Sacramento Lawyer Magazine Vol. 3-2023

Lawyer SACRAMENTO

SACRAMENTO COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION MAGAZINE

Justin Ward

2023 SCBA Nancy Sheehan Distinguished Attorney of the Year www.sacbar.org

Photo by Eleakis Photography: www.eleakis.com

Vol. 3-2023

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INDEX SACRAMENTO COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION MAGAZINE

Vol. 3-2023

Lawyer SACRAMENTO

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE 6

Anticipation

COVER STORY 8

Justin Ward 2023 SCBA Nancy Sheehan Distinguished Attorney of the Year

FEATURE ARTICLE

14 California Adopts Rules of Professional Conduct 8.3, Now What?

18 Nathaniel Colley’s Legacy: Bringing the Civil Rights Movement’s Legal Arm to Sacramento 28 New Labor & Employment Laws for California Employers in 2024 EDITORIAL Photo by Eleakis Photography: www.elekis.com

22 Why Ethics Matter for All of Us

FOUNDATION

24 Sacramento County Bar Foundation: The Charitable Arm of the Sacramento County Bar Association

SECTION, DIVISION & AFFILIATE NEWS 12 Today’s Legal Professional

20 An Evening to Remember: The Barristers’ Club of Sacramento’s 28th Annual Summer Associates Reception 34 SABA of Sacramento Hosts Its Sixteenth Annual Diversity Law Student Reception AROUND THE BAR

26 The Role of Legal Document Assistants in California’s Legal Landscape

THE SCBA STAFF Adobe Stock ©

32 Meet the SCBA Staff

SCBA FORMS

38 2024 SCBA Membership Application

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Ellen Arabian-Lee Arabian-Lee Law Corporation EDITOR EMERITA Heather Hoganson Editor@sacbar.org

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PRODUCTION DESIGN Milenko Vlaisavljevic milenko@sacbar.org

ADVERTISING SALES, MEMBERSHIP, EVENTS, MEMBER CLASSIFIED ADS Barbara Souza 916-564-3780 bsouza@sacbar.org

SACRAMENTO LAWYER | Vol. 3-2023 | www.sacbar.org

SCBA OFFICERS - 2023 Andi Liebenbaum - President Connor Olson - Vice President Corey Day - Secretary Angelina Ray - Treasurer FEE ARBITRATION Larry Doyle (916) 604-9726 feearb@sacbar.org

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32 Sacramento Lawyer welcomes letters and article suggestions from readers.

Please e-mail them to editor@sacbar.org. The Sacramento County Bar Association reserves the right to edit articles and letters submitted for publication. Please contact the SCBA at 916-564-3780 for deadline information. Web page: www.sacbar.org. Caveat: Articles and other work submitted to Sacramento Lawyer become the copyrighted property of the Sacramento County Bar Association. Returns of tangible items such as photographs are by permission of the Editors, by pickup at the SCBA office only.

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34 Sacramento Lawyer (USPS 0981-300) is published by the Sacramento County Bar Association, 8928 Volunteer Lane, Suite 250, Sacramento, CA 95826.

Issn 1087-8771. Periodicals postage paid at Sacramento, California. Postmaster: Send address changes to Sacramento Lawyer, 8928 Volunteer Lane, Suite 250, Sacramento, CA 95826. Copyright 2023 by the Sacramento County Bar Association.

www.sacbar.org | Vol. 3-2023 | SACRAMENTO LAWYER

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PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

ANTICIPATION

By Andi Liebenbaum (she/ella)

Andi Liebenbaum, 2023 President, Sacramento County Bar Association

A

s I write my final President’s Message for this magazine, I am excited about the future of the Sacramento County Bar Association. While I suppose “anticipation” is the logical domain of the incoming leaders and not so much of the outgoing board chair, I find myself extremely proud of what we have done, which gives me solid reason to anticipate an amazing next phase for our association.

A look back: Shortly after I joined the executive committee in 2020, the COVID pandemic upended life as we know it. For SCBA, this required the executive committee to take on full-time direction of the organization – a four-headed Hydra serving as executive director. I dove deeply into addressing our finances, managing the budget, and aggressively learning and directing our bookkeeping. For the next four years, including this year, I worked closely with staff and experts to ensure that SCBA was financially solid, and appropriately staffed given what we knew and needed. Today, I can say with confidence that I am leaving SCBA better than I found it.

Certainly, I didn’t accomplish this alone. Past SCBA presidents

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Shanāe Buffington, Bryan Hawkins, Sean McCoy, and B.J. Susich gave time, energy, and support as we climbed back from a dark and difficult place. Numerous SCBA board members – past and present – have been incredibly helpful and generous with their ideas and dedication (I’m thinking of Sarah Dudley, Vicki Jacobs, Betsy Kimball, Jennifer Mouzis, Justin Ward, and others too numerous to name). And the current executive committee with whom I serve – Connor Olson, Angelina Ray, and Corey Day – has been a bright, consistent light as we planned with optimism and resilience.

A look ahead: First, thank goodness for our excellent staff. If you haven’t met them, please reach out to meet Larry Doyle, Theresa Lopez, and Barb Souza. Also, many of you will remember Milenko Vlaisavljevic – even though he relocated to Bosnia-Herzegovina in 2022, he is still an integral part of the SCBA team. Next, I made good on my promise to you that we would hire a qualified executive director before the year is over now that our financial house is in order. SCBA’s new executive director Terri Shettle has decades of experience that includes both leading a membership organization and running businesses. This combina-

SACRAMENTO LAWYER | Vol. 3-2023 | www.sacbar.org

tion will absolutely position SCBA for a new era of growth and professionalism. Finally, Connor and Angelina, both first connecting with SCBA through section leadership, have a solid vision for the next year for SCBA. They are committed to ensuring the spotlight focuses on the nearly two dozen SCBA sections and divisions. I anticipate, as well, that they will ensure and nurture SCBA’s partnerships with the fabulous and diverse affiliate bar associations in Sacramento.

So, I conclude with anticipation… that SCBA will grow and thrive. That you will maintain your energy and commitment to a strong and vibrant local bar association. That SCBA will remain the critical junction for Sacramento’s legal community. That we have incredible untapped talent and amazing opportunities to look forward to. I also anticipate that I’ll stick around, because I want to see all of this and more.

Thank you for sticking with us, for proving me right that the best and brightest attorneys are members of their local bar association, and for ensuring a future for SCBA worth anticipating.

www.sacbar.org | Vol. 3-2023 | SACRAMENTO LAWYER

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COVER STORY

Photo by Eleakis Photography: www.eleakis.com

JUSTIN WARD

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2023 SCBA Nancy Sheehan Distinguished Attorney of the Year

By Ryan Harrison, Sr. Ryan Harrison Sr. is an employment attorney with Fisher Phillips,LLP. He is also immediate Past President of the Wiley Manual Bar Association.

J

ustin Ward is a stalwart presence in the Sacramento legal community. Many of us know him as a great attorney with a good sense of humor, committed leader, and, without fail, the most welldressed person in the room. Justin is a constant source of positive and welcoming energy. When we arrive at an event sponsored by SCBA or an affiliate bar association and see him there, we know we are in the right place. Usually, The Ward Firm is a sponsor for the event. Justin has invested heavily in the Sacramento community throughout his 16 years as an attorney here. Many of us, and our organizations, are better for it.

SACRAMENTO LAWYER | Vol. 3-2023 | www.sacbar.org

We owe him a debt of gratitude for his reliable presence, his service, and his leadership. This is why he is the 2023 Sacramento County Bar Association’s Distinguished Attorney of the Year.

Ironically, the most critical moment in Justin’s legal career came when he was considering leaving Sacramento for Los Angeles. In 2007, after he completed a stint at the Sacramento District Attorney’s office, he was preparing to move back to Los Angeles.

However, his good friend, now Judge Carlton Davis, prevailed upon him to stay and open his own practice here, in Sacramento. Thankfully, Justin took counsel as well as he gives it. Now, he appreciates that he made the right decision; with his personality, legal ability, and business sense, his practice has been incredibly successful.

Justin grew up in Fremont as the oldest of three children. He excelled academically in grade school and took up football, baseball, and track and field as a

Justin as a baby.

youth. But Justin, a big fan of WWF (now WWE), took particular interest in competitive wrestling. In his senior year in high school, Justin placed high in his league, and he enjoyed some success in the sectional tournament.

Justin knew he wanted to become a lawyer in the seventh grade. Although he had learned about Thurgood Marshall’s accomplishments among other great civil rights attorneys, it was actor Blair Underwood, who played a lawyer on the television show LA Law, who made Justin want to take up the mantle of justice. Underwood’s magnanimous presence on LA Law was a constant subject of conversation in the household between Justin’s mother and her friends. Justin resolved to become his own iteration of Underwood's character; and he has thoroughly accomplished this goal . . . dare I say, he has exceeded this goal.

Justin attended UC Irvine majoring in Political Science, and then he received his legal education at University of Southern California Gould School of Law. Having obtained a world class education, Justin is well-positioned to represent his current clientele: individuals who were wrongfully terminated, personal injury victims, people who

have had their civil rights violated, and criminal defendants in need of fair and impartial justice. Justin prides himself on the fact that he is willing to accept (and win) challenging cases, the type that other attorneys often shy away from. Most of Justin’s clients come from underrepresented communities.

Justin is a skillful trial attorney.

To date, Justin has handled approximately 35 criminal jury trials and 12 civil jury trials to verdict. He works tirelessly to obtain justice for his clients.

Outside of the courtroom, Justin continues to serve our region and the Sacramento legal community as the current President of the Capitol City Trial Lawyers Association (CCTLA). In this role, he has helped to create CCTLA’s law school outreach and scholarship programs. In the outreach program, CCTLA members provide law students with insight about CCTLA and being consumer attorneys. He also helped establish a CCTLA scholarship for each of the three local law schools.

