The New Normal

• Author: Candace B. Peebles
• Pages: 3-3

SPRING 2022 3

from the chair

By Candace B. Peeples

e New Normal

CANDACE B. (CANDI) PEEPLES (candi@peepleslaw.com) is

Chair of the ABA Family Law Se ction and partner with and owner

of Peeples Law, a boutiq ue-styled practice focus ed in family law in

Birmingham, Alabama.

We have had an exciting few month s

continuing to reenergize the Family L aw

Section as we em erge from the challeng-

es in navigating our countr y’s COVID-19

pandemic. While ne w variants will likely

be part of our lives , we are all nding ways to continue our

work both perso nally and within the Section. The Sec tion

and its Ofce rs, Council Members, and o ther leaders have

worked tirelessly to adap t and be as nimble as we have ever

been to continue to be the p reeminent voice of family law in

the country. As I write th is column it’s somewhat hard to

believe that it won’t be th at much longer before my term as

Chair of the section w ill be complete. My goals for the year

were lofty and n umerous. But more than anything , it became

clear to me that my bigges t hope was to continue to nd

ways to bring member s of our section back together in old

and new ways to advance the g oals of our membership.

With this issue de dicated to the issue of Evidence, it could

not be more appropri ate that we remind each of you about

our upcoming 24th Annual Family L aw Trial Advocacy

Institute, which will re sume this summer July 22–30, 2022 . We

could not be more thrilled to b e having the institute “live

and in-pers on” this year at the University of Missou ri – Kan-

sas City Law Sc hool. I would be completely remiss not to

acknowledge the e ndless time and energy spent by Ani ta

Ventrelli and Steve Peskind to ens ure the continued success

of this amazing program for you , our members. I’m sure

many of you are familiar with the Ins titute, but for those of

you who are not, the ABA Family L aw Trial Advocacy Ins titute

is the preeminent famil y law trial skills course in the nation.

The course is taug ht by a diverse faculty, including some of

the most distingu ished lawyers, judges , academics, psycholo -

gists, and bu siness valuation experts in th e country. The

format of the program inclu des attention to every part o f

trial practice, includ ing opening statements, dire ct and

cross-exami nation, and closing arguments. Th e faculty

lectures on the se topics and demonstrates be st practices

before participa nts practice them.

Working from a ctional fa mily law fact pattern consist-

ing of issues commo nly seen in real family law cases (e.g.,

custody, maintenance , business valuation issues), stud ents

perform prac tice exercises in classrooms unde r the guidance

of rotating faculty m embers. The classroom facult y informal-

ly critique the stude nts’ performances and provid e tips and

suggestions to he lp the students improve. The exercis es are

recorded, and, a s an added benet, student s then receive

one-on- one coaching immediately afte r the performance by

another faculty m ember. The week culminates in an actual

trial, where studen ts can put together all they have learne d

throughout the week . For more information on this year’s

institute, or to make plans to a ttend in future years, please

visit our Sectio n website.

Without a doubt , as a law student and even a young

lawyer, my love for trial work and it s complexities is what

initially inspired me to want to b ecome a family lawyer. The

work and skills we utilize in prepa ring our cases for the

potential outcome of a con tested trial is something that we

can continue to elevate within o ur practices.

Again, I hope each of you will ta ke some time to think

about how you can utilize all of our pro grams and benets to

get more value out of your S ection membership. I can

promise you that you will not re gret it. Do not hesitate to

reach out to me pers onally at candi@peepleslaw.com, and I

will be happy to help guide you an d get you involved in

wherever your passi on leads you. fa

Published in Family Advocate, Volume 44, Number 4, Spring 2022. © 2022 by the American Bar Association. Reproduced with permission. All rights reserved. This information or any portion thereof

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