Join an Austin Bar Committee Today!

The Austin Bar Association’s 14 committees give member attorneys a chance to get involved with the legal and local community. Whether your passion is equity and inclusion, working with law students, planning CLE offerings, or offering free legal advice to veterans, the Austin Bar has the perfect committee for you!

Sign up for one or more of the committees listed below at austinbar.org. Look for the committee page under the “For Attorneys” tab on the homepage of the website. Or, contact Membership Director Carol Tobias at carol@austinbar.org.

Chair: Denise Hyde. Coordinates the annual Adoption Day event traditionally held on the first Thursday of November. Due to COVID-19, details of this year’s Adoption Day are still TBD.

Chairs: Rob Frazer, Megan Johnson, Amy Meredith, Maitreya Tomlinson, Judge Kim Williams, and Justice Gisela Triana. Organizes and implements the annual conference for Travis County lawyers and judges. Committee members create the full-day conference program, including developing a theme, identifying topics, and recruiting speakers.

Chairs: Joshua Crowley and Sinead O’Carroll. Develops and organizes CLE opportunities to bring the best and most up-todate topics and speakers to the membership, including the Members Only 4th Friday Free CLE.

Chairs: Jennifer Hopgood and Rachael Jones. Creates and implements policies and procedures for Austin Lawyer, Bar Code, the website, and the use of social media. Also helps identify topics and recruit writers for articles, and serves as an advisory committee to the Austin Bar communications staff.

Chairs: Tony Nelson and Leslie Dippel. Judicial liaisons: Judge Lora Livingston and Judge Eric Shepperd. Manages the Diversity Fellowship Program, which offers summer internships to minority law school students. Participants intern for the Travis County District Judges and for private law firms.

Leadership team: Judge Maya Guerra Gamble, Judge George C. Thomas, former Justice Craig Enoch, Mindy Gulati, Craig Moore, Ayeola Williams, Drew Williams, and Cathy Garza. Assists with an Austin Bar Equity Summit, book clubs focused on books and discussions designed to increase understanding and lead to inner and external change, networking focused on bridging social capital, compiling resources for people seeking guidance, and identifying Austin Lawyer authors and topics highlighting Austin’s diversity and history.

Chair: Stephen Moss. Mediates and/or arbitrates fee disputes submitted by clients, attorneys, the courts, and the District 9 Grievance Committee.

Chair: Ashley Presson. Performs duties to preserve Hilgers House, applies for preservation grants, researches the history of the house, and provides tours to the general public. Also serves as a resource for the Judges Hill neighborhood.

Chairs: Danielle Ahlrich and Diana Reinhart. Aims to educate, support, and connect our legal community to achieve more balanced, mindful, and joyful lives and practices.

Chair: Rev. Joseph C. Parker, Jr. Recruits and conducts oral history interviews of Austin attorneys and judges in order to preserve the history of the Austin Bar, the Austin legal community, and/ or significant legal events in the Austin area. Plans and executes other relevant history projects as decided by the committee.

Chairs: Amanda Arriaga, Mary Ellen King, and Elliott Beck. Plans and produces the Austin Bar’s biggest event, an annual gala to raise money for the Austin Bar Foundation and all of its charitable entities such as Adoption Day, the Self Represented Litigant Project, and the Free Legal Advice Clinic for Veterans.

Chairs: David Courreges and Jennifer Hopgood. Plans and implements various educational programs aimed at school-aged children. Also partners with Bookspring to provide books for children at the Travis County Courthouse.

Chairs: Caitlin Haney Johnston, Bill Christian, and Megan Honey Johnson. Coordinates and plans Austin Bar pro bono programs and develops relationships with pro bono organizations in Austin such as Volunteer Legal Services, American Gateways, and the Texas Civil Rights Project.

Chairs: Leslie Boykin, Austin Bar and Hailey Suggs, AYLA. Due to the cancellation of the July 2020 bar exam, the Supreme Court of Texas adopted new rules governing the supervised practice of law by qualified law students and unlicensed law school graduates. The Austin Bar and AYLA are working together to create a program for those students and graduates who want to begin work before the September 2020 AUSTINLAWYER and February 2021 bar exams. AL