and dignity of the bar" and "its proper position in the community."(fn1) (Emphasis added.)

In the beginning, there also was a prohibition against the CBA taking any partisan political action.(fn2) However, at some point before 1971,(fn3) our bylaws were amended to remove this interdiction and, for the past twenty-five years, we have had a lobbyist to represent the CBA's position before the Colorado Legislature.

CBA Lobbying History

Before 1980, the CBA had independent contractors who would lobby for us on various issues. In the early 1980s, we hired Kathy O'Rourke as our first full-time lobbyist. Then, in 1988, Tom McMillen was hired as our Director of Legislative Relations. Michael Valdez came on board in 1993, and continues to serve as the CBA Director of Legislative Relations.

Legislative Policy Committee

The CBA Legislative Policy Committee (LPC), which was established in the late 1970s, continues to meet weekly during the legislative session and monthly during the rest of the year.(fn4) Here are two examples of the LPC's involvement in political issues.

In 1991, with the assistance of the CBA Director of...