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Transcription

®
January 2004
Vol. 33, No. 1
The Monthly Newspaper of the Philadelphia Bar Association
Feldman
Bevilacqua Backs Commerce Court,
Elected Vice
Election of ‘Recommended’ Judges
Chancellor
by Daniel A. Cirucci
by Jeff Lyons
Photo by Jeff Lyons
Association Chancellor
Gabriel L.I. Bevilacqua has
called for the creation of a
special, new Commerce
Court for Philadelphia and
vowed that the Association will work harder to
ensure the election of
judicial candidates that it
finds “recommended” for
office “to make sure that
we get our message across
to the voters.”
Bevilacqua, 55, who
became the Association’s
77th Chancellor on Jan. 1,
made his remarks to more
than 400 of his colleagues
at the Association’s Annual Meeting Luncheon at
the Park Hyatt Philadelphia at the Bellevue on
Dec. 9.
Bevilacqua, a
Philadelphia resident and
a partner with Saul Ewing
LLP, also reiterated the
Bar’s support of a nonelective, merit-selection
system for selecting judges
at the appellate court
level. “An uninformed and
uninterested electorate
should not continue to
select judicial candidates generously financed by
the very lawyers who may
appear before them.
There is a better way. We
must appoint appellate
judges. But until that ultimate better way becomes
Alan M. Feldman, managing partner
of Feldman, Shepherd, Wohlgelernter &
Tanner, has been elected Vice Chancellor
of the Philadelphia
Bar Association.
Feldman will
serve as Vice
Chancellor in 2004,
Chancellor-Elect in
2005 and Chancellor in 2006. Feldman defeated challenger Rochelle M. Alan M. Feldman
Fedullo 2,259 votes
to 1,475 votes in the Dec. 9 election.
“I am forever grateful to the lawyers
of Philadelphia for allowing me the opportunity to serve as Chancellor,” Feldman
said. “I promise I will tackle the difficult
issues confronting our profession, and
try to make a positive difference for all
of us. I want to thank those who had
confidence in me from the beginning; I
know that I have to earn your support
all over again every day. I will do my
best,” he said.
Feldman said plans are under way to
continued on page 3
Chancellor Gabriel L.I. Bevilacqua is applauded after completing his remarks at the Association’s
Dec. 9 Annual Meeting and Luncheon. More coverage: pages 10 and 11.
a reality, we must do a
better job of advising and
guiding the voters. And
we cannot wait ‘til 2005.
We have to get to work on
this now,” he declared.
With an eye on the
Commerce Court to handle business-related cases,
Bevilacqua said that he
would work with “the
state Supreme Court, the
leadership of the First
Judicial District, our
Legislature and all appropriate parties” to create the
new court.
Among the new Chancellor’s other proposals:
• Mandatory continu-
ing legal education for the
state’s judges. Currently
continuing legal education
is mandatory for all
lawyers in Pennsylvania
but not for judges.
• The development of a
new Association program
“to help all lawyers who
continued on page 11
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In This Issue ...
4
Bar Foundation
9
Bar a ‘Hot Spot’
12
Year-End Events
15
Guidance Opinions
17
Feasts to Famine
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JANUARY 2004 / BAR REPORTER
We Are One: Defend Rights for All
by Gabriel L.I. Bevilacqua
The future is now.
The global village is today’s reality.
At least in terms of instantaneous communication, we really do inhabit a
global village linked by satellite television and the Internet. For better or
worse, we witness the world’s major
events together. From the atrocities of
Sept. 11 to the trials of Michael Jackson
- it’s all there for everyone to see and
experience. We gather around our
computers or TVs (or now even the
images on our cell phone) and laugh,
cry, celebrate and grieve together.
One would think that all of this
would have brought us closer together.
One would think that nations and
societies and cultures and races would
understand one another better and
would be newly linked literally as they
seem to be figuratively.
One would be wrong.
In 1998 Time magazine set out to
envision the future of a world beyond
the 20th century and the cold war. In a
lead story called “The Shape of the
Future” Time foresaw a new world split
not along traditional ideological lines
but along darker, more combustible
divides “written in the blood of deep
seated ethnic panics.” In the same article, Harvard historian Samuel P.
Huntington declared: “Global politics is
being reconfigured along cultural lines.
Political boundaries are increasingly
redrawn to coincide with cultural ones:
ethnic, religious and civilizational.”
The world is linked as never before.
And it is true that a global economy
that seeks out and encourages openness and democracy is stronger than
ever. But none of this has necessarily
brought nations closer together or
made the world a more peaceful place.
ELECTION
continued from page 1
try to bring the American Bar Association’s Pro Bono Conference to Philadelphia in 2006.
“In addition to the kind congratulations I’ve received from so many colleagues, I’ve also received ideas and
suggestions from many lawyers about
how we can improve and enhance our
FRONTLINE
Meet Chancellor at Jan. 8 Reception
All Bar Association members are
invited to attend a free reception on
Tuesday, Jan. 8 from 5 to 7 p.m. in
honor of Gabriel L.I. Bevilacqua,
77th Chancellor of the Philadelphia
Bar Association.
This year, the Chancellor's Reception will be held in the Grand Ballroom at the Park Hyatt Philadelphia
In fact, the opposite is true. A menacing new tribalism is at war with all that
might otherwise hold us together. And
we are engaged in a worldwide struggle with a new form of barbarism rooted in centuries of ethnic, racial, religious and cultural resentment and
hostility.
In my remarks to the members of
the Association last month I announced my intention to give all members
of the Board of Governors and all
Section and Committee chairs a copy
of Jared Diamond’s Pulitzer Prize-winning book Guns, Germs and Steel. It is a
book that I recommend to everyone
because I hope that we may be continuously reminded of the author’s compelling central thesis. Prof. Diamond
teaches that we are essentially - genetically - identical. What appear as differences between peoples and societies
stem from the happenstance of environment, geography and other largely
“accidental” factors. As I said last
month: “Science utterly refutes racism
and sexism and the insanity these
‘isms’ promote.” Hatred and bigotry are
wrong in any form. I know that “insanity” is a strong word. Yet, the death and
destruction and bloodshed that the
world has witnessed at the hands of
terrorists are rooted in a form of
extreme hatred that can only be
defined as “madness.”
And that madness has repercussions
here at home. A world beset by the
insanity of fanaticism and the constant
threat of terrorism challenges our system of checks and balances. A clear
vision is hard to focus when we simply
do not know what tomorrow will
bring. The world may have other plans.
The rest of the world impacts us but it
does not necessarily embrace us.
So, the global village is merely a
virtual village. And as Time correctly
concluded in 1998: “the idea that we
are moving toward a single global culture is both wrong and dangerous.”
But as lawyers we are called upon
to remain true to our own democratic
principles of equality and freedom.
And we above all must realize that
these principles are grounded in a
belief that all persons really “are created equal, that they are endowed by
their creator with certain unalienable
rights.”
Our founders have provided us
with the ideals and the vision to see
our way clear as we journey through a
troubling time. But it will not be easy.
There will be struggles ahead. And as
lawyers and defenders of freedom and
liberty we may espouse views that may
profession, and I’m excited about the
terriffic opportunities ahead. I’m looking forward with great enthusiasm to
serving my fellow lawyers, our great
profession and the wondreful city we
live and work in,” Feldman said.
The following candidates for Bar
offices ran unopposed and will be
serving in their positions on Jan. 1:
Secretary, Sayde J. Ladov; Treasurer,
Mary F. Platt; Assistant Secretary John
E. Savoth; and Assistant Treasurer, Scott
F. Cooper.
Members also elected five new
members to the Board of Governors.