In 2021, Justin was President of

"Justin works tirelessly to obtain justice for his clients." the Wiley Manuel Bar Association (WMBA) after serving as vice-president for three consecutive years.

During his presidency, Justin helped navigate WMBA through the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic. He put on multiple virtual programs including two Bar exam preparation courses and he held a virtual Legal Fusion Gala featuring the nationally renowned USC Law Professor Jody Armour as the keynote speaker. Justin continues to sponsor multiple WMBA functions including Legal Fusion and mixers with law students.

Justin is also the Greater Sacramento NAACP Legal Redress

Justin's sister on the right and Justin (about 3 years old) on the left keeping their little brother in line.

www.sacbar.org | Vol. 3-2023 | SACRAMENTO LAWYER

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Senior year wrestling team captain. And yes, those are individual "Kris Kross" braids.

Justin, ready for a Halloween party during law school in 1999.

Chair. As Chair, he helps coordinate the NAACP’s assistance to those unrepresented by legal counsel who have experienced racial bias, discrimination and/or retaliation in the public or private sector. He also helps coordinate the NAACP’s free monthly community legal redress clinics.

Justin also sits on the Board of Directors for the Sacramento County Bar Association. As an SCBA board member, Justin regularly participates in the debates and discussions in the meetings.

Helping underserved and atrisk youth is Justin’s main passion, which is why he currently sits on the board of directors of the Center for Fathers and Families (CFF).

CFF is a non-profit agency with a strong history of responding to the needs of fathers and their families by offering programs and services that lead to family growth, enrichment, and empowerment. CFF also

"Helping underserved and at-risk youth is Justin’s main passion."

Justin and his dad at his wedding in 2003.

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facilitates afterschool programs at

over twenty schools in the Sacramento region.

Justin is a senior fellow of the

Nehemiah Emerging Leaders Pro-

gram (NELP), Class Six. NELP is a

leadership development program designed to facilitate and prepare diverse leaders committed to benefiting the Sacramento Region.

Sacramento is a better place be-

cause Justin decided to stay. As 2023 ends, we should all take pride

in honoring Justin for his commit-

ment to our region, the law, and the legal profession.

105 Celebrating

Years

Annual Meeting 2023

Honoring Justin Ward as SCBA Nancy Sheehan Distinguished Attorney of the Year for 2023

Thank You to Our Sponsors:

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MARQUEE

GAVRILOV & BROOKS ATTORNEYS AT LAW

PLATINUM

GOLD SCBA Alternative Dispute Resolution Section

Tina Thomas SILVER

BRONZE

Andi Liebenbaum

Dina Cataldo International SCBA Public Law Section

www.sacbar.org | Vol. 3-2023 | SACRAMENTO LAWYER

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AFFILIATE NEWS

Today’s Legal Professional

By Lynne Prescott

Lynne Prescott, CCLS is the current President of the Sacramento Legal Secretaries Association, and the immediate Past President of Legal Professionals, Incorporated. She has been a legal professional for over 40 years, focusing primarily on civil litigation, legislative and administrative law, and labor and employment law. Lynne is employed with the law offices of Messing Adam & Jasmine, LLP in Sacramento. She also teaches beginner, intermediate, and advanced training courses for legal support personnel, and is a writer and motivational speaker. She can be reached at President@SLSA.org.

I

t’s a much different world from when Sacramento Legal Secretaries Association (SLSA) was formed in 1940, when everyone was a stenographer or legal secretary. Today, we are legal secretaries, legal administrative assistants, legal assistants, practice assistants, case specialists, legal support executives, and so forth – all legal professionals.

The evolution of the legal secretary to legal professional runs parallel to the evolution from the legal industry itself and arises out of the necessity to meet the ever-changing demands of the profession.

Gone are the days of sitting in front of an attorney’s desk and taking dictation, answering the phone, greeting clients, and hand-delivering documents to the court (created on a manual upright typewriter, no less, with real carbon copies). Client accounts were kept on 12-column ledgers, and attorney billing was done by hand and given to the secretary to generate bills that were typed up and mailed to the clients.

Today’s legal professional is, in truth, essentially a specialist in their field. Generating legal correspondence, preparing pleadings and discovery, conducting legal research, docketing, managing cases, billing, and filing of documents with the court are all conducted electronically, using numerous software platforms specifically tailored to legal industry needs. Cli-

ents send forms and documents via email, as well as pay their retainers and bills electronically. The same is true as to the service of documents on other law offices – all primarily done electronically. Court and statutory changes that affect legal procedure, and changes in local rules at both the state and federal courts, also require constant monitoring.

Maintaining confidentiality and preserving attorney-client privilege are responsibilities we take as extensions of the attorney’s responsibilities under the Rules of Professional Conduct. Additionally, knowing how procedural guidelines are applied is paramount to the duty and standard of care we give to every case and apply to our workload. And a thorough understanding of statutory and court deadlines is essential to protecting a client’s rights and their ability to pursue a case.

The following is an example of how one SLSA member’s legal training and experience resulted in a win for her office and their client: The member’s office received a Petition to Vacate Arbitrator’s Award and supporting documents in the mail. Knowing that a petition is like a complaint and must be personally served since it is the initiating document in the case, she checked the case file to see if there was any indication from the client that they had been personally served with the Petition. She

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also examined the proof of service attached to the Petition to confirm that it was indeed only served via U.S. Mail. Additionally, she was almost certain that the deadline for filing and serving the Petition to Vacate had already passed.

After confirming that the petitioners had not only missed the date to file and serve, but had also never actually served the respondents, she brought the matter to the attention of her attorneys. Petitioners, upon discovering their error (almost two weeks later), personally served the Petition on the respondents. However, the service was still outside the statutory deadline.

Thanks to the legal professional who discovered the error and brought it to the attention of her legal team, in the ruling from the court on this matter, the Judge denied the Petition to Vacate Arbitrator’s Award based on petitioners’ failure to properly and timely serve the Petition.

It is not enough to be schooled in administrative/office procedures.

If anyone with general administrative skills could walk in off the street and do this job, they would.

But the fact is, they can’t. As evidenced above, possession of highly specialized knowledge, experience in the proper handling of legal documents and client files, attention to statutory deadlines, continuous education, honing of skills, as well CONTINUED ON PAGE 37

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www.gavrilovlaw.com 2315 Capitol Avenue • Sacramento, CA 95816 • 916-504-0529www.sacbar.org | Vol. 3-2023 | SACRAMENTO LAWYER 13

CONTINUED ON PAGE 28

FEATURE ARTICLE

California Adopts Rules of Professional Conduct 8.3, Now What?

By William A. Muñoz

Adobe Stock ©

William A. Muñoz is the owner of Muñoz Dispute Resolution and partner with the law firm of Freeman, Mathis & Gary, LLP. Mr. Muñoz is a Certified Specialist in Legal Malpractice Law by the California State Bar Board of Legal Specialization and is a current member of the State Bar’s Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct.

Introduction After two prior failed attempts to adopt a Rule of Professional Conduct similar to that of Model Rule 8.3, the California Supreme Court adopted California’s version of Rule 8.3 effective August 1, 2023. Commonly referred to as the “Snitch Rule,” Rule 8.3 imposes a duty upon California lawyers to report criminal conduct and egregious misconduct by their fellow bar members that goes to their fitness to practice law. While California is generally considered in the forefront of legal issues and development of common law, California is the last State to adopt a version of Rule 8.3. So why now?

The simple answer is the Thomas Girardi situation and the State Bar’s handling of the numerous complaints made against Girardi over the years. Girardi has been indicted in California and Illinois for embezzling over $15 million dollars from clients and/or their families in California and more than $3 million in settlement funds

from widows and orphans of family members killed in an airplane crash in a lawsuit against the airplane manufacturer Boeing. (See Hamilton, Matt & Ryan, Harriet, Tom Girardi, Disgraced L.A. Lawyer and “Real Housewives” Spouse Indicted on Fraud Charges, L.A. Times (Feb. 1, 2023) at url address https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-02-01/tom-girardi-indictment-la-lawyer.)

Following the Girardi indictment, the State Bar issued an investigative report noting hundreds of complaint against Girardi that were either closed for lack of evidence or never investigated largely as a result of inappropriate relationships that Girardi developed with State Bar staff over the years influencing the decisionmakers at the State Bar to look the other way.

(March 10, 2023 State Bar Press Release, https://www.calbar.ca.gov/ About-Us/News/News-Releases/State-Bar-of-California-Releases-Reports-Detailing-Past-Unethical-Conduct-in-Handling-Girar-

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di-Complaints.)

Not only did California lawyers get a version of Rule 8.3, but the State Bar revised the Rules of Professional Conduct 1.4 and 1.15 regarding client communications and disbursement of settlement funds or property of clients. Additionally, the State Bar implemented that Client Trust Account Protection Program (CTAPP) requiring lawyers with client trust accounts to register their trust accounts annually and to certify that they understand the requirements and prohibitions regarding the safekeeping of client funds and property. (https://www. calbar.ca.gov/Attorneys/Conduct-Discipline/Client-Trust-Accounting-IOLTA/Client-Trust-Account-Protection-Program.)

Concerns with Rule 8.3 When the State Bar attempted to adopt a version of Rule 8.3 in 2010 and again in 2016, the public comments were very similar to the public comments received in the drafting phase of the current Rule 8.3.

The concerns generally centered on two main topics: (1) Rule 8.3 will be inappropriately used as a litigation tool by lawyers; and (2) it is the job of the State Bar, not lawyers, to report and investigate other lawyers.

Historically, the vast majority of complaints about lawyers to the State Bar came from former and current clients of the lawyers with only about 3-4% of the complaints coming from other lawyers.

Nationwide, the states that track lawyer-filed complaints report that complaints from other lawyers make up between 3-9% of all complaints. While that may be the case in other jurisdictions, this is California.

