Richard Hayes: 25 years at the helm.

• Author: Dunne, Kevin J.
• Position: Executive Director of the International Association of Defense Counsel - President's Page

IN THE fall of 1969, a 36-year-old staff director at the American Bar Association was interviewed by Immediate Past President Gordon Close, President W. Ford Reese and President-elect Sam Powers for the position of Executive Director of what then was the International Association of Insurance Counsel.

The young lawyer presented impressive credentials--an A.B. from Colorado College in 1955, a J.D. from Georgetown in 1961, where was law review, and several years of practice with famed Chicago trial lawyer Barnabas Sears. At the ABA, he had worked in developing continuing legal education programs that were national in scope.

Messrs. Close, Reese and Powers chose wisely. It probably wasn't even a close call. On January 1, 1970, Richard J. Hayes became Executive Director of IAIC and opened association offices in Chicago at the Hinshaw & Culbertson law firm.

Continuing legal education is given life

Dick's first annual meeting was at The Greenbrier in the summer of 1970, with Chief Justice Burger as the main speaker. Dick recalls, "In those years, continuing legal education programs were frankly few in number. Generally, speakers did not submit papers, and practice materials were almost non-existent. There were generally only two CLE programs presented at meetings. They often were hastily put together, and staff resource to support them was not adequate."

With his background at the ABA and a talent for organization and detail, Dick organized, cajoled and inspired the creation of a CLE curriculum for our association, which now is the envy of America. Today, 38 U.S. states mandate that their lawyers partake of stated numbers of CLE hours, and IADC offers approximately 15 hours of accredited CLE at each meeting, along with additional internal committee programs, some of which also are accredited by the mandatory states. The speakers, presentations and written materials are outstanding.

Membership and breadth of service

The upgrading of CLE is but one of a number of changes and improvements that have occurred during Dick's tenure as Executive Director. When he began his service, membership was about 1,900. In the mid 1980s, when Bill Wallace was President, a decision was made to change "Insurance" to "Defense" in the name of the organization to reflect its broader constituency and to increase membership by about 500. Membership stands at 2,535 today.

In 1970, the word "International" covered several Canadian members. Today, IADC boasts members from 16...