Chair's Column

• Date: 01 April 2024
• Author: John Marshall Cook

Published in The Construction Lawyer Volume 43, Number 2, ©2024 by the American Bar Association. Reproduced with

permission. All rights reserved. This information or any portion thereof may not be copied or disseminated in any form or by any

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Forum on Construction LawThe Construction Lawyer Volume 43, Number 2

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Chair’s Column

By John Marshall Cook

This is my second-to-last message to you as the Chair of the Forum. Traditionally, the Chair saves the

final message for thanks to those who supported his or her journey. While I still intend to honor that

tradition, I am starting early.

First, a big thank you to all of the people (and there were a lot of them) who attended my first national

meeting in Washington, DC, to hear about Government Construction Contracting. Second, a heartfelt

thanks to the masses of people who showed up for the regional programs in Philadelphia, Atlanta, St.

Louis, and San Francisco. Third, I want to express my gratitude for all those who learned about power

projects with us at the Midwinter meeting in Las Vegas. Finally, many thanks to the 715 of you (not a

typo; it was an incredible 715 attendees) who joined us in New Orleans (despite some challenging travel)

to hear from the experts on construction litigation.

The reason I am calling out the people who filled these meetings is that the great attendance we had at all

of the meetings this bar year allowed us to make good on a promise I made when I became Chair of the

Forum. The promise was to reverse course on a particular cost-cutting measure instituted in response to

the Forum’s pandemic-induced financial malaise. While I agreed with many of the cost-cutting measures

we took, there was one that I fought—unsuccessfully. As part of our austerity measures, we reduced the

diversity fellowship program from six to four awardees annually and reduced the meeting scholarships

from four to two.

When I became Chair, I committed to providing great content in exciting locations so that we could

enhance attendance. My purpose was to have enough financial success to restore the scholarship and

fellowship programs to their previous levels. And we did it. More appropriately, you did it by showing up

in huge numbers for the national and regional programs. Thank you!

I am proud to report that the Forum is returning to our full complement of four Diversity Scholarships

per meeting (including national meetings, regional programs, and the Trial Academy) and six Diversity

Fellowships per year. The Forum’s Governing Committee voted to approve this change on the Wednesday

of the Annual meeting. I found it particularly meaningful to announce the restoration of the Scholarships

and Fellowships at the very same Annual Business meeting where we voted in as our Chair-Elect a

product of the Fellowship program, Tracy James. Beyond Tracy, these programs routinely produce an

outsized portion of the Forum leadership. These initiatives bring people into the Forum and show them a

path to meaningful involvement. From there, it is the power of the Forum that keeps them engaged.

Investing in the future of the Forum with programs of this sort is imperative for the ongoing success of

the organization—and I use the term “investing” with purpose. When I asked for a show of hands at the

Annual Business meeting of people who were or had been Scholars or Fellows, the response was striking.

After Fellows are set on the path, they often return for years to come.

Once people get a taste of what the Forum has to offer, many stay for a career—I count myself among

COMMENTS FROM THE CHAIR