In the news Association Exhibits at the Arkansas Curriculum Conference
Lawyers for Literacy Committee Presents Awards
l to r: Regan Gruber Moffitt, Amanda Gibson, Peggy Bateman, Carolyn Wood, Sherri Latimer and Jessie Burchfield.
Why the American Legal System Matters To You
Although the American legal system might seem complex and intimidating, it really has a lot in common with the game of football! Both have a set of rules, and require someone to interpret their meaning and decide whether they’ve been broken. Judges, like referees, endeavor to treat everyone alike, and have no interest in the outcome as long as it is fair. In a court case, like any football game, there’s a winner and a loser, but our Constitution ensures that no matter what, justice will prevail. In this short video and instructor’s guide, Arkansas’s finest judges, public officials, and lawyers celebrate our country’s most noble aspiration – a truly level playing field.
Virtually everybody in the world is fighting, scratching, clawing and swimming, doing everything in the world they can to get here, because no nation in the world is fairer or has such a rule of law that works.” U.S. Senator Dale Bumpers
“Strong or weak, rich or poor, black, brown, white, red, male, female, you have an entitlement to the same treatment under the law.” Dean Cynthia Nance, University of Arkansas
SPECIAL FEATURES
“Every generation has an obligation to pass on to the next generation the principles that this country was founded on.” Governor Mike Beebe
INSTRUCTOR’S GUIDE COVERING THE SUBJECT MATTERS: • Rule of Law • Equal Justice • Jury System • Fair, Impartial and Independent Judiciary
A PRODUCTION OF THE ARKANSAS BAR ASSOCIATION “A LEVEL PLAYING FIELD: WHY THE AMERICAN LEGAL SYSTEM MATTERS TO YOU” MUSIC DIRECTED PRODUCED BY ADRIAN TILLMAN BY RON BLOME BY NICK ROGERS SCREENPLAY DIRECTOR OF BY NICK ROGERS PHOTOGRAPHY GARY JONES & LEONARD CHAMBLEE TRT: 20 MIN
Arkansas Bar Association
Law Related Education Committee
www.arkbar.com
Why the American Legal System Matters To You
The Lawyers for Literacy Committee continued their tradition of selecting the Student and Tutor of the Year for the Arkansas Literacy Council. The winners this year were Student of the Year, Peggy Bateman, and Tutor of the Year, Carolyn Wood. Members of the Committee presented the awards in conjunction with the Arkansas Literacy Council’s annual conference held at the Embassy Suites in Little Rock on October 21, 2010. Committee members Regan Gruber Moffitt (chair), Sammy High, and Sherri Latimer led a session at the conference showing how the Young Lawyers Section’s 18 and Life to Go handbook can be used to promote adult literacy as well as provide education on Arkansas law.
Get Involved
Members from the Law Related Education Committee, Mock Trial Committee and Young Lawyers Section hosted an exhibit booth at the Arkansas Curriculum Conference held at the Statehouse Convention Center in Little Rock November 4-5, 2010. Committee members Mark Hodge, Chad Cumming, Laura Elkins, Grant Cox, Cheryl Reinhart and Anne Orsi took turns talking to educators from across the state about Association programs available for Law Related Education Committee Chair Mark Hodge visits with educators the classroom. The members promoted at the Association’s exhibit booth. three Association programs designed for teachers and students, including the DVD/ classroom curriculum materials “A Level Playing Field;” the YLS publication “18 and Life to Go: A Legal Handbook for Young Arkansans;” and the Mock Trial Competition.
WHY THE AMERICAN LEGAL SYSTEM MATTERS TO YOU DVD and Instructor’s Guide
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Contact the Arkansas Bar Association at (501) 375-4606 or go to www.arkbar.com for more information on getting involved.
Mock Trial
and Life to Go:
A Legal Handbook for Young Arkansans
Prepared by Arkansas Bar Association Young Lawyers Section
First Edition
Make plans to present “A Level Playing Field: Why the American Legal System Matters to You” at your local school. Please contact the Association at (501) 375-4606 for materials and more information. A short excerpt from the DVD can be seen on YouTube at the following site: http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=tDvzw4QfI_g “18 and Life to Go: A Legal Handbook for Young Arkansans” provides young people with invaluable legal advice on important topics such as the management of credit and the various ways of settling disputes. It covers both civil and criminal legal issues. Download http://www.arkbar.com/userfiles/file/pdf/A_Legal_Handbook_for_Young_Arkansans.pdf and brainstorm for new topics.
Become involved in the Mock Trial Competition. Mock Trial is a program designed to teach high school students about the practice of law through participation in a simulated trial. The program provides students with a unique opportunity to learn the law and the legal system from practicing attorneys. Attorney coaches work with students for several months to prepare them for competitions that take place in a courthouse in front of a sitting judge. Volunteer attorneys are also needed to judge regional competitions in February and the state competition in March. 3