They are Marla A. Joseph (2,353), Mark
N. Cohen (1,931), Daniel-Paul Alva
(1,849), Marsha L. Levick (1,845) and
Laura A. Feldman (1,823). Others receiving votes included Butler Buchanan III
(1,588) and Joseph A. Prim Jr. (1,510).
Seven people were also elected to
the Young Lawyers Division Executive
Committee. The new members include:
Shira J. Goodman (508), Michael E.
Adler (505), Andrew R. Duffy (487),
Damon K. Roberts (423), Dennis G.
Young (416), Chad E. Kauffman (410)
and Kimberly K. Heuer (404). Others
receiving votes included: Eileen P. Huff
(353), Charles Eppolito III (315), Shanese
I. Johnson (293), Harper J. Dimmerman
(196) and Leonard P. Haberman (134).
Tell Us What You Think!
The Philadelphia Bar Reporter welcomes letters to the editors for publication.
Letters should be typed. There is no word limit, but editors reserve the right to
condense for clarity, style and space considerations. Letters must be signed to
verify authorship, but names will be withheld upon request. Letters may be
mailed, faxed or e-mailed to: Jeff Lyons, Managing Editor, Philadelphia Bar Reporter,
Philadelphia Bar Association, 1101 Market St., 11th floor, Philadelphia, Pa. 191072911. Phone: (215) 238-6345. Fax: (215) 238-1267. E-mail: [email protected].
at the Bellevue, Broad and Walnut
streets. No reservations are necessary.
This is the event at which even
the city’s busiest and most successful legal luminaries wait in line to
wish their leader and each other
good luck in the new year. Bevilacqua is a partner at Saul Ewing LLP.
not always be quickly and willingly
embraced by others, especially in a
time of war. So be it. We must remain
true to our profession and our ideals
while maintaining the perspective of
history and a dose of pragmatism.
We live in historic times.
What each one of us does, how each
one of us acts will help to define the
cause of freedom. In the end, as Dr.
Martin Luther King Jr. once observed,
“Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and
conscientious stupidity.”
Gabriel L.I. Bevilacqua, a partner at Saul Ewing LLP, is
Chancellor of the Philadelphia Bar Association. His email address is [email protected].
Editor-in-Chief
Bruce H. Bikin, Esq.
Associate Editors
Molly Peckman, Esq.
Sunah Park, Esq.
Contributing Editor
Richard Max Bockol, Esq.
Advisory Editors
Merih O. Erhan, Esq.
Marc W. Reuben, Esq.
Director of Publications and New Media
Mark A. Tarasiewicz
Managing Editor
Jeff Lyons
Copy Editor
Kate Maxwell
Associate Executive Director
for Communications and Public Affairs
Daniel A. Cirucci
Executive Director
Kenneth Shear
The Philadelphia Bar Reporter (ISSN 1098-5352) is
published monthly and available by subscription for
$45 per year by the Philadelphia Bar Association, 1101
Market St., 11th fl., Philadelphia, Pa. 19107-2911.
Periodicals postage paid at Philadelphia, Pa. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Philadelphia Bar
Reporter, c/o Philadelphia Bar Association, 1101
Market St., 11 fl., Philadelphia, Pa. 19107-2911.
Telephone: (215) 238-6300. Association Web site:
www.philadelphiabar.org. Newspaper e-mail address:
[email protected]. The editorial and other views
expressed in the Philadelphia Bar Reporter are not necessarily those of the Association, its officers, or its
members. Advertising rates and information are available from Media Two, 22 W. Pennsylvania Ave, Suite
305, Towson, Md., 21204. Telephone: (410) 828-0120.
Visit the Philadelphia Bar on the Web at www.philadelphiabar.org • Look for Bar Reporter Online e-newsbrief every Monday morning
BAR REPORTER / JANUARY 2004
3
Foundation
Grants Top
$338,000
Welcoming New Citizens
by Daniel A. Cirucci
continued on page 8
continued on page 5
Photo by Jeff Lyons
Our two major fund-raising events,
the Golf Outing and the Hamilton Ball,
were streamlined to reduce overhead.
Through the generosity of The Philadelphia Inquirer, the expense of a patron
book was avoided, replaced by a halfpage ad in the Sunday edition recognizing our contributors. As a result, net
Twenty-seven groups that provide
law-related services to the community
received an early holiday gift from the
Philadelphia Bar Foundation in
December as the Foundation distributed more than $338,000. The year’s
grants from the charitable arm of the
Philadelphia Bar Association represent
a 20 percent increase over 2002. Most
of the money is raised from or through
Philadelphia lawyers and law firms and
helps needy Philadelphians who are
seeking legal assistance.
The grants varied in size from $2,000
to $98,000 and included groups that
provide legal services to abused women and children, the homeless, the
mentally and physically handicapped,
the aged and others who need but cannot afford legal help. Some of the
grants will actually help ensure the
survival of local law-related public
interest agencies. Among the groups
receiving grants are: Philadelphia Volunteers for the Indigent Program, the
Support Center for Child Advocates,
the Homeless Advocacy Project, the
SeniorLAW Center, Community Legal
Services, Inc., the Education Law Center,
and the Legal Clinic for the Disabled,
Inc.
Outgoing Foundation President
Gerald A. McHugh Jr. of Litvin Blumberg Matusow & Young thanked all
those who helped to increase the Fou-
Chancellor-Elect Andrew A. Chirls (right) addresses new American citizens as U.S. District Court Judge Louis H. Pollak looks on at a
naturalization ceremony held Dec. 15 at the U.S. Courthouse. More than 80 people from 28 nations took the oath of citizenship on Bill
of Rights Day.
Bar Foundation Restructuring Complete
by Gerald A. McHugh Jr.
During the past two years, with
strong support from Bar leadership and
staff, the Philadelphia Bar Foundation
has gone through a process of longrange planning and restructuring that
is now essentially complete. This marks
an appropriate time to report to the
Bar, whose generosity makes the work
of the Foundation possible.
We have hired a new executive
director, Maureen Mingey, who came to
us from the Eisenhower Fellowships in
Philadelphia, and has brought great
energy to the job. The Bar Foundation
Board of Directors is now half the size
that it was only a year ago, and with a
smaller Board has come a correspondingly increased degree of responsibility.
Every Board member now has handson involvement with the work of the
Foundation, and has made a meaningful financial commitment to both the
Foundation’s operating expenses and
endowment. With the support of the
Association, the Foundation has moved
to larger, newly renovated offices on
the 11th floor at the Bar Association
offices, with enough room to hold
meetings and recruit interns. Its operating debt has been retired, and it
begins 2004 with a reserve for overhead.
Gunnar L.
Armstrong
1/8 page
4
Looking for a special way
to remember someone?
Births • Deaths • Marriages • Anniversaries
• Making Partner • Passing the Bar
Through the Special Way to Remember program, you
can honor a colleague or loved one with a contribution
to the Philadelphia Bar Foundation. Since 1964 the Bar
Foundation has distributed millions of dollars in attorney
gifts and other funds to public interest groups that provide counsel and assistance to the poor, disabled, elderly
and children in our community. Your gift will help serve
the needs of Philadelphians who have nowhere else to
turn for legal services.
If you would like to make a gift to the Foundation as a
meaningful expression of respect, please call (215) 2386334.
