Excitement for the future.

• Author: Parker, Bruce R.
• Position: President's page

These comments are being drafted shortly after the conclusion of a very successful Midyear Meeting at Pebble Beach. It has been approximately seven months since I began my term as President. This is a good time and opportunity to provide you with a report of our progress during that time.

In my opening comments last July and in my first President's Page, I spoke about passion as a key element of professionalism and the importance of embracing a spirit of innovation in order for us to move forward. I am pleased to report that in virtually all aspects of our organizational activities, I see volunteers and staff willing to innovate and doing so energetically.

This was most recently evidenced at the Pebble Beach Midyear Meeting in February. In every aspect, this meeting was a success. We sold out our room block and significantly exceeded our member registration target. Skills workshops had their debut in our CLE programming and were enthusiastically received by the members. It is clear from your comments that they fulfilled their promise of enhancing the educational experience of the Midyear Meeting. Another "first" at the Midyear Meeting was a seminar devoted to diversity issues. It drew almost a full capacity audience. The tours and social events were well attended and enjoyed by the members. Most satisfying, however, for me was the fact that during the Midyear Meeting I was able to introduce our new Executive Director, Jay Donohue, to the membership. Jay's first day on the job was Monday, March 5, 2007.

Our dues renewal period closed with slightly more than 95% retention of our members. The high level of our retention is a testament to the value that our members see in the IADC. I fully expect that we will end this year with membership exceeding 2,500 which is an historic level for this association.

When I began my term, I asked a few committee chairs to innovate their committees by adding new practice groups. These groups include Healthcare Law, Nursing Home Litigation, Transportation, IP Litigation, and White Collar Crime. All of the new practice areas are showing positive signs of growth and interest among our members.

In January, we conducted a second Satellite Trial Academy in Birmingham. This program exceeded our target for registrations. The feedback from the students reaffirmed the value of this program. A second Satellite Trial Academy is scheduled to take place in New Orleans this summer. We also conducted, via the Internet, an...