It remains to be seen whether lawyer-filed complaints will increase as a result of Rule 8.3. The State Bar has modified the complaint form to allow the complaining party to check a box whether the complaint is being made pursuant to Rule 8.3 as a means to track this issue.

Moreover, while making a State Bar complaint is confidential and the complainant is generally immune from civil liability for making a complaint, the complainants are not immune from liability if the complaint is false or malicious. (See Cal. Rule Prof. Cond., rule 3.3(e); Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 6043.5(a), 6068(d).)

Regarding the policing comments it is understandable that lawyers may be uneasy about reporting other lawyer’s misconduct, but the Office of Trial Counsel is not equipped to monitor lawyer conduct without the help of the public.

Who would be the best eyes and ears on the ground to report lawyer misconduct other than clients, opposing counsel, and judges in litigated matters? Oddly enough, of these three, only the lawyer has the obligation to report. A judge’s obligation is discretionary. (Code of Jud. Ethics, canon 3(D)(2).) And,

there is no obligation imposed on a client to report.

The saving grace is that a lawyer has the duty to report, they are under no duty to investigate. (See e.g., Ky. Ethics Op.E-430 (2010) [“While lawyers cannot turn a blind eye to obviously questionable conduct, as a general rule they do not have a duty to investigate.”]) In other words, the lawyer’s obligation is only triggered if the lawyer has credible evidence that another lawyer’s conduct fits the criteria in the Rule 8.3, subdivision (a) for mandatory reporting. There is no obligation imposed to investigate whether another lawyer has committed misconduct.

What Is the Lawyer’s Obligation Under Rule 8.3 Rule 8.3 requires a lawyer to report the following: • Criminal activity • Conduct involving • Dishonesty • Fraud • Deceit • Reckless or intentional misrepresentation • Misappropriation of funds or property The caveat is that this conduct must raise a substantial question as to the lawyer’s honesty, trustworthiness, or fitness as a lawyer.

It is worth noting that California’s Rule 8.3 is much narrower than the Model Rule 8.3 because Model Rule 8.3 requires reporting of any violation of the Rules of Professional Conduct that raises a substantial question of the lawyer’s fitness.

For example, Lawyer A and Lawyer B are going to have a drink after a long day in trial. Lawyer A has a few too many drinks and is probably impaired enough that he should not drive. Lawyer A drives home and gets arrested for DUI.

Does Lawyer B have an obligation to report Lawyer A? Probably not.

While a DUI is certainly a criminal offense, the question is whether it raises a substantial question of his fitness as a lawyer. It is certainly poor judgment on Lawyer A’s behalf, but that taken alone, would arguably not go to his fitness as a lawyer.

On the other hand, Lawyer A submits a sworn declaration to the Court in support of an opposition to motion for summary judgment that contain statements that are demonstrably false in order to create a triable issue of fact so his client can get the case to a jury. Lawyer B responds in his reply brief with evidence demonstrating that the statements made by Lawyer A are false. Does Lawyer B have an obligation to report Lawyer A? Yes. Lawyer A is clearly making a material misrepresentation to opposing counsel and the Court to bolster his client’s case to get around the pending motion for summary judgment. Making legal arguments is the essence of a lawyer and making false statements to further your argument would go to the heart of a lawyer’s fitness.

This particular scenario raises another question of to whom does Lawyer B have to report. Of course, Lawyer B can report to the State Bar to fulfill her obligation under Rule 8.3. But by bringing the false statements to the Court’s attention, isn’t she reporting to a “tribunal with jurisdiction to investigate or act upon such misconduct?” Arguably, yes. The trial court has the power to sanction Lawyer B and to report him to the State Bar. (Compare In re Riehlmann (La. 2009) 891 So.2d 1239, 1247 [“report of misconduct by a lawyer admitted to practice in Louisiana must be made to the Office of Disciplinary Counsel.”]; Phila. Ethics Op. 200812 (2009) [“litigator must report

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opposing counsel’s misconduct to disciplinary authority even if he already reported it to trial court.”) with N.C. Ethics Op. 2013-8 (2014) [“rule requires report to state bar or court having jurisdiction over matter, and report to state bar’s lawyer assistance program does not satisfy duty”].) However, in taking this approach, Lawyer B should be very clear in her brief when she is raising the falsity of Lawyer A’s statements that she is doing so pursuant to Rule 8.3 so there is no question that she has complied with her duty to report.

While Rule 8.3 imposes a duty to report, there are several exceptions to the Rule set forth in subdivision (d). Those include consulting with another lawyer regarding whether the conduct in question is reportable, learning of misconduct while participating in a substance abuse or mental health program, during mediation, or through confidential communications.

Rule 8.3 sets forth your requirements as a lawyer to report misconduct, but there are several questions that the Rule raises that need to be addressed.

The Rule Came Into Effect August 1, 2023, What if I Know of Misconduct That Occurred Prior to Effective Date of the Rule?

Having given a few seminars on this new Rule as of late, this is a popular question and one that has been raised in each session. The question should be approached with the same analysis the courts have done in determining whether a law is retrospective or prospective. In this regard, statutes generally do not apply retrospectively unless the legislature clearly indicated otherwise. (Western Security Bank v. Superior Court (1997) 15 Cal.4th 232, 243.) “If substantial changes are made, even in a statute

which might ordinarily be classified as procedural, the operation on existing rights would be retroactive because the legal effects of past events would be changed, and the statute will be construed to operate only in future unless the legislative intent to the contrary clearly appears.” (Borden v. Division of Medical Quality (1994) 30 Cal. App.4th 874, 908 quoting Aetna Cas. & Surety Co. v. Ind. Acc. Com. (1947) 30 Cal.2d 388, 394.) The theory against retroactive application of a statute is because the affected parties had no notice of the new law affecting past conduct. (Russell v. Superior Court (1986) 185 Cal. App.3d 810, 814.)

Here, there is no proclamation from the Supreme Court that Rule 8.3 is to be applied retroactively.

In fact, the rule against retroactivity should apply here. Rule 8.3 is new to California creating a new obligation on lawyers that did not previously exist. If applied retroactively, lawyers would be subject to discipline for conduct that they may have witnessed, but did not have an obligation to report, leading to absurd results. The courts may have to address this issues at some point, but in doing so should apply the presumption against retroactivity.

What If Two Lawyers Witness the Same Conduct?

Another popular question that has been raised is the situation in which two lawyers observe the same reportable conduct. One of the lawyer’s reports the conduct, but the other one does not. Has the lawyer who did not report violated Rule 8.3? Most likely, yes.

The case of In re Himmel (Ill. 1988) 533 N.E.2d 790, involved a situation where the client had been represented by prior counsel John Casey in a personal injury accident that had settled. Casey converted the funds and did not disburse

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them to the client. The client filed a complaint against Casey with the Illinois Disciplinary Commission regarding the conversion which had been provided to Himmel.

The client retained new counsel Himmel to collect the settlement funds from prior counsel. Casey and the client entered into a settlement agreement whereby the client would not initiate any civil, criminal or disciplinary proceedings against Casey in exchange for $100,000. Casey breached this agreement and Himmel filed suit on behalf of the client obtaining a $100,000 judgment against Casey.

The IDC filed an accusation against Himmel for violating Illinois’ version of Rule 8.3 finding that the client’s filing of a disciplinary complaint against Casey did not abrogate Himmel’s duty to report Casey’s conduct.

Himmel is an extreme case, but provides a cautionary tale for California lawyers going forward since California does not have any case law interpreting Rule 8.3 yet. If you know that another lawyer has committed misconduct as defined in Rule 8.3 report it. Otherwise, you may be subject to disciplinary action for failure to report.

Conclusion California is treading into new territory with the adoption of Rule 8.3 and will most likely look to other jurisdictions that have adopted Model Rule 8.3 for guidance on some of the issues raised herein. Whether the new rule will be abused and used as a litigation tactic as expressed by those who publicly commented on the drafts of the rule remains to be seen. The takeaway is simple – better to be safe than sorry. If you have credible evidence that another lawyer has committed misconduct that rises to the level of that set forth in the rule, report it.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Nathaniel Colley’s Legacy: Bringing the Civil Rights Movement’s Legal Arm to Sacramento

Adobe Stock ©

By Amreet Sandhu & Jennifer Mouzis

W

Amreet Sandhu (she/her) is a librarian at the Sacramento County Law Library.

e usually cannot know the impact of our work as we are doing it.

When Nathaniel Sextus Colley moved to Sacramento in 1948, he could not have known that he would bequeath our city his legacy; he was a World War II veteran, father and grandfather, skilled lawyer and eloquent orator, engaging writer and law instructor, committed community organizer and candidate for state senator, and equestrian. Colley was a renaissance man as evidenced by both his words and his actions.

His speeches on matters of public importance during his lifetime are archived at the Center for Sacramento History as The Colley Papers.

The collection includes remarkable writings such as The Emancipation Proclamation – A 100 Year Report (1963), a speech delivered at a Los Angeles gathering of the AFL-CIO; The Right to Equality of Opportunity in Housing (1960), delivered in support of fair housing; Public Schools – Tools of Democracy (1962); The Mean-

Jennifer Mouzis (she/her) is a managing attorney at Mouzis Criminal Defense.

ing of Bakke (date unknown) on race quotas in college admissions; He Killed our Lincoln (1964), Colley’s writing following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy; a letter from then-Solicitor General Thurgood Marshall, and much more.

Born in 1918 to sharecroppers in Alabama, Colley couldn’t have known, but likely imagined (given his lived experiences) a large civil rights movement galvanizing many into action, locally and internationally, only a few years after his relocation West. He may not have known in his early Sacramento days that his work would parallel global demands to end colonial rule – in both the East and West Indies. The Indian subcontinent would declare independence from the British Raj (1947), a year before Colley moved to Sacramento.

The tactics used on the Indian subcontinent would be informed by work in South Africa actively challenging apartheid and continuing during the entirety of the 1950’s.

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These same tactics would be used in the American south, concurrently with Colley’s Sacramento work.

In the West Indies, Jamaica would declare independence from colonial rule (1962). He may not have known he would emerge victorious in his own fight to ensure that governments extend all privileges to people refused them under racial segregation.

This is the context in which Colley brought many of his landmark civil rights cases. Colley’s weapon of choice in the fight against de facto and de jure inequality was the law itself. His cases, right here in Sacramento, preceded the March on Washington (1963) and Civil Rights Act (1964) by more than a decade.

While Bayard Rustin, James Baldwin, Josephine Baker, and Martin Luther King, Jr. organized in the south, back east, and abroad, it was Colley – Sacramento’s first black lawyer – who pushed for equality here in his new home. Intellectually, Colley was fully equipped for the work ahead, having earned his

law degree from Yale, after being denied admission in Alabama because of his race.

Before the United States Supreme Court adopted a strict scrutiny standard for race matters, Colley’s practice included successful litigation on housing, education, and employment discrimination matters that benefited many, leaving blueprints for those who follow. He brought cases others may have declined – including challenging redevelopment of the Sacramento’s former West End neighborhood in defense of those being displaced and relocated to Sacramento’s Oak Park neighborhood, consistent with Sacramento’s history of redlining.

Of all Colley’s courageous cases and actions, informed by his own family’s experience with discrimination in Sacramento – from the racially restrictive covenant on his own Land Park home, his daughter reporting being spit upon, to his successful integration of a privately-owned Land Park swimming pool – one case stands out today.

Colley's New Helvetia Public Housing Desegregation (1952) case is of most contemporary significance, given that the physical structures embodying the story of his case remain standing. It was those very structures that once separated black and white families, confining the former to limited and fewer units. Colley’s 1952 case banned the Sacramento Housing Authority’s race-based segregation of public housing located on West Broadway and set the stage for his subsequent housing justice work. To those aware of this cultural landmark, the buildings are as iconic as other civil rights landmarks across the country, such as the Selma bridge, and the site of the Stonewall riots where Miss Major Griffin-Gracy left her own civil rights legacy as a black tran-

swoman fighting for collective liberation. Colley’s legacy remains visible today through Sacramento’s most diverse community near the downtown grid. It has served as a home for many post-colonial people displaced over the decades.

It continues to provide racially integrated public housing as he intended it to be. Unfortunately, the location of Colley’s 1952 battle, the New Helvetia Housing Complex, remains very much a battleground today.

In August 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown order, the City of Sacramento adopted the controversial West Broadway Specific Plan, which would allow a new street grid on the property that Colley fought to integrate, effectively resulting in destruction to the historic site. Against the majority of public opinion submitted, the City Council also refused to remove the word “demolition” from the adopted plan. The West Broadway Specific Plan would impact two sister properties – one called Alder Grove, and one now called Marina Vista, but known to tenants and supporters as Seavey Circle.

Luckily, amid a statewide pandemic shut down, wildfire smoke from the Caldor fire in the Sierra, and an inability to address the City Council in person, tenants and supporters organized in impossible conditions anyway. “I wouldn’t come to your house and tear it down. Why would you do that to mine?” asked Maiuu-Sam Floyd, current principal of Leataata Floyd Elementary School, and son of the school’s namesake, who left her own legacy as “The Queen of Diamonds” in the area slated for future redevelopment.

Like Colley’s work to defend those being displaced from the West End in the name of redevelopment, many inspired by Colley’s work organized with those who

may be displaced should the West Broadway Specific Plan be implemented. That work is archived in the Sacramento Public Library’s Sacramento Room as This Is Our Home: The Save New Helvetia Collection. As Colley could not have known the impact of his work, which reverberates today, his supporters may not know the impact of theirs. However, they are continuing to fight for the preservation of historic public housing on West Broadway, and a civil rights museum in his honor on the site, so that it may continue to benefit, inform, and foster civic pride for the many future generations that call Sacramento home.

Some of Nathaniel Colley’s notable cases and efforts New Helvetia Public Housing Desegregation (1952) Banned the Sacramento Housing Authority’s race-based segregation of public housing located on West Broadway.

Banks v. Housing Authority of San Francisco (1953) Invalidated racial and ethnic segregation in public housing.

Ming v. Horgan (1957) Ruled that developers using Federal Housing Administration and Veterans Administration mortgage financing must refrain from racial discrimination in home sales.

Keller v. Sacramento City Unified School District (1963) Intervened in a de facto segregation pattern in city schools. Resulted in a school desegregation plan that corrected racial imbalances.

Reitman v. Mulkey (1967) U.S. Supreme Court challenge of Proposition 14 reinstated that the California Rumford Fair Housing Act (1963) declaring that discrimination based on race, color, natural origin, or ancestry is against public policy, leading to the current California Fair Employment and Housing Act governing hiring and housing policies and practices in the state.

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SECTIONS & AFFILIATE NEWS

An Evening to Remember: The Barristers’ Club of Sacramento’s 28th Annual Summer Associates Reception

By Carly M. Moran

Carly M. Moran is the Barristers’ Club Media Chair and practices litigation in the Sacramento Region.

Left to right: Tatum Kennedy; Shur Erdenekhuu; Connor Olson; Alexandra Jack; Brandon Jack; Carly Moran.

Attendees enjoying the beautiful setting of The Bank.

O

n July 20, 2023, the Barristers Club hosted its 28th Annual Summer Associates Reception. The Barristers Club is a division of the SCBA, and the reception is held to honor the Diversity Fellowship Program. The event also welcomes all law students into Sacramento’s vibrant legal community. Following a twoyear hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the in-person reception highlighted the resilience of our community as over 170 guests, including law students, seasoned attorneys, and respected judges, came together for an inspiring and festive evening.

This year’s reception, which sold out in a matter of weeks, was held on the mezzanine level of The Bank, located at 629 J Street, just blocks from our downtown courthouse. Attendees were treated to the sophisticated yet warm ambience of The Bank and an array of delicious appetizers, cocktails, and

other beverages, creating the perfect setting for meaningful conversations and camaraderie. From war stories to nervous chatter about the Bar Exam, attendees were able to connect over shared experiences and the delight of all our legal profession has to hold.

As always, it was special to see judges and seasoned attorneys come out to support and connect with the next generation of attorneys, many of whom commented on the wonderful and inspiring opportunity the reception provides. Indeed, and at the heart of the Summer Associates Reception, is the warm embrace extended to young attorneys and law students.

This event wasn’t just about business or networking; it was about creating a welcoming and inclusive community that values and nurtures the future legal professionals, while celebrating the hard work and achievements of our Diversity Fellowship Program participants.

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Left to right: Justice Ronald B. Robie, Judge David I. Brown (Ret.), and Justice Shama H. Mesiwala with several law students.

As we reflect on the 28th Annual Summer Associates Reception, we are grateful to our sponsors and attendees, and we are reminded of the enduring importance of mentorship, connection, and tradition within our legal community. The Barristers’ Club remains steadfast in its commitment to supporting young attorneys and law students.

As we look forward, the Barristers’ Club is excited for 2024, which will see the return of the Annual Summer Associates Reception as well as other opportunities for mentorship, meaningful connection, and growth. Stay tuned!

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EDITORIAL

Why Ethics Matter for All of Us

Adobe Stock ©

Karen M. Goodman is the principal of Goodman Law Corporation. She served as Chair of the Committee of Bar Examiners and was a member of the California State Bar Board of Trustees. She is a founder of the CLA Ethics Committee, and a certified specialist in Legal Malpractice Law. She can be reached at kgoodman@ goodman-law.com.

“Ethics is knowing the difference between what you have a right to do and what is right to do.”1 The legal profession is constantly changing. It wasn’t too long ago that we were focused on the in-house lawyer’s duty of confidentiality after discovering ongoing illegal conduct. There has been a flurry of concern about “non-lawyers” owning law firms and what that means to our duties to clients. Of course, Tom Girardi and horrors of discovering that he apparently stole settlements from his clients still grabs headlines (and has resulted in the State Bar’s much tighter rules concerning trust accounting). This year, the new "flavor" is Artificial Intelligence (specifically the use of ChatGPT to conduct research and prepare briefs) and what that means to a lawyer’s ethical duties.

In August, the California Supreme Court adopted California Rules of Court, Rule 8.3, mandating reporting of ethical violations of other lawyers. And we can be certain that the Legislature, in the interest of “public protection” will enact more laws that will impact lawyers' ethical duties.

Our local bar is vibrant and diverse. We pride ourselves on collegiality and our strong relations with our judicial officers. We are populated by big firm lawyers, solos, government lawyers and inhouse counsel. We have some of the very best trial lawyers in the state – both plaintiff and defense lawyers. Former Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye practiced law here before she became a great chief justice. So did retired Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy (who also taught at McGeorge). We are proud to have excellent local law schools who graduate lawyers who choose to practice in Sacramento.

What we don’t have is a local ethics committee. We don’t have a group of local lawyers who can prepare ethics opinions, comment on other group’s opinions, write about new ethics rules, or present continuing education programs focusing on ethics. Certainly, our many government lawyers would really benefit from ethics opinions tailored to their issues. As a small firm practitioner, I am always seeking out practical ethics articles or programs to attend. I would love to

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By Karen M. Goodman

have a local resource to reach out to when I encounter a touchy ethics issue.

I know that it isn’t easy to launch an ethics committee. Several years, I was asked to found the California Lawyers Association Ethics Committee. Five experienced “ethics” lawyers from throughout California developed criteria for an effective statewide ethics committee that would focus on the application of legal ethics to active law practices. CLA Ethics Committee has a succinct mission: “The Ethics Committee is dedicated to upholding the standards of ethics and professionalism in the legal profession.

As a valuable resource to the entire community, the committee provides feedback and comments on proposed opinions, rules and legislation that impact attorney ethics and professionalism. The committee also writes advisory opinions on ethical issues where guidance is needed and develops educational content to educate the entire profession on ethics issues.”2 SCBA doesn’t have to copy CLA Ethics Committee’s mission, but the practice-focused approach is

certainly a good start. Several SCBA Presidents have attempted to launch the SCBA ethics committee, but it hasn’t gotten off the ground.

Assuming that SCBA’s current leadership is on board, I would love to see the SCBA ethics committee actually launch in 2024. It would be wonderful to develop a strong group of ethics leaders to provide guidance (hypotheticals only!) on issues that matter to our community. Our local ethics leaders could put on an annual ethics symposium featuring recurring nightmares and/ or addressing “new” ethics issues that have made headlines. It would definitely benefit our local lawyers, but it would also help protect the public.

We have a number of experienced ethics lawyers who practice in the Sacramento area who I am confident would participate in launching the committee. I think they are just waiting to be asked. If interested in serving, please don’t wait to be asked. Then, let’s look around at those talented “newer” lawyers in our local bar who have an interest and/or aptitude for ethics. If you are interested in participating in creating a local ethics committee or you know “someone else” who would be interested, then let SCBA leadership know.

I have the pleasure of serving on the California Lawyers Association Ethics Committee and have been able to participate in robust discussions on ethics that have contributed to a better understanding of ethics for all California law-

yers. We write opinions, comment on the State Bar’s ethics opinions, write articles and put on education programs – both webinars and in person. We started from scratch five years ago and have produced a lot of quality work in the ethics field. This engagement also sharpened my understanding of ethics – including understanding disparate views. As we all know, a lot of ethics issues concern the gray areas of our practice.

I would love to see Sacramento area lawyers participate in the CLA Ethics Committee, but since we don’t have a local ethics committee, our “ethics practice” feels “underground” and most of our “ethics lawyers” are unknown to the leading California ethics lawyers.

Unfortunately, recently, we have seen several local lawyers who are knowledgeable in ethics retire.

As I have commented frequently about the legal profession, I am always amazed in looking back at my career how the encouragement of just a few individuals at the right time made all the difference.

I was encouraged by my then Murphy Pearson Bradley & Feeney law partner Tim Halloran to apply for the State Bar Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct (CoPrac) in early 1998. I happened to have previously retained as an expert Carol Langford who had just finished her many years tenure on the committee. I didn’t even know what the committee did. I was somehow selected to become a committee member. And then

Lawyer SACRAMENTO

I found myself for the next three years thoroughly intimidated by the law professors who dominated that committee. Of course, that committee started me on a journey that led me to devoting a substantial amount of my time to becoming knowledgeable about legal ethics. If I had previously been able to serve on an SCBA ethics committee to learn the basic functions of the committee, I wouldn’t have been so intimidated.

Fast forward many years later and after CLA was formed, the CLA President suggested me as one of the “founders” to launch CLA’s own ethics committee. I certainly didn’t have time to take on one more project but I said yes because by that time, legal ethics had become very important to me.

When I was asked to suggest lawyers to join the committee after we had launched it, I suggested some very qualified Sacramento lawyers, but the other committee founders didn’t know who they were, hadn’t worked with them and knew others “better”; whether it was from CoPrac or one of the local county bar ethics committees.

Let’s make this ethics committee happen in 2024. Pay it forward by saying “yes” to becoming involved in making a SCBA ethics committee a reality. Let me know if you are interested by shooting me an email kgoodman@goodman-law. com.

1 Potter Stewart 2 www.calawyers.org/ethics

SACRAMENTO COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION MAGAZINE

For advertising opportunities visit: https://sacbar.org/sacramento-lawyer-magazine www.sacbar.org | Vol. 3-2023 | SACRAMENTO LAWYER

23

FOUNDATION

Sacramento County Bar Foundation: The Charitable Arm of the Sacramento County Bar Association

By J. Edward Brooks

Adobe Stock ©

J. Edward Brooks is the President of the Sacramento County Bar Foundation. He can be reached at ebrooks@ gavrilovlaw.com

T

he Sacramento County Bar Foundation was formed in 1986 to be the charitable arm of the Sacramento County Bar Association (SCBA). It was created as a separate 501(c)(3) in response to requests from Sacramento community groups submitting requests to the SCBA to support various projects and programs. Because SCBA dues were earmarked for member services and staff of the SCBA, the SCBA had to turn down these requests. Thus, a foundation was created to raise money and provide these groups with an organization to submit their requests. Donations from the legal community could be directly given to the Foundation and requests for monetary support for programs would be submitted directly. After much hard work from SCBA members, the Foundation emerged and began a history of providing grants to organizations in the Sacramento region under its mission to improve the administration of justice, enhance public confidence in the legal profession, cultivate understanding of and respect for the rule of law,

and support law-related public services.

In 2005, the name was changed to the Sacramento Law Foundation to limit confusion with SCBA itself.

But enough confusion remained that the Board decided in 2017 to return to the original name and use the SCBA’s reputable “brand” to better market itself in the community, including a new logo that was approved to complement the SCBA logo. SCBA has continued its support of the Foundation through allowing use of its facilities for meetings or functions, assigning part of its support staff to provide administrative help, and allowing for donations to be directed to the Foundation on the yearly SCBA dues forms.

Numerous programs have benefited from Foundation grants, which are awarded to applicants with established 501(c)(3) programs which meet the Foundation’s mission. The grants were designed to provide organizations that furthered programs to improve and enhance civic education as well as access to justice and confidence in

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the legal profession and rule of law.

Organizations that have benefited from the Foundations grants over the years are Women Escaping a Violent Environment (WEAVE), California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation, Operation Protect and Defend, the Tommy Clinkenbeard Legal Clinic at Loaves and Fishes, and Sacramento Child Advocates, just to name a few.

The Foundation also awards the “Access to Justice Scholarship” annually to Sacramento area law students who demonstrate a commitment to improving accessibility to justice for individuals and/or groups in our community. Over the years, recipients from McGeorge, Lincoln and UC Davis have been awarded scholarships and gone on to have successful legal careers in the Sacramento area. Some have even given back by joining the Foundation’s Board!

During the Pandemic, the Foundation took over responsibility of Kids Law Day from the SCBA and was able to bring it back in 2023 with resounding success. Approximately 1000 students between 4th

and 6th grade were able to hear from dozens of SCBA members who volunteered their time to inspire students to think about a career in the legal profession and the importance of the judiciary system in our society. The Foundation also donated school supplies to particiSACRAMENTO COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION MAGAZINE pating classrooms and a commem1329 Howe Ave., #100 Sacramento, CA 95825 425 University Ave., Suite 120 ••Sacramento, CA 95825 orative water bottle with the SCBA and Foundation’s logos. https://sacbar.org/become Please keep an eye out for upcoming Foundation fundraisers as we can always use your help to support the grants, scholarships, and Kids Law Day. To volunteer, make a contribution, or for more information about the SCBF, visit www. sacbar.org and click the Sacramento Superior Court of CA, County of Sacramento (Ret.) County Bar Foundation link.

1/2 Page Ad NOV/DEC Judge Van Campat: Renew your SCBA membership

SCBA Annual Mee Judge Brian R. Van Camp

Honoring Distinguished Attorney Justice Arthu • Business & Commercial • Real Estate

• Partnership & Shareholder Disputes

Foundation Mission The Sacramento County Bar Foundation is a 501(c) (3) non- profit California corporation supporting programs that improve the administration of justice, enhance public confidence in the legal profession, cultivate understanding of, and respect for, the rule of law and support law- related public services. To further these objectives, the Foundation provides financial support for non-profit organizations that have a significant relation to the Sacramento Community and contribute to the quality and accessibility of justice, the honor and integrity of the legal profession and civic education.

Installing Officers & D

• Construction Defects

• Complex Civil Litigation

Recognizing State Commissioner of Corporations - Three years Member, AAA Panels on: Commercial & Complex Civil

REACHING

Employment & Labor

THE CENTURY MCLE Prior to Annual Meeting Judge Brian R. Van Camp, Ret. FREE for SCBA Members Office: (916) 515-8442 Cell: (916) 425-1469 $100 for Non-Members

MARK

2443 Fair Oaks Blvd. #397 • Sacramento, CA 95825 1 Hour Ethics - Topic: “Attorney Fees, Practically and Ethically” brvc@vancampadr.com

(916) 515-8442 Speaker: Kenneth Bacon of Mastagni Holstedt VanCampADR.com 10:30-11:30am

Requires Knowledge Beyond Our Years25 www.sacbar.org | Vol. 3-2023 | SACRAMENTO LAWYER

D

AROUND THE BAR

The Role of Legal Document Assistants in California’s Legal Landscape

By Rhonda S. Harrigan

C

alifornia’s legal landscape has undergone a remarkable transformation, and it all started with the rise of self-help legal books. In 1971, Nolo Press published How to File Your Own Divorce in California, setting in motion significant changes in the legal community.

Within a few years, self-help divorce centers emerged to assist individuals using the Nolo book.

These centers functioned as legal secretaries, following the instructions of customers who represented themselves. Centers made it clear that they were not attorneys and could not provide legal advice but focused solely on secretarial services.

The concept of do-it-yourself divorce gained widespread acceptance, leading to the proliferation of such centers nationwide. Their services expanded to cover areas like bankruptcy, personal injury settlements, guardianships, name changes, and restraining orders in cases of domestic abuse.

Paralegals joined this movement, branding themselves as “Independent Paralegals.” They began creating their own brochures, offering advice on legal options, and assisting clients in selecting the nec-

After over two decades of experience in the Sacramento legal field, both as a legal secretary and paralegal, Rhonda S. Harrigan has been a registered Legal Document Assistant (LDA) for nearly five years, operating from her offices in Carmichael and Jackson. Rhonda is an active member of the Sacramento County Bar Association, the Sacramento County Bar Foundation board of directors, the California Association of Legal Document Assistants, and President of the Capitol City Chapter of CALDA. She can be reached at rhonda@sacvalleydocprep.com.

essary court forms. This development drew attention from family law attorneys, resulting in allegations of Unauthorized Practice of Law (UPL) against some independent paralegals, causing a few to shut down.

Recognizing the need for regulation, the California legislature took action. In 2000, California enacted legislation authorizing non-lawyers to prepare legal documents for individuals representing themselves. Legal Document Assistants in California are bound by Business and Professions Code §§ 64006415, which govern registration procedures and business conduct.

Document preparers must complete mandatory education, maintain a $25,000 bond, and register within the county where they have a physical office. Contracts with clients are mandatory, outlining the scope of services, the non-lawyer status of the assistant, and a disclaimer stating their inability to provide legal advice or opinions.

The California Department of Consumer Affairs oversees the regulation of legal document assistants.

In July 2018, the California State Bar’s Board of Trustees established the Task Force on Access Through Innovation of Legal Services

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(ATILS) in response to the findings of The California Justice Gap Study. This study indicated that 85% of Californians lacked proper legal assistance to address their civil legal issues. ATILS has been tasked with exploring regulatory changes to enhance the delivery and accessibility of legal services through technology, including artificial intelligence and online service delivery models. Among the State Bar’s objectives is an examination of options to enhance access to justice through the licensing of paraprofessionals. The Justice Gap Study also exposed that uncertainty regarding legal issues, concerns about costs, fear of pursuing legal action, and a lack of awareness about where to seek help are the top reasons Californians do not seek legal assistance for their civil legal problems. A regulated paraprofessionals program can bridge this gap by offering trained and capable providers of legal assistance at an affordable cost. The State Bar’s California Paraprofessional Program Working Group was tasked with creating recommendations for the establishment of a paraprofessional licensure/ certification program to increase access to legal services in Califor-

nia. The working group presented its recommendations in May 2022, but the Annual Fee Bill, signed into law on September 19, 2022, directed the State Bar to suspend further consideration until 2025.

A Legal Document Assistant (LDA) addresses a specific need in the quest for greater access to justice. While low-income individuals may have access to pro bono legal clinics and the affluent can afford legal representation, the middle class often struggles with high attorney fees. These individuals may not always require legal advice but find the court forms intimidating.

Legal Document Assistants step in to guide them through the forms and the filing processes at an affordable cost.

In February 2019, I registered as an LDA in Sacramento County, leasing an office in Carmichael.

Learning of the great need for these services and the lack of providers in Amador County, I opened an office in Jackson in July 2021. The freedom of having my own schedule and being able to work on one matter at a time, without juggling ten things at once, has been a blessing. As long as I have my laptop, cellphone, and Wi-Fi, I can work from virtually anywhere. So, that week in Hawaii last month? Yeah, it was a working vacation, but it didn’t slow me down.

My portfolio includes family law matters, criminal record expungements, small claims court cases, name changes, adoptions, probate, and more. I also offer services related to wills, trusts, real estate deeds, and associated documents such as powers of attorney and medical directives. I relish the variety in my work, with each day and case presenting unique challenges and opportunities.

While working as an LDA, I also maintain my paralegal designation through freelance work with

attorneys and provide pro bono services to a local non-profit organization that offers legal services to the low-income community. My work with this organization is supervised by attorneys.

This article underscores the various career paths available to paralegals within the legal field, with the role of an LDA being just one of the many options. My story exemplifies the versatility and essential role that an LDA plays in making legal services more accessible to a broader spectrum of society.

An LDA would be lost without, and greatly values, the state association, the California Association of Legal Document Assistants, or CALDA. CALDA is committed to promoting the growth, development, and recognition of the LDA profession as an integral partner in the delivery of legal services. Its membership includes registered and bonded CALDA, Bankruptcy Petition Preparers, Social Security Disability Advocates, SSI Advocates, and sustaining mem-

bers who support and enhance the LDA profession. Established in August 1986, CALDA was formerly known as the “California Association of Independent Paralegals” (CAIP). CALDA is a respected organization for legal document preparation professionals and supporters of this profession.

It champions high standards of ethical and professional conduct while offering its members educational opportunities, professional alliances, a business listing on its website, a member forum for exchange, and attorney-approved printed brochure materials. CALDA is committed to increasing public access to the legal system and recognizes the professional responsibilities of the LDA to the public, the legal system, and their colleagues. CALDA is a Nonprofit Mutual Benefit 501(c)(6) Corporation, which can be reached at CALDA, P.O. Box 2582, Granite Bay, CA 95746; (916) 791-9100; Fax: (916)-912-4974; www.calda. org.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

New Labor & Employment Laws for California Employers in 2024

By Gage C. Dungy

Gage Dungy is a shareholder with Boutin Jones, Inc., where he practices labor and employment law. Gage represents and advises both public and private sector employers on various labor and employment law issues. Gage also regularly tracks labor and employment law legislation and advises clients on the impact of such legislation. He can be reached at gdungy@boutinjones.com.

W

ith 2024 just around the corner, a number of new labor & employment laws that were passed during the 2023 California legislative session and signed into law by Governor Newsom will go into effect. Below is a brief summary of the more significant new labor & employment laws and other legal updates that will impact California employers in 2024. Unless otherwise indicated, all new laws referenced will become effective on January 1, 2024.

Family & Medical Leave SB 616 – Expansion of Paid Sick Leave Law Employers are now required to increase the minimum annual accrual of paid sick leave from the existing three days/24 hours to five days/40 hours under this new law. While this new law maintains the current minimum accrual rate of one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked, these new minimum accruals now also increase the minimum sick leave accrual cap from six days/48 hours to 10 days/80 hours. Employers can still “frontload” paid sick leave for employees at the beginning of a 12-month period, but would now need to provide the new minimum accrual of five days/40 hours for that 12-month period. For employers who use an

alternative accrual method, in addition to the current requirement that an employee accrue no less than three days/24 hours by the 120th calendar day of employment each year, the employee also must accrue no less than five days/40 hours by the 200th calendar day of employment each year. (Amends Labor Code §§245.5-246.5.)

SB 848 –Reproductive Loss Leave of Absence Private sector employers with five or more employees and all public sector employers are now required by law to provide up to five days of reproductive loss leave to an employee for a reproductive loss event. This new law is modeled after last year’s bereavement leave law (Government Code § 12945.7). “Reproductive loss event” is defined as “the day or, for a multiple-day event, the final day of a failed adoption, failed surrogacy, miscarriage, stillbirth, or an unsuccessful assisted reproduction.” The reproductive loss leave is unpaid by default unless an employer has an existing policy to provide paid reproductive loss leave, which the employer is required to maintain. An employee can use available accrued paid leave (vacation, paid time off, sick leave, compensatory time off, etc.) for any portion of the reproduc-

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tive loss leave that is otherwise unpaid. The reproductive loss leave must be completed within three months of the reproductive loss event, but the leave days need not be consecutive. As it is possible for multiple reproductive loss events to occur in a 12-month period, the law limits the total amount of reproductive loss leave that an employer is required to provide to an employee to 20 days within a 12-month period. An employee’s right to take reproductive loss leave is also considered separate from any leave the employee may be entitled to under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA) or Pregnancy Disability Leave law (PDL).

The employer is also obligated to maintain the confidentiality of the employee requesting reproductive loss leave. However, there is no provision in the new law to allow an employer to request verification from the employee regarding the reproductive loss event. (New Government Code § 12945.6.)

Employment Discrimination SB 700 – Prohibits Employment Discrimination Based on “OffDuty Use of Cannabis” as Clarification of Last Year’s SB 2188’s Restrictions on Cannabis Drug Testing Last year’s SB 2188 made it un-

lawful, effective January 1, 2024, for an employer to discriminate against an applicant or employee for their use of cannabis off the job and away from the workplace.

SB 700 is a clean-up bill to clarify that it is also unlawful to request information from an employment applicant related to their prior use of cannabis, or to use an applicant’s or employee’s criminal history related to prior cannabis use in hiring, termination, or any other term or condition of employment.

The more significant impact of these new laws is that employers will also now be prohibited from using a drug screening test that includes detection of nonpsychoactive cannabis metabolites, which could be the result of such off-duty use. Therefore, if an employer currently uses drug testing for applicants or employees which includes testing for cannabis metabolites, they can no longer use such testing for employment-related purposes if it includes the detection of nonpsychoactive cannabis metabolites.

Exemptions to the law apply to employees in the building and construction trades, employees/applicants subject to federal government background investigation or security clearance regulations, and employees/applicants required by law to undergo drug testing (e.g., DOT covered employees who operate commercial vehicles). (Amends Government Code § 12954.)

SB 497 – 90-Day Rebuttable Presumption for Protected Employee Conduct This new law creates a rebuttable presumption in favor of an employee’s claim of a violation of certain Labor Code protections if the employee is discharged or retaliated against within 90 days of the employee’s protected activity.

In addition to other remedies avail-

able for such a violation, the Labor Commissioner can also assess a civil penalty not exceeding $10,000 per employee for each violation, with the penalty to be awarded to the affected employee. (Amends Labor Code §§ 98.6, 1102.5, and 1197.5.)

Wage & Hour Updated State Minimum Wage and Overtime Exemption Salary Basis Test Effective January 1, 2024, the California Minimum Wage will be $16.00/hour for all employers, regardless of size. This also results in an increase to the minimum salary for most overtime exempt employees to $66,560/year ($1,280/week).

AB 1228 – Fast Food Council and Minimum Wage Standards for Fast Food Employees In lieu of a voter referendum related to last year’s AB 257, which established a new Fast Food Council to set a new minimum wage and other work standards for fast food restaurant employees, this bill represents a compromise between the Legislature and the fast food industry.

This new law establishes a Fast Food Council consisting of nine members, with eight members related to the fast food industry/labor organizations and one member of the public who is unaffiliated with the industry. The Fast Food Council is charged with developing minimum fast food restaurant employment standards. A covered “fast food restaurant” is one that is part of a fast food chain with more than 60 establishments nationally.

However, a “fast food restaurant” does not include an establishment that operated as a bakery as of September 15, 2023 that produces bread as a stand-alone menu item for sale.

Effective April 1, 2024, a covered

fast food restaurant is required to pay its employees an hourly minimum wage of $20 per hour. The Fast Food Council can then establish additional minimum wage standards for each calendar year thereafter, except that any annual increase can be no more than the lesser of 3.5% or the annual rate of change in the U.S. Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (U.S. CPI-W).

This new law is currently set to sunset on January 1, 2029. (New Labor Code §§ 1474- 1477.)

SB 525 – Minimum Wage for Health Care Employees Effective June 1, 2024 (or January 1, 2025 for a county-operated facility), a new minimum wage of either $18, $21, or $23 per hour will apply to health care employees depending on the type of hospital or health care facility where they are employed. That minimum wage will eventually increase to $25 per hour in phased increments depending on the type of hospital/ health care facility.

In addition, this new law modifies the salary threshold for health care employees that would otherwise qualify as overtime exempt employees. Such overtime exempt employees must earn a salary that is no less than 150% of the applicable healthcare worker minimum wage or 200% of the applicable state minimum wage – whichever is greater. For example, salaried overtime exempt health care employees who work for health care facilities that are at the $23 per hour health care employee minimum wage on June 1, 2024 will have to be paid a minimum weekly salary of $1,380/week ($71,760/year). That minimum weekly salary is greater than the minimum weekly salary of $1,280/week ($66,560/year) that will be in place at that time under the 2024 California minimum wage

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of $16 per hour.

Most employers who provide health care services are covered under this new law, including hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, residential care facilities for the elderly, home health agencies, health clinics, and medical offices. Covered employees at such health care facilities include those who provide: “patient care, health care services, or services supporting the provision of health care, which includes, but is not limited to, employees performing work in the occupation of a nurse, physician, caregiver, medical resident, intern or fellow, patient care technician, janitor, housekeeping staff person, groundskeeper, guard, clerical worker, nonmanagerial administrative worker, food service worker, gift shop worker, technical and ancillary services worker, medical coding and medical billing personnel, scheduler, call center and warehouse worker, and laundry worker, regardless of formal job title.”

Contracted or subcontracted employees of such covered health care facilities may also be covered by this minimum wage law under certain conditions.

This is a very technical new law whose application to a covered health facility is contingent on a number of specific conditions. (New Labor Code §§ 1182.141182.15.)

Workplace Violence Prevention SB 428 – Expands Employer’s Ability to File TRO on Behalf of Employee Subject to Harassment SB 553 – Allows Collective Bargaining Representative of Employee to File TRO on Behalf of Employee Currently, an employer can file a temporary restraining order (TRO)

on behalf of an employee who has suffered unlawful violence or a credible threat of violence from any individual that can reasonably be construed to be carried out or have been carried out in the workplace.

Effective January 1, 2025, an employer will also be able to file a TRO on behalf of an employee who suffers “harassment” with clear and convincing evidence that great or irreparable harm would result and the course of conduct at issue serves no legitimate purpose. “Harassment” for purposes of this law is defined as: “Knowing and willful course of conduct directed at a specific person that seriously alarms, annoys, or harasses the person, and that serves no legitimate purpose. The course of conduct must be that which would cause a reasonable person to suffer substantial emotional distress, and must actually cause substantial emotional distress.”

This new law also will require an employer to provide the affected employee an opportunity to decline to be named in the TRO. Effective January 1, 2025, SB 553 will also allow a collective bargaining representative of an employee to file a TRO on behalf of an employee for the same purposes that employer can do so as referenced above. (Amends Code of Civ. Proc. § 527.8.)

SB 553 – Employers Required to Implement Workplace Violence Protection Plan (WVPP) Effective July 1, 2024, an employer is required to implement a Workplace Violence Prevention Plan (WVPP) as part of their Injury and Illness Prevention Program (IIPP), which includes the following: • Effective procedures to identify, evaluate, and correct workplace violence hazards; • Effective procedures for an em-

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ployer to respond to reports of workplace violence and prohibit employees who make such a report; • Effective procedures to respond to actual or potential workplace violence emergencies; • Recording information in a “Violent Incident Log”; and • Provide employee training on such procedures.

Cal/OSHA is responsible for overseeing this new law and is required to eventually adopt standards for the WVPP by December 31, 2026. Employers are still nonetheless required to adopt a WVPP by the July 1, 2024 effective date.

All employers are required to adopt a WVPP except for health care facilities covered under separate Cal/OSHA regulations requiring a similar plan, law enforcement agencies, places of employment with less than 10 employees if not accessible to the public, and for employees teleworking from a location of the employee’s choice.

(Amends Labor Code § 6401.7; New Labor Code § 6401.9.)

COVID-19/Emergency Conditions Cal/OSHA Non-Emergency Regulations for COVID-19 Remain in Effect Although it may feel like we have moved on from COVID-19, employers are still required to follow the workplace safety standards implemented by Cal/OSHA. After over two years of having to follow Cal/OSHA’s frequently changing emergency temporary standards for COVID-19, Cal/OSHA finally implemented more permanent non-emergency regulations to establish safety standards for COVID-19 on February 3, 2023. As a reminder, these regulations will remain in effect until February 3, 2025.

COVID-19 Workplace Exposure Notice Requirement Will Expire on January 1, 2024 In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Legislature passed AB 685 (2020), AB 654 (2021), and AB 2693 (2022), requiring employers to provide specific notices to employees and affected employee associations at a workplace where a positive COVID-19 case has been present. However, the last bill (AB 2693) only extended an employer’s obligation to provide such potential exposure notices through January 1, 2024. As no new legislation was enacted to extend this notice requirement, this law will now be repealed on January 1, 2024 and employers are no longer required to provide these COVID-19 related notices. (Repeals Labor Code § 6409.6.)

Upcoming Dates December 31

SCBA 2024 Membership Drive Renew at https://sacbar.org

March 8th, 2024

International Womans Day

April 25 2024

2024 Bench Bar Reception Hyatt Regency Hotel Sacramento

For more information please contact Barbara Souza at bsouza@sacbar.org.

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THE SCBA STAFF

Meet the SCBA Staff

Terri Shettle, Executive Director

I am excited to join the SCBA team and board of directors in supporting the legal community of Sacramento County. I have had the opportunity to get to know the staff and executive committee this year while providing consulting services since the beginning of 2023. I appreciate the professionalism and the energy of all I have had the opportunity to meet, and I hope I will be able to contribute to the SCBA’s ongoing success.

My professional background is quite diverse. Most recently, for 14 years, I was executive director for the 501(c)(3) nonprofit, Sierra Curtis Neighborhood Association and Sierra 2 Center for the Arts & Community. I have worked as a self-employed full-time consultant for small businesses, and I was vice president of retail, events & outdoor recreation at Snowshoe Mountain Resort, where I enjoyed many levels of management and leadership for a variety of large retail organizations, mostly rooted in the outdoor industry.

On a personal level, I have lived in Sacramento for nearly 22 years, having relocated to join my partner, now spouse. We have two large

rescue dogs who rule our world.

I am an avid outdoors enthusiast who enjoys hiking, kayaking, camping, backpacking, wildlife viewing, and basically anything in nature. Growing up as a military brat, I was inflicted with a very bad case of wanderlust! I love to travel, read about travel, plan the next travel adventure, hear from others about their travels. The bucket list grows longer with every trip I take.

Chocolate, coffee and wine are my basic food groups.

parts related to membership recruitment and retention, sponsorship sales, business development partnerships, onboarding three member databases plus having a breath of meeting planning experience. I am a mom to two fur babies, and I enjoy gardening, trekking to the coast, and my odd hobby of collecting vintage ashtrays – although I’m a non-smoker.

Theresa Lopez-Ortiz

Barb Souza

I joined the SCBA in late 2021 taking on a variety of operational tasks in addition to planning the Annual Meeting and Bench Bar Reception plus being all things “membership related.” I am a graduate of the University of Oregon (Go Ducks!) and received a certificate in marketing from UC Davis’s extension one-year specialized studies program. I started my association management career “several moons ago” beginning with planning large multi-day conferences for a local state health care association, then moving into middle management. My association experience includes all the moving

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I joined SCBA at the end of July 2023 as administrative coordinator. My day-to-day administrative tasks include supporting our members, assisting with payables and receivables, fielding calls and emails, and generally keeping office activities flowing. One of the things I enjoy most is assisting our sections and affiliates with their events, marketing and promotions.

The very best things about my job are the people I work with and the opportunity to support our members. I’ve worked in administration and marketing for over 30 years.

When I’m not at SCBA, I am usually spending time with my family – Julio, my husband of 18 years and my 4 children: Karina (30), Kassandra (26), Kiara (23) & Jay Jay (12).

We love taking day trips throughout beautiful California doing touristy things. We especially love Baker Beach and Muir Woods. We love board games and cooking together. We are exceptionally competitive and have created our own version of the Food Network show CHOPPED and those are just a few of the things we do when not attending some kind of Tae Kwon Do event where my son is perfecting his skill as a black belt.

these were bills to create the state’s MCLE program for attorneys, the Lawyers Assistance Program, and many others.

After leaving the State Bar, I became the contract lobbyist for the Conference of California Bar Associations for a decade, helping that organization of local bar associations from around the state (including the SCBA) enact dozens of bills. I joined the SCBA staff in May of 2020.

Larry Doyle

Milenko Vlaisavljevic

mission. I’d like to extend my sincere thanks to Andi Liebenbaum, the 2023 SCBA president, offer my congratulations to Connor Olson, the incoming 2024 president, and warmly welcome Terri Shettle, the new SCBA executive director.

The future is bright, and I’m eager to see where this ongoing journey with SCBA will lead.

Terri Shettle Executive Director tshettle@sacbar.org 916.604.9682

I am the only lawyer on the SCBA staff. Among my primary tasks, I administrate the SCBA’s Mandatory Fee Arbitration Program, draft and edit the weekly newsletter, monitor the SCBA’s MCLE programs, and certify that the content of those MCLE programs meets the standards set by the State Bar. A native of Truckee, I attended and graduated from Dartmouth College in New Hampshire before returning to California and a 40+ year career in politics and government. Beginning as a legislative staffer, I moved to the State Bar of California’s Office of Governmental Affairs in 1989 and was soon appointed Chief Legislative Counsel, a post I retained for 18 years.

During my time with the State Bar, I shepherded well over 100 bills into law on behalf of the State Bar and its practice sections. Among

Milenko Vlaisavljevic and his partner Tatjana Markovic.

My journey began in former Yugoslavia, but it led me to make Sacramento my home. Mary Burroughs brought me into the SCBA in 2013 as a freelancer, allowing my creative talents to shine through in areas such as graphic design, photography, and more.

Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of working alongside two executive directors and collaborating closely with ten dedicated boards of directors. Together, we tackled the challenges of two office moves and faced the unique difficulties brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Today, I’m still actively engaged with SCBA, now in the capacity of a contractor. I continue to support SCBA's creative initiatives and contribute to the association’s ongoing

Barbara Souza Membership & Event Manager bsouza@sacbar.org 916.604.9667 Theresa Lopez Administrative Coordinator theresa@sacbar.org 916.604.9725 Larry Doyle Fee Arbitration Administrator feearb@sacbar.org 916.604.9726 Milenko Vlaisavljevic Production Design milenko@sacbar.org

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SECTION, DIVISION & AFFILIATE NEWS

SABA of Sacramento Hosts Its Sixteenth Annual Diversity Law Student Reception

By Justice Shama Hakim Mesiwala

Justice Shama Hakim Mesiwala sits on the Third District Court of Appeal and is a Cofounder of SABA of Sacramento.

Ray-Hao Wang, Cynthia Weber, Youngki Hong, Zoey Wang, Tianlan Huang, Yidan Zhang.

Jeff El-Hajj and Judge Consuelo Callahan.

T

he South Asian Bar Association (SABA) of Sacramento hosted its Sixteenth Annual Diversity Law Student Reception in Justice Shama Hakim Mesiwala’s Davis backyard and front yard on September 9, 2023. The reception was attended by over 250 law students, judges and attorneys and provided an informal setting to mingle over Indian appetizers.

SABA was honored by the attendance of Judge Consuelo Callahan of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals; Judge Ed Davila from the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California; Chief Judge

ALJ Dee Brown, Lexi Howard, Thao Duong, Saima Aslam.

Anna Brown-Dawson, Shaian Mohammadi, Commissioner Jaya Badiga.

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Jill Telfer, Judge Andi Mudryk, Judge Tom Dyer.

Emeritus Morrison England, Judge Troy Nunley, Judge Dan Calabretta, and Magistrate Judge Jeremy Peterson from the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California; Justice Ron Robie, Justice Harry Hull, and Justice Elena Duarte from the Third District Court of Appeal, Presiding Justice Mary Greenwood from the Sixth District Court of Appeal; Presiding Judge Mike Bowman, Commissioner Robert Artuz, Judge Stephen Acquisto, Commissioner Jaya Badiga, Judge David Bonilla, Judge Ken Brody, Judge Carlton Davis, Commissioner Ryan Davis, Judge Ben Galloway, Commissioner Alicia Harley, Judge A.J. Jimenez, Judge Chris Krueger, Judge Deborah Lobre, Judge Andi Mudryk, Judge Rei Onishi; Commissioner Kimberly Parker; Judge Jennifer Rockwell, Judge Satnam Rattu; Judge Myrlys Stockdale Colemman, Commissioner Martin Tejeda; Judge (ret.) Raoul Thorbourne, Judge Julie Weng-Gutierrez, and Judge Peter Williams from Sacramento County Superior Court;

Justice Elena Duarte, ALJ Heather Rowan, Jinnifer Pitcher, Jerilyn Paik.

Commissioner Robert Artuz, Justice Ron Robie, Judge Garen Horst, Presiding Judge Michael Bowman.

Radhika Balaji, Dean Filomena Yeroshek, Judge Andi Mudryk, Justice Elena Duarte, Aaron Brieno, Aparna Agnihotri, Andrew Noseworthy, Juan Carlos Martir, Zohail Mukhtar, Jason Holley, Lilly Mohana. www.sacbar.org | Vol. 3-2023 | SACRAMENTO LAWYER

35

Judge Sam McAdam, Judge Tom Dyer, and Judge Dan Wolk from Yolo County Superior Court; Judge Garen Horst and Judge Todd Irby from Placer County Superior Court; Judge Monique Langhorne from the Napa County Superior Court; Judge S. Raj Chatterjee from Alameda Superior Court; Judge Michael Rhoads from San Francisco County; and Judge Vinita

Bali from Santa Clara Superior Court. The reception was generously underwritten by UC Davis School of Law (whose Dean Kevin Johnson and Dean of International Programs Beth Greenwood attended), Pacific McGeorge School of Law (whose Dean Michael Hunter Schwartz attended), and Lincoln School of Law (whose Dean Filomena Yeroshek attended).

Nia Kotobalavu, Jessie Morris, ALJ Dee Brown.

Justice Ron Robie, Judge Dan Calabretta, Judge Michael Rhoads, Andrew Lague.

Presiding Justice Mary Greenwood, Judge Ed Judge Myrlys Stockdale-Coleman and Davila, and Chief Judge Emeritus Morrison Judge Monique Langhorne.

England.

Judge Steve Acquisto, Judge Satnam Rattu, Judge A.J. Jimenez.

Mamta Singh, Lovia Ofori-Ampofo, Stephanie Finelli.

JosiLynn Spray, Eugene Dehoney, Robert Moreno, Judge Troy Nunley, Ishiana Burch, Lucky Casey, Radhika Mishra, Aparna Agnihotri, Mamta Singh, Elizabeth Kim.

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Today’s Legal Professional - Continued from page 12

SAVE THE DATE March 8th, 2024

International Womans Day

as keeping pace with technology, are all part of the expectations and requirements of today’s legal professional. The required continuing education burdens alone are enormous.

SLSA exists to address these issues. Together with the parent organization, Legal Professionals, Incorporated (LPI), SLSA is an approved MCLE provider of the State Bar of California. SLSA/ LPI offer continuing legal education through in-person programs, conferences, and seminars, online webinars and multi-week training courses. All educational classes, webinars, training courses, and programs are conducted entirely by volunteers who are active working professionals in the legal field. By providing this training and education, we ensure that the legal professionals working with attorneys, the judicial system, and the legal community at large are receiving the best support and representation possible. SLSA/LPI also administer scholarships at both the local and state levels.

At SLSA, we like to say, “We are all partners in the same profession.” Each of us, legal professionals all – from the judiciary to court staff, attorneys to receptionists, researchers to process servers – together we serve a vital purpose in one of the most noble professions in civilized history. The community we serve depends on that partnership.

To learn more about Sacramento Legal Secretaries and its programs, go to www.slsa.org.

To learn more about Legal Professionals, Incorporated, and its programs, go to www.legalprofessionalsinc.org.

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SACRAMENTO COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION

2024 MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION Membership dues in the SCBA and SCBA Sections are not deductible as charitable contributions for federal income tax purposes. However, such dues may be deductible as a business expense. Consult your tax advisor.

RENEWAL

NEW MEMBER

Payment Details:

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Exp: ________ / _________

Please consider a donation to the following:

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$50.00

Capitol Pro Bono

$50.00

Sacramento Law Library

SCBA DUES | Select one. All dues are based on a calendar year and expire on 12/31/24.

$195.00 $210.00

1st year of admission to the State Bar of California 2nd to 5th year - Practicing for 2 to 5 years

Administrative Law

$25.00

Appellate Law

$25.00

$25.00

All-Inclusive Membership • Membership in two sections • Attendance to all events of chosen sections* • Attendance to all SCBA Signature Events including, but not limited to, Bench Bar & Annual Meeting *Does not include boot camps, retreats, or any other special event sponsored by the section

$150.00

Associate Non-lawyer

$80.00

Retired Status & Inactive Status Requires attorney to be listed as inactive or retired on calbar.ca.gov

$65.00

Family Law Support CCRCs and other Family Law Professionals (enrollment into the Family Law Section)

$25.00 $25.00 $25.00 $25.00 $25.00 $25.00 $25.00

$25.00 $25.00 $25.00 $25.00 $25.00 $25.00 FREE

FREE

$40.00

Legal Support Membership For Paralegals, Legal Secretaries and Legal Document Assistants

FREE

Student Membership For Students who are enrolled in Law School Where are you enrolled? _______________________

FREE

$25.00

$25.00

10+ years - Practicing for 10+ years

$________________ (or other amount)

SECTIONS & DIVISIONS

$25.00

6th to 9th year - Practicing for 6 to 9 years

$________________ (or other amount)

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$25.00

Check here for a 25% discount if you receive the low-income fee waiver when you pay your State Bar dues. $360.00

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Alternative Dispute Resolution Bankruptcy and Commercial Law Business Law

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Workers’ Compensation Barristers’ Division SCBA members who are under the age of 36 and have been practicing law for under 5 years.

Solo/Small Practice Division SCBA members who are attorneys in their own firm or small firm (four or less).

I would like to be contacted about: Delegation to CCBA – Organizes delegates and SCBA participation at the Conference of California Bar Associations; drafts and reviews resolutions.

Honorary Membership Justices, Judges, and Subordinate Judicial Officers

I would like an application to join the Mandatory Fee Arbitration Program Page 1 of 1

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BENCH BAR RECEPTION 2024 Honoring Judge of the Year

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