GRANTS
Committee Honors Judge Becker
Photo by Jeff Lyons
U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Edward R. Becker (left) holds a ceremonial gavel presented to him by members of
the Association’s Federal Courts Committee at the Committee’s Dec. 17 meeting. The gavel was presented by
Committee Chair Stephanie Resnick and Louis W. Fryman, Judge Becker’s brother-in-law and former law partner. The gavel includes the following inscription: “In appreciation for a lifetime of dedication to justice and the
law.”
ndation’s grantmaking in 2003 and added: “The Philadelphia
Bar Foundation has one goal: to work to provide access to justice for vulnerable segments of our population. We’ve made
progress this year, but we have a vigorous long-range agenda
and much more to accomplish. We’re encouraged as we look
forward.”
President-Elect Edward F. Chacker of Gay, Chacker & Mittin,
P.C., commented: “We’re building on our past success, and
we’re working with a great group of attorneys and law firms.
We’ve carved out an ambitious mission for ourselves, and
we’re well on our way.”
At the same time, the Bar Foundation also announced that
LexisNexis will enable the attorneys, paralegals, and support
staff at the many legal services organizations funded by the
Bar Foundation to have free use of LexisNexis legal research
tools.
“We are happy to support the work of the Philadelphia Bar
Foundation, both directly through our financial contribution,
and through our gift of research hours to the organizations the
Bar Foundation funds. It is important for the legal community
to support the organizations that are providing access to justice, and LexisNexis is proud to be able to help,” said Steve
Zubrzycki, senior vice president and publisher for LexisNexis.
A major Bar Foundation restructuring initiated last year saw
the Foundation’s Board of Trustees cut in size while each current board member made a personal financial contribution to
the Foundation. The Foundation looked to cut costs and
explore new sources of revenue. These efforts have worked:
this year the Bar Foundation netted 57 percent more money at
its annual Golf Outing and 25 percent more from its annual
Andrew Hamilton Ball. The Foundation also launched a new
initiative, the “Access to Justice” campaign that brought in more
than $30,000 and worked to increase the visibility of the
Foundation, its mission and its many grantee organizations.
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Pro Bono Corner
Philadelphia VIP Takes on New Projects
by Joanne Zack and Sharon Browning
Philadelphia VIP reports substantial progress in 2003 in fulfilling its
mission to recruit volunteer attorneys
and paralegals to provide legal assistance to low-income Philadelphians in
civil matters.
In addition to its usual areas of representation (including family law,
housing and home ownership, immigration, and general civil litigation),
Philadelphia VIP was involved in 2003
in two collaborative special projects:
the Elder Russian Project with
Community Legal Services and the
Subsidized Permanent Legal Custodian
Project with the Pennsylvania
Department of Human Services.
For the Elder Russian Project, VIP
helped recruit and train volunteer
attorneys to represent 100 elder
Russian-speaking immigrants whose
adult day care benefits have been terminated. For the Subsidized Permanent
Legal Custodian Project, VIP trained
family law practitioners to conduct
clinics for caregivers, primarily family
members, who seek to become “permanent legal custodians” of children in
their care. Throughout 2003, VIP also
continued to conduct tax clinics for
low-income tax payers in collaboration
with Philadelphia Legal Assistance.
Philadelphia VIP also officially
launched the LawWorks project in
2003. LawWorks is designed to provide
free legal services to non-profit community groups and small enterprises
serving low-income individuals and
neighborhoods. It is a collaborative
community economic development
program sponsored by the Business
Section of the Philadelphia Bar
Association.
To fulfill its mission, Philadelphia
VIP depends upon volunteer attorneys
and paralegals. As a result of its
recruitment efforts, VIP successfully
matched more than 700 low-income
clients with volunteers this year.
In 2003, VIP conducted case fairs or
participated in road shows at
Montgomery, McCracken, Walker &
Rhoads, LLP; Reed Smith LLP; White
and Williams LLP; Ballard Spahr
Andrews & Ingersoll, LLP; Blank Rome
LLP; Wolf, Block, Schorr & Solis-Cohen
LLP; and McCarter & English, LLP.
“Case fairs” - where cases are presented
to potential volunteers - and “road
shows” - where VIP’s mission is
explained to potential volunteers—are
an important part of VIP’s recruitment
efforts.
Philadelphia VIP also hosted a
Summer Associates Day, with 110 law
students attending, on June 9 and a
First Year Associates Day, with 55 new
associates attending, on Nov. 3.
To support its mission, Philadelphia
VIP also relies on the generous financial support of the Philadelphia community. VIP raised more than $90,000
with its annual fund-raiser, a block
party and carnival in Fairmount Park
in September. The Philadelphia Bar
Association also committed $115,000 to
Philadelphia VIP for 2003, and has
increased that support by $10,000 for
2004. The Philadelphia Bar Association
additionally provides VIP with crucial
assistance relating to budgeting and
financial management.
Philadelphia VIP received welcome
help itself from the Executive Service
Corps, an organization that provides
not-for-profits with strategic advice.
Through a generous grant by the
Philadelphia Foundation, two representatives of the Executive Service
Corps assisted Philadelphia VIP in formulating a long-term plan for its efficient operation.
Citizens Bank generously underwrote Philadelphia VIP’s annual
awards ceremony and lunch on April
29 where outstanding volunteers who
have provided pro bono legal services
in Philadelphia were honored.
Joanne Zack, a shareholder at Kohn, Swift & Graff, P.C.,
is a member of the Executive Board of Philadelphia
Volunteers for the Indigent Program. Sharon Browning
is executive director of Philadelphia VIP.
The Legal Directory 2004 update
Remember to update your listing
for the Philadelphia Bar Association’s
The Legal Directory 2004
– an invaluable resource
with information on more than
2,000 law firms and 18,000 attorneys
in the Philadelphia area.
The deadline for listing updates is Jan. 30, 2004.
If you have any questions, call Pete Kerzel at (410) 828-0120,
extension 228 or e-mail [email protected]
7
Foundation,
Administrators
Join Forces
Photo by Jeff Lyons
Thanksgiving Breakfast
More than 100 people attended the Association’s 5th Annual Thanksgiving Breakfast on Nov. 25 at the Westin Philadelphia.
Breakfast Chairman Edward F. Chacker (center) and Immediate-Past Chancellor Audrey C. Talley (right) are joined by speakers
(from left) Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Jacqueline F. Allen, Ezra Wohlgelernter and Philadelphia City Solicitor Nelson
A. Diaz. The panelists discussed "The Rules of Professional Conduct and the Old/New Testaments - Conflicting or Consistent?" For
the first time, CLE credit was available for those who attended the event.
BAR FOUNDATION
income from both events was significantly increased. For the first time, the
Foundation also engaged in a direct,
“retail” fund-raising effort, the Access
to Justice Campaign, asking individual
members of the Bar to make a donation. As a result of this effort, many
more Philadelphia lawyers were introduced to the work of the Foundation,
and more than $30,000 was raised.
Perhaps most importantly, the
Foundation refocused on its core mission of promoting equal access to justice, and the building of an endow-
ment that will serve as a capital asset
to ensure such access for future generations. Moving forward, only organizations whose objective is to provide
representation or promote access will
be eligible for funding. For 2004, the
Foundation will award $340,000 in
grants to public interest organizations
in the Philadelphia area.
New contributions to the endowment, exclusive of the Hamilton Circle,
totaled nearly $300,000, led by Morrie
Shuster’s historic gift establishing a
fund to offset the educational debt of
public interest lawyers. Morrie’s gift
was quickly matched by another leader
of the Bar, who has not yet allowed us
list•serve \noun\ An automatic
electronic mailing list, allowing users to participate in discussions.
join \verb\ To become a member
of a group.
to share his identity. As a result of such
generosity, the inaugural Shuster
Fellowship was awarded to Rodney
Cunningham of the AIDS Law Project,
who has committed his career to public service.
Sixteen members of the Bar have
now pledged leadership gifts to the
endowment, with the total of pledges
made and contributions already received approaching $600,000. The commitment of these attorneys has allowed
us to adopt a formal spending policy
in consultation with our financial advisors, which will enable us to support
the work of our grantees while still
allowing the endowment to grow.
The Philadelphia Bar Foundation and the
Philadelphia Chapter of the Association of
Legal Administrators have announced an
exciting new collaborative effort.
The Bar Foundation will work to provide
an information link between the 27 organizations it funds and the members of the ALA
(and the law firms they represent). This new
information exchange will build partnerships
to make maximum use of extra materials,
such as office equipment and furniture. For
example, if a local law firm is planning to
update its computers, the new information
network will work to see that the firm’s surplus equipment finds a good home among
the various legal service providers in the
greater Philadelphia area.
For more information, please contact
Merril Zebe, Public Interest coordinator, at
the Philadelphia Bar Association, at (215)
238-6355.
The achievements of the Bar
Foundation are the result of the accumulated efforts of many Chancellors,
Bar leaders and Philadelphia lawyers
over decades. Every year, our success is
built upon those who came before us.
The Foundation represents the sustained commitment of generations of
Philadelphia lawyers dedicated to making the promise of equal justice a reality. Thank you for your support, and
join now with our new President
Edward F. Chacker in continuing to
believe in the most fundamental values
of our system of justice.
Gerald A. McHugh Jr., a partner with Litvin, Blumberg,
Matusow and Young, is immediate past-president of the
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Join your Section’s or
Committee’s List Serve to stay
in touch
and keep up to date on
the latest Bar events.Visit
www.philadelphiabar.org
8
Photos by Jeff Lyons
Board of Governors Chair Jane
L. Dalton (left photo) above
reacts after being presented
with a gavel by Immediate-Past
Chancellor Audrey C. Talley to
mark her year as chair. Talley
presented a plaque to Bruce H.
Bikin (right photo) saluting his
service as editor-in-chief of the
Philadelphia Bar Reporter.
Bikin is stepping down after
seven years but will continue
as an advisory editor.
Board OKs 4th Bias Measure
by Jeff Lyons
The Board of Governors has unanimously approved a resolution urging
the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to
take action to address gender bias in
family law matters.
The resolution calls for required
training of all judicial personnel on
gender bias, substantive family law
areas such as domestic violence, custody, divorce, and support, the nature
of domestic violence, including safety
issues for families affected by domestic
violence, cultural issues affecting victims, domestic violence among same
sex partners, male victims, communications training regarding persons
with limited English proficiency or
with communications disabilities, and
financial equity issues surrounding
divorce.
According to Lynn A. Marks, cochair of the Bar Association’s Special
Committee to Coordinate the Bar’s
Response to the Supreme Court Racial
and Gender Bias Report and
Recommendations, the resolution is
the fourth on this issue that has been
approved by the Board. The action
came at the Board’s Dec. 18 meeting,
its last under Chancellor Audrey C.
Talley.
The resolution also urges the
Supreme Court to:
• Conduct and publish audits of the
allocation of funding and personnel to
family law matters in each judicial district.
• Conduct and publish audits of
Pennsylvania Common Pleas Courts
pursuant to the Trial Court
Performance Standards published by
the National Center for State Courts.
• Take steps to ensure that all
courts handling family law matters
provide pro se litigants with written
and oral information and the necessary forms to represent themselves in
custody, support, protection from
abuse, and divorce proceedings,
including in appropriate languages
where necessary for limited English
proficient litigants; adjudicate cases in
a timely fashion; ensure safe courthouses and courtrooms; support on
site social services in domestic relations proceedings; explore ways to
provide child care for litigants and
parties in or in proximity to the court
house; develop safe visitation centers;
support evening and weekend operations; and support the provision of
facilities and assignment of sufficient
personnel to accomplish all of the
above-mentioned goals.
The resolution also urges the Supreme Court to seek and allocate funds
to support the actions.
In other matters, the Board heard
reports on the state of pro bono activities from the Business Law Section,
Family Law Section, Probate and Trust
Law Section, Workers’ Compensation
Section, Large Firm Committee and the
Delivery of Legal Services Committee.
The Board also heard impassioned
pleas from Leonard A. Busby, chair of
the board of Philadelphia Volunteers
for the Indigent Program, and VIP
Bar Now
Hot Spot
for Wi-Fi
The Philadelphia Bar Association
headquarters on the 11th floor of
1101 Market St. is now a Wi-Fi hot
spot.
This means that members and
other visitors to the Association’s
meeting rooms and offices can now
make a wireless connection to the
Internet from their laptops and personal digital assistants (PDAs).
Hot spots are frequently sought by
professionals, students and business
travelers and are becoming increasingly common at hotels, airports, coffee shops, bookstores and other
venues.
Wi-Fi is now the term of art for
such wireless connections. Hot spots
are places that enable Wi-Fi.
According to Patrick Lo, CEO of
NetGear, Wi-Fi will quickly become as
common as cell phones. Lo notes that
“wireless has always been the preferred choice for connections because
it’s flexible and easy to install.” But
relatively high costs and hardware
that did not come with built-in wireless capability prevented a mass move
to wireless. Now, the cost of chips has
dropped and Pcs and PDA are being
produced with Wi-Fi built it. Lo calls
it the latest cyber “revolution.”
The hot spot is the newest Association service extended to members
and guests. Next time you come to
the Bar Association offices for a meeting try your wireless connection.
Anyone with a wireless network
card in their laptop can use the
Association’s wireless network for
Internet access. Access is available on
both the 10th and 11th floors in all
the meeting spaces at Bar Association
headquarters.
Business Lawyers Needed for LawWorks Program
by Steve Grumm
Philadelphia LawWorks is a business
law pro bono program that matches
attorneys with community groups,
nonprofits, and small businesses. LawWorks’ primary goal is to find volunteer attorneys willing to provide free
legal services to individuals and organizations that serve low-income communities or serve the public interest in
some other way, but that may not be
able to afford private counsel. Having
legal services provided on a pro bono
basis allows these organizations to
focus more resources on working with-
For more information
For more information about LawWorks,
contact Steve Grumm at Philadelphia
VIP at (215) 523-9562 or by e-mail at
[email protected].
in their own communities.
The LawWorks project resulted from
a collaboration among the Business
Section of the Philadelphia Bar
Association, Philadelphia Volunteers
for the Indigent Program (VIP), and
numerous other public interest law
agencies in the region. In 2001, several
attorneys in the Philadelphia Bar from private practice, the public interest arena, and academia - recognized
that numerous community groups and
businesses serving local neighborhoods needed legal services but could
not afford them. In addition, there
were many local business and transactional attorneys who were searching
for an outlet to put their expertise to
use doing pro bono work. LawWorks
serves as a conduit through which
business attorneys can provide much
needed pro bono services in our local
communities.
LawWorks operates under the
umbrella of Philadelphia VIP. For
more than 20 years, VIP has been the
cornerstone organization for pro bono
services in Philadelphia. LawWorks
serves a similar function, except that
this project is devoted solely to aiding
community groups and small businesses with transactional legal needs.
LawWorks’ clients have an array of
legal needs, ranging from specific taxation, employment, and real estate law
questions, to more general corporate
law issues. A client may request an
attorney to help review a lease or may
need assistance in incorporating as a
9
U.S. District Court Senior Judge Louis H. Pollak is applauded as he accepts the Association’s
William J. Brennan Distinguished Jurist Award,
Lawrence J. Fox (left) chats with Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice William H. Lamb prior
to the Annual Meeting. Fox received the Association’s Wachovia Fidelity Award.
by Bruce H. Bikin
Three giants of the Philadelphia
legal community were honored at the
Association’s Annual Meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 9 at the Park Hyatt Philadelphia at the Bellevue with three of the
Association’s top awards.
