Substantive law committees spell IADC success.

• Author: Cleveland, III, William C.
• Position: International Association of Defense Counsel - President's Page

The International Association of Defense Counsel owes its success to the hard work of many people, but none more so than to the outstanding work and efforts of its substantive law committee chairs and vice chairs.

Substantive committees are the heart

IADC is the oldest and most prestigious international association of attorneys representing corporations and insurers. As the heart of the IADC, its 21 substantive law committees provide their members with the latest developments in their respective areas of the law, particularly those relating to complex and sophisticated litigation. This occurs in a variety of ways.

* It occurs through the monthly newsletters that provide timely reports on the latest cases, as well as trends occurring in specific areas of the law.

* It occurs through the internal and membership-wide CLE programs offered at IADC meetings.

* It occurs through articles written for Defense Counsel Journal.

* It occurs through the special projects undertaken from time to time by the committees when special opportunities or needs arise.

* Perhaps most important, it occurs through conferring with and developing relationships with the leading defense counsel who practice in a particular area from around the United States and abroad.

Members find a way to grow

The IADC is in an enviable position because our membership is limited by invitation to those attorneys who have achieved the highest standing in their profession. Having already attained a high level of recognition within their community and among their clients, IADC members often find that involvement within the Association is a vehicle for greater professional and personal growth not derived from the day to day practice of law.

Notwithstanding the time demands of their practices, many of our members find that sharing the insights gained from their experience, through writing, teaching or simply helping others better analyze a complex issue, to be enormously rewarding.

Our members are so good at what they do and have so much to offer their fellow practitioners that the IADC provides an appreciative, but learned, forum within which to showcase one's expertise and give expression to the desire to assist others in a professionally meaningful way. It is also a fact that many firms will support IADC involvement but expect their leading lawyers to participate actively and to attain positions of leadership and visibility. Fortunately, with the breadth and depth of the IADC's...