U.S. District Court Senior Judge
Louis H. Pollak was honored with the
Association’s William J. Brennan Distinguished Jurist Award; former Chancellor Harold Cramer was presented
with the Bar Medal; and Lawrence J.
Fox, a partner with Drinker, Biddle &
Reath LLP, was honored with the
Association’s Wachovia Fidelity Award.
Judge Pollak told the audience that
receiving the Brennan Award was
“extraordinarily gratifying.” He commented that he was not certain he was
worthy, saying he was just a man who
“tries to do his job and has been doing
it for a long time.”
Speaking of Justice Brennan, Judge
Pollack said, “Brennan’s achievement is
almost matchless.” He recalled for the
association members an awards dinner
he had attended in 1989 in which the
speaker had said of Brennan, “There
are two great symbols of liberty in
America. One of those is the gracious
lady in the harbor (referring to the
Statue of Liberty). The other is Justice
Brennan.”
The Brennan Award recognizes a
jurist who adheres to the highest ideals
of judicial service.
Judge Pollak was appointed to the
federal bench in 1978. He left his position as dean of the University of
Pennsylvania Law School to serve on
the court. He had previously been a
dean at Yale Law School from 1965 to
1970. He led affirmative action efforts
10
at both institutions that resulted in the
admission of significant numbers of
minority students, and he is credited
with creating an environment that
allowed their success.
Judge Pollak received the American
Bar Association’s Spirit of Excellence
Award earlier last year at the ABA’s
Midyear Meeting in Seattle.
U.S. Supreme Court Justice William
J. Brennan Jr. was the first recipient of
the award in 1995. Other recipients of
the award, which is now named in
honor of Justice Brennan, include the
following: Judge Alex Bonavitacola of
the Philadelphia Court of Common
Pleas (1996), Judge Phyllis W. Beck of
the Pennsylvania Superior Court (1997),
Chief Judge Edward R. Becker of the
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third
Circuit (1998), Judge Louis C. Bechtle of
the U.S. District Court for the Eastern
District of Pennsylvania (1999), Chief
Judge James T. Giles of the U.S. District
Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (2000), and Justice Russell M.
Nigro of the Pennsylvania Supreme
Court (2002). The Brennan Award was
not given in 2001.
Harold Cramer received the Bar
Medal for his work as a driving force
in promoting and maintaining the
Jenkins Law Library. He described Jenkins as “the Colt .45 of western days. It
is the great equalizer.” He said Jenkins
allows small and solo practitioners to
have access to the cases and laws on
an equal footing with lawyers in the
largest firms. Cramer said he “was flabbergasted” to receive the Bar Medal.
Cramer served as Chancellor of the
Association in 1972 and is a retired
partner with Schnader Harrison Segal
& Lewis LLP. He currently serves as the
president of the board of the Jenkins
Association Honors
Three Bar Legends
Immediate-Past Chancellor Audrey C. Talley presents the Association’s Bar Medal to former
Chancellor Harold Cramer.
Law Library.
Previous Bar Medal recipients have
included U.S. District Court Senior
Judge Charles R. Weiner, former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge, former mayor
and current Pennsylvania Gov. Edward
G. Rendell and the late Third Circuit
Court of Appeals Judge A. Leon Higginbotham Jr.
Fox, recipient of the Wachovia Fidelity Award, remarked that even though
he had gotten the award he was disappointed to discover he was “still subject
to the billing guidelines… the bank
has.”
On a more serious note, Fox told
the Association members that Congress
has passed legislation, and the attorney
general has imposed restrictions that
“interfere in the lawyer-client relationship in ways we couldn’t have ever
imagined. The idea that people have to
turn on their clients, the idea that
lawyers’ conversations with their
clients will be monitored is shocking.”
He finished by saying that there is “no
better place than the Philadelphia Bar
Association to take a leadership role in
resisting this, in speaking out against it
and in turning back this tide.”
The Wachovia Fidelity Award has
been presented annually by the Association since 1966 to an individual who
has made significant accomplishments
in improving the administration of justice. Previous winners have included
Henry T. Reath (1974), Morris L. Forer
(1978), Lewis H. Van Dusen Jr. (1980),
John Rogers Carroll (1981), Frank J.
Benasutti and Michael A. Bloom (1983),
Seymour I. Toll (1984), Carl Oxholm III
(1987), Francis P. Devine III (1988), William H. Brown III (1990), Alba MartinezVelez (1991), David N. Hofstein and
Mary Gay Scanlon (1994), Suzanne E.
Turner and Bruce A. Franzel (1996),
Gerald A. McHugh Jr. and Joseph A.
Torregrossa (1997), Andre L. Dennis
(1998), William H. Ewing (1999), Robert
C. Heim (2001) and Barbara Sicalides
(2002). The award was not presented in
1986.
Lunardi a Fixture at Association Elections
Henry J. Lunardi has been overseeing Bar Association elections for more than 20 years.
1986, when he missed the election
because he was in the hospital recovering from kidney surgery. Bennett G.
Picker was being installed as the new
Chancellor and found the time to stop
by the hospital to see Lunardi, as did
Shear, on the Association’s busiest day.
And according to Shear, Lunardi has
added an additional level of credibility
to the elections and nobody has ever
questioned the integrity of the process.
Lunardi’s involvement in the
Association started 28 years ago, when
he was an associate working for
Charles Peruto. Lunardi volunteered for
the Association’s 1976 American bicentennial Committee and was asked by
the late Judge Fred DiBona to get
involved in the Annual Election. He
spent his first years on the committee
resetting the voting machines and was
asked to co-chair the Elections Procedure Committee. He began chairing the
Committee in 1982.
He explains that at the beginning of
his involvement he was terrified. “I felt
it was a tremendous responsibility and
that every candidate or chairman of a
large firm could ruin my career somehow.” In 1984, Lunardi decided to see
what it was like to stand at the other
end of the election tables and ran for
the Board of Governors. He had just
finished a two-year term as Chancellor
of The Justinian Society but lost that
first bid for the Board. He ran again the
next year and spent three years on the
Board of Governors.
He chaired the 1988 Bench-Bar
Conference and was entertaining
thoughts of a Chancellor race of his
own, when he was asked to join a
practice in Delaware County with Leo
Sereni (now a Delaware County Court
of Common Pleas judge). Despite the
move, Lunardi says he always saw
himself as a Philadelphia lawyer who
simply happened to be working in
Delaware County and continued his
work as chair of the Association’s
Elections Procedure Committee.
Lunardi, who has been in practice
for 33 years, spent 10 of those years as
solicitor for Darby Township and Darby
Borough. He now lives in Plymouth
Meeting and is the proud father of
three grown children. And although we
now him as “Hank,” he also goes by
While many things about the
Association’s Annual Election have
changed during the past 28 years, one
constant has been Henry J. Lunardi, the
long-time chair of the Elections Procedures Committee. Known as “Hank” to
all, Lunardi has become somewhat of
an institution at the annual event.
He has been there to go over the
rules when the candidates pick their
ballots, weeks before the elections; to
inspect the machines before the voting
starts; to calm the candidates with his
witty banter during election days; and
to announce the results in his trademark booming voice when the voting
is over.
Get him talking and you’ll hear
tales of elections past, like the time a
voting machine started to smoke. Lunardi is a walking history of the past 25
years of Association politics and talks
about Chancellor races the way a
sports announcer discusses famous
boxing matches, like David Marion v.
Jerry Richter; Mike Rainone v. Sy
Kurland, and Don Marino v. Pat Ryan.
Often using Association Executive
Director Ken Shear as a straight man
and fact checker (“Kenny, what year
was that?”), Lunardi holds court on
election days like an ambassador.
Lunardi’s favorite memory is from
Photo by Jeff Lyons
by Molly Peckman
Chancellor Gabriel L.I. Bevilacqua visits with Chancellor-Elect Andrew A. Chirls (left) and
Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Sandra Mazer Moss before the Dec. 9 Annual
Meeting.
BEVILACQUA
grapple with addictions, find themselves in physical or mental distress for
one reason or another or face serious
family problems.”
• Greater monetary support for the
Bar’s Lawyer Referral and Information
Service (LRIS) and its award-winning
pro bono program, Philadelphia VIP,
which helps those who cannot afford
legal help.
• A new Association Litigation
Section exclusively for litigators.
“Our civil litigators (representing
both the plaintiff and the defense bar)
are obvious in their absence from section status. This will be an important
step toward inclusion and communication within this segment of the bar, and
between this new section and the rest
Chancellor Gabriel L.I. Bevilacqua and his wife, Phyllis, and son, Patrick, before the Annual
Meeting. Not pictured is Bevilacqua’s other son, Gabriel Jr., who was taking an exam at
graduate school and could not attend the event.
of us,” he said.
• A completely new Association Web
site with more content, new services,
and greater usefulness to the profession and the public.
• Reinstitution of an annual BenchBar Conference to bring lawyers and
judges together “for a full dialogue on
a broad range of issues.”
Bevilacqua called on his colleagues
to play significant, active roles in the
life of the city and use their experience
and talents to help better the lives of
others. He reminded them of their economic clout. “We are an historic, vital
and vibrant part of this city and region.
To be sure, the Philadelphia legal community is on the cutting edge of the
region’s service economy and we are
essential to the economic well-being of
greater Philadelphia. Let us stand for
something,” he concluded.
11
Chancellor-Elect Andrew A. Chirls (from left) is joined by Kevin P. Ray, former Board of Governors Chair Jeffrey
M. Lindy, Alison S. Coleman and Lenore F. Carpenter at the Committee on the Legal Rights of Lesbians and Gay
Men’s 7th Annual Holiday Party on Dec. 8. Lindy was presented with the Committee’s Cheryl A. Ingram
Advocate for Justice Award. Ray and Carpenter were co-chairs of the Committee in 2003, and Carpenter is a cochair in 2004.
Photo by Jeff Lyons
Tax Section Chair Stanley J. Kull, Vice-Chair Barbara W. Freedman (left)
and former Chair Wendi L. Kotzen enjoy the festivities at the Section’s
Annual Dinner on Dec. 4 at the Four Seasons Hotel.
Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice Sandra Schultz Newman (center) meets with incoming
Family Law Section Chair Carolyn M. Zack and Immediate-Past Chair David J. Steerman on
Dec. 8 at the Park Hyatt Philadelphia at the Bellevue. Justice Newman was honored with the
annual Family Law Section Award.
Photo by Mark A. Tarasiewicz
Photo by Jeff Lyons
Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Abram Frank Reynolds (left) is joined by incoming
Criminal Justice Section Chair Judith F. Rubino and Immediate-Past Chair Matthew Perks on
Dec. 17 at Maggiano’s Little Italy. Judge Reynolds received the Section’s annual Justice
Thurgood Marshall Award.
Photo by Jeff Lyons
Photo by Jeff Lyons
Sections, YLD, Committees Hold...
Members of the Probate and Trust Law Section
gathered Dec. 10 at the Kimmel Center for their
annual reception. Shown, from left, are
Philadelphia
Common
Pleas
Court
Administrative Judge for Orphans Court Joseph
D. O’Keefe; Mary Jane Barrett, vice-chair of the
Section; Philadelphia Common Pleas Court
Judge Anne E. Lazarus; Section Chair Marilyn C.
Sanborne; Ronald R. Donatucci, register of wills
for the City of Philadelphia; Louis DiRenzo, chief
probate clerk for the City of Philadelphia; John F.
Raimondi, deputy of litigation for the City of
Philadelphia; and Howard I. Verbofsky, immediate-past section chair.
Exclusive offer for
Philadelphia Bar Association members:
Save up to 50 percent at palawlibrary.com
12
Joanne Phillips, immediate-past chair of the Real Property Section, presents the Section’s
Good Deed Award to John Ball, chair of The Reinvestment Fund, and Donald R. Hinkle-Brown
(right), executive vice president of community development of The Reinvestment Fund. Ball
and Hinkle-Brown accepted the award on behalf of The Reinvestment Fund founder Jeremy
Nowak at the Nov. 13 program at Loews Philadelphia Hotel.
Photo by Jeff Lyons
Photo by Jeff Lyons
...Year-End Events, Distribute Honors
Workers’ Compensation Section Immediate-Past Chairs (from left) Daniel V. DiLoretto,
Judge Pamela Santoro and Christian M. Petrucci pose at the Section’s Annual Party on Dec.
11 at the Pyramid Club. The Section presented its annual Martha Hampton Award to Jeffrey
S. Gross, a former co-chair of the Section.
Marsha L. Levick, immediate-past chair of the Public Interest Section, joins Robert B.
Dunham of the Defender Association of Philadelphia, Federal Court Division along with
Dunham’s grandmother, Naomi Tumarkin, and wife, Ann Kaufmann. Dunham received the
Section’s Andrew Hamilton Award at the Section’s Annual Reception on Dec. 2 at Maggiano’s
Little Italy.
Photo by Mark A. Tarasiewicz
Photo by Jeff Lyons
Photo by Jeff Lyons
Former co-chairs of the Women in the
Profession Committee gathered with the
current leadership at the Committee’s Dec.
18 meeting. Pictured from left are Deborah
Weinstein, Roberta D. Pichini, Kathleen D.
Wilkinson, Jane L. Dalton, Immediate-Past
Chancellor Audrey C. Talley, Elizabeth L.
Bennett, Nicole D. Galli, Rochelle M.
Fedullo and Sayde J. Ladov. Galli and Ladov
are Committee co-chairs for 2004.
Melissa A. Schwartz (from left) immediate-past chair of the Young Lawyers Division, is
joined by YLD members Charles Eppolito III, Nicole Gerson, Workers’ Compensation Judge
and Pennsylvania Bar Association YLD Chair Todd B. Selig, and YLD Chair Kim R. Jessum at
the National Constitution Center on Dec. 4. The event was cosponsored by the YLD, the
Pennsylvania Bar Association YLD and the Montgomery, Delaware, Bucks and Chester
County Bar Associations.
13
Help Spread the Word About YLD Programs
by Kim R. Jessum
It starts with one person.
An associate in your department or,
perhaps, a colleague on another floor.
She sends you an e-mail inviting you
to volunteer time for a Young Lawyers
Division (YLD) service program. You’ve
been looking for a way to get more
active in your local Bar Association
(and, perhaps, help your own marketing plan). So you take the plunge and
sign up.
Before you know it, you have made
dozens of new friends at law firms and
offices across the city. Best of all, you
have the satisfaction of knowing that
you made a difference in your profession and your career.
I now invite you to become that
person. Help us spread the word.
As this year’s chair of the YLD, my
goal is to provide more opportunities
for young lawyers to get involved in
and benefit from the Philadelphia Bar
Association. As set forth in our bylaws,
the YLD shall promote and preserve
the interests of young lawyers. In furtherance of its general purposes, it
shall provide, among other things, a
forum for the exchange of views
among young lawyers; encourage the
professional development of young
Y L D U P D AT E
lawyers through educational and service programs; participate in the
growth and advancement of the legal
profession; and interest and encourage
young lawyers to participate in the
general activities of the Philadelphia
Bar Association.
“How will the YLD benefit me?” you
might ask. The benefits are numerous
and can be outlined using a model by
Betty Lou Bettner and Amy Lew, two
renowned psychologists, known as the
4 Crucial C’s model:
CONNECT
CAPABLE
COURAGE
COUNT
First, young lawyers can connect
with the YLD in several different ways.
There are numerous existing programs
of which young lawyers can take advantage, including fun social events,
networking opportunities and professional and community service programs. Via a list serve sent once a
week, the YLD keeps you informed of
all the YLD events and other interesting happenings in the community.
Young lawyers are always invited to
attend the YLD monthly happy hours
at popular establishments throughout
the city; ZooBoolee, an annual family
event at the Philadelphia Zoo held
each October that brings three generations of lawyers together for an afternoon of costume contests, face-painting, animal displays and a silent auction; and annual summer and holiday
parties.
For the first time this year, the YLD
will hold a “Black & White” gala event
on Saturday, April 17, 2004, to raise
funds for the Philadelphia Bar Foundation. This black-tie-optional event will
provide a setting for young lawyers, as
well as more senior lawyers, to get
together for one night in a social setting. All attendees will be able to dance
the night away and bid until their
hearts are content at the silent auction.
This is sure to be an event you do not
want to miss! Stay tuned for details!
Another way to connect to the YLD
is to get involved in the mentoring
program, which matches younger
lawyers and law students with more
experienced lawyers. This program
provides young lawyers with mentors
outside of their firms who can discuss
career, family, and just about anything
else. The same young lawyers may also
request to mentor law students to help
direct them in their career choices or
deal with the stresses of law school.
Second, the YLD will provide training for young lawyers that will allow
them to be capable attorneys. This
training can be acquired through any
pro bono activity or CLE program offered by the YLD. This year, we plan to
have at least one CLE program geared
specifically toward young lawyers.
Third, the YLD welcomes you and
provides you the courage to get
involved in any of the YLD activities.
The YLD offers you the opportunities
and just asks that you volunteer or
attend an event. If you are willing to
volunteer or attend just one event, I
am confident that you will want to
continue with your efforts and volunteer again. Your involvement in the
YLD need not require full-time commitment, but only a few hours per
Students Experience Drama of Lindbergh Trial
by Sheryl L. Axelrod
Each year, the Young
Lawyers Division, in conjunction with the Law Education
and Participation Program of
the Temple University James
E. Beasley School of Law, puts
on a Mock Trial Camp for
Philadelphia public and
parochial high school students. Students attend the
camp as a precursor to their
participation in the John S.
Bradway High School Mock
Trial Competition. In the competition, teams from each of
the participating schools are
paired together to advocate
opposing positions in fullfledged mock trials. Each team
performs its opening and
closing arguments, the roles
of its witnesses and its direct
and cross examinations. Rules
of evidence govern the trials
that are put on before lawyers
who sit as their jurors and
scorekeepers. Students participate in the camp in advance
of the competition to learn
how to conduct trials.
14
Temple LEAP’s Gwen Stern (right) and Bill Henley, a meteorologist with WCAU-TV10 (left) meet with students
from Central High School at the Mock Trial Camp.
Approximately 200 people
attended the camp, which was
held in the newly renovated
Moot Court Room at the law
school on Nov. 22. Introductory and welcoming remarks
were provided by trial lawyer
James E. Beasley, Philadelphia
Common Pleas Court President Judge Frederica A. Massiah-Jackson and former U.S.
Attorney and current Phillies’
Vice President Michael R.
Stiles. Each speaker discussed
the presentation of opening
arguments and answered
questions from the students.
To bring the speakers’ discussion to life, the students
were treated to a spectacular
reenactment of a condensed
version of the Lindbergh Trial,
beginning with the opening
arguments made in the trial.
As many will recall, although
Bruno Hauptman was the
defendant in the case, the
matter was called “the
Lindbergh trial” because
Hauptman was accused of the
kidnap and murder of the
infant son of American millionaires Charles and Anne
Lindbergh. New Jersey Attorney General David Wilentz
charged that Hauptman kid-
napped the boy from the
upstairs of the Lindbergh
home. A ladder was found
next to the window where the
baby had been, and Wilentz
argued that Hauptman
climbed the ladder, struck the
infant dead and left with the
child in his arms.
The controversial trial
seized the attention of the
American public. As the first
person to fly solo across the
Atlantic Ocean, Charles
Lindbergh was seen as a hero
and the country deeply grieved the loss of his young son.
At the time the trial began in
1935, anti-German sentiment
was rampant in this country.
Hauptman, who was of
German decent, was vilified in
the American press, which
couched the trial in terms of a
clash between the forces of
good and evil.
In performing the opening
arguments, William Banton
acted as the prosecutor and
James E. Beasley Jr. as counsel
for Hauptman. Counsel were
PROFESSIONAL GUIDANCE
Editor’s note: The following are summaries
of opinions issued by the Professional
Guidance Committee. The committee’s jurisdiction is limited to rendering opinions about
prospective ethical conduct by inquirers who
are members of the Philadelphia Bar
Association. The letter “T” following an opinion number indicates a telephone inquiry.
Attorneys who wish to ask a question, obtain
copies of committee opinions or ask the committee to research a matter should contact Paul
Kazaras, the Association’s assistant executive
director, at (215) 238-6328.
Summarized by David I. Grunfeld
2003-7 Paying a referral fee to a
treating physician who is also an active
attorney can often pose a conflict of
interest that may not be waivable.
2003-14 Referral fee may be paid to
now-disbarred attorney if attorney was
on active status at time of referral and
matter is not the one as to which attorney was disciplined. However, second
attorney may have duty to report
referring attorney to Disciplinary Board
as to improper advances to client, with
client’s informed consent.
MOCK TRIAL
provided with exhibits including
an actual ladder like the one
Hauptman was charged with
using and an enlarged picture of
the infant victim. As Banton and
Beasley made their opening
arguments, they went through
these exhibits in electrifying performances that kept the students
riveted to their seats.
The students were then divided into small breakout groups to
discuss what they had seen. YLD
volunteers got feedback from the
students and used the performances as a springboard to
explain how to put opening
arguments together.
At lunch, the students were
treated to a film clip of
Hauptman’s actual cross examination by Wilentz. Pennsylvania
State Sen. Connie Williams then
spoke about the trial, which was
particularly exciting because
Wilentz was her grandfather.
The afternoon session featured direct and cross examinations of trial witnesses reenacted
in front of U.S. District Court
Judge Legrome D. Davis, who
treated the students to introductory remarks on trial work.
MaryKay Schwemmer then conducted the direct examination of
2003-172T Attorney who represented partnership that is now dissolving
may not be able to represent one partner relative to the dissolution if others
considered the attorney to be their
individual attorney in partnership
matters.
2003-179T No conflict when opposing counsel and judge were partners in
same firm 30 years ago, due to passage
of time.
2003-183T Attorney admitted in
New Jersey only may put name on letterhead of Pennsylvania firm provided
it is delineated as admitted in New
Jersey only.
2003-190T Attorney who took matter for evaluation only and then
declines representation may refuse to
return copies of documents, but should
assure client as to confidentiality.
2003-201T Attorney may have client
sign judgment note to secure payment
of divorce services out of proceeds of
personal injury case, provided there is
compliance with Rule 1.8a.
2003-211T When adversary party in
divorce, who is an attorney, admits
forging checks and documents, there is
a duty to report it to the Disciplinary
Board, with client’s informed consent
(advising of impact upon financials).
2003-219T Attorney whose client
Anne Lindbergh, showing the
witness her baby’s pajamas in a
demonstration of the fragile life
that had been lost. Temple
LEAP’s Trial Training Skills
Director Gwen Stern then performed the direct examination of
Dr. John Condon, a critical witness who claimed to have acted
as a go between for the Lindberghs and their son’s kidnapper.
When she was through, Condon
seemed beyond reproach, that is,
until Joyce Webb Eubanks conducted his shrewd cross-examination. Next, the students got to
see Assistant District Attorney
Carlos Vega expertly conduct
Haupt-man’s direct examination
and Bucks County Common
Pleas Court Judge Mitchell Goldberg meticulously dissect his testimony through cross examination.
The students brought the
excitement of the examinations
back to their breakout sessions
where they were filled with
questions for YLD volunteers. It
was the perfect segue into a discussion of different trial advocacy techniques and how to develop direct and cross examinations.
When the students were finished the breakout sessions, they
returned to the Moot Court
Room to hear counsel’s closing
has died has no standing to agree to or
oppose adverse spouse’s petition re:
support order.
2003-226T Attorney who was
unsuccessful in withdrawing from representation in case about to go to trial
must pay for physician deposition if
fee agreement provides for attorney to
advance costs and deposition is
required for proper handling of the
case.
2003-228T Attorney with bad paying
client may take judgment note provided there is compliance with Rule 1.8a.
2003-233T Attorney who writes to
adverse counsel may not carbon copy
adverse counsel’s client on the letter,
except for requirement by statute when
issuing settlement check.
2003-267T It is permissible to write
to former client with outstanding bill
threatening to sue client.
2003-242T Attorneys in same firm,
one who represents consumer in bankruptcy, and the other who represents
creditor, have imputed conflict under
Rule 1.10a, which can probably be
waived by both clients.
2003-255T There is no prohibition
against threatening criminal prosecution in a civil matter, provided there is
an actual criminal remedy and present
intent with client approval to do so if
matter is not settled.
2003-260T Attorney ethically may
send announcement letters to former
clients of old firm, on whose cases
attorney worked. However, tortious
interference issues might be present.
2003-265T Attorney who did estate
planning for one partner of same-sex
couple may represent that partner in a
cohabitation agreement, but may not
represent both.
2003-273T Estate of deceased attorney with funds in IOLTA account available for distribution should hire counsel on a temporary basis to review files
and handle distributions.
2003-281T Attorney who is also an
R.N. may note same on business cards
if true.
2003-290T Partner in law firm who
takes flat fee in criminal case and
deposits it in his own personal rather
than firm account could have ethical
problem in nature of embezzlement.
2003-301T Law firms may practice
under trade names pursuant to RPC
7.5.
2003-334T Attorneys with other
licenses degrees (e.g., engineer) may list
them on business card.
David I. Grunfeld, a sole practitioner, is a member of the
Professional Guidance Committee.
arguments. Robert Rovner made
an impassioned, emotional case
for the prosecution and after
which Andrew Stern responded
with a thoughtful, tailored closing that put into question each
component of that case.
Interestingly, the students voted
to acquit Hauptman, who in the
actual trial had been convicted.
Volunteers who participated
in the camp were YLD ChairElect Natalie Klyashtorny, YLD
Financial Secretary Scott Sigman,
current YLD Executive Committee members Michael E. Adler,
Francis Fattah, Michael Hayes
and Alan Nochumson as well as
Charles Eppolito III, chair-elect
of the Pennsylvania Bar Association YLD, Shanese Johnson,
May Mon Post, Harper J. Dimmerman, Kimberly K. Heuer, Paul
Kaufman, Micah Knapp, Dan
Rovner, Workers Compensation
Bureau Judge Todd B. Seelig and
Heather Tereshko.
The Young Lawyers Division
would also like to thank Gwen
Stern, Roberta West and Elenora
Jones of Temple LEAP and Karen
Forman, director of the Public
Interest Law Center of Philadelphia for assembling the panel of
volunteer attorneys and judges.
week, month or year. If YLD events conflict with spending time with your family, consider bringing them to an
event, such as Habitat for the Humanity, where volunteers help to build houses, or Harvest for the Homeless,
where volunteers sort clothing and other donated items
and bring them to local shelters. There is an activity for
anyone who wants to get involved!
Finally, if you want to make a difference and count in
your profession and the community, take advantage of
the many community service programs offered by the
YLD. Give back to the community and help develop your
networking skills. You will gain invaluable contacts with
members of the community and fellow volunteers.
Volunteers are always needed. This year, we plan to
help our local heroes, including firefighters and police,
by implementing a Wills for Heroes program. This program will provide free wills to these emergency personnel who lack basic estate plans. Any attorney will be able
to participate in this project, since form wills will be provided.
Even if you do not have much time to spare, you
should consider volunteering for LegalLine P.M., a onenight commitment on the third Wednesday of each
month, to provide free legal advice over the telephone,
or Law Fair, held during Law Week in May, to provide
free legal advice in person for an hour or two.
I look forward to meeting those of you who want to
get involved and working with those who are already
involved in the YLD. If you have any questions or want
more information about the YLD, please contact the Bar
Association at (215) 238-6300 or visit the Web site at
www.philadelphiabar.org.
Sheryl L. Axelrod, an associate with Comroe
Hing LLP, just completed her term on the Young
Lawyers Division Executive Committee.
Kim R. Jessum, an associate at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, LLP, is chair of the
Young Lawyers Division Executive Committee. She can be reached at
[email protected].
YLD UPDATE
15
Bar Signs
3-Year Deal
With JuriStaff
The Association has penned an
additional three-year exclusive contract
with JuriStaff, Inc., making JuriStaff its
sole career planning and placement
service.
The Bar Association first partnered
with JuriStaff in April 1999. Since then,
a mutually prosperous relationship has
grown between the two organizations.
The new agreement reflects the benefits
JuriStaff has been able to extend to
members of the Association and focuses on its increased attention to working
with the specialized areas of the Bar’s
membership.
Specializing in the legal staffing of
attorneys, paralegals, legal secretaries
and support staff firm, JuriStaff provides access to temporary, temporaryto-permanent, part-time and permanent employment opportunities.
JuriStaff has six attorneys on staff
providing a full range of career planning services to the employee member.
In addition to assisting clients with
where and how to look for a job in the
legal arena, recruiters will work with
clients to perfect their resumes, refine
interview skills and solidify their salary
negotiating skills.
A wide variety of free services are
also available to employer members.
On top of the basic service of listing
job openings on its Web site, JuriStaff
recruiters aide legal employers with
hiring decisions; including salary
ranges, structuring compensation plans,
Career Corner
Job Market Showed Growth in 2003
by James LaRosa and Gary Mintz
As we start a new year, it is always
interesting to take a few moments to
reflect back on the year that just
passed. As far as the legal market was
concerned, it appears that 2003 was
better than 2002 and 2001; of course, it
depends on with who you are speaking. From the perspective of a legal
recruiter, however, it appears there
were more opportunities than there
were in the two previous years.
In a totally non-scientific, anecdotal
survey of the Philadelphia legal market,
this is what we saw in 2003:
Practice areas
• Growth in commercial, products
liability (especially mass tort and pharmaceutical litigation), securities,
antitrust, white collar and IP litigation.
• Continued growth in bankruptcy
and intellectual property.
• Continued growth in corporate
governance and compliance-type work.
• Continued growth in labor and
employment.
• Growth, especially in the third and
fourth quarter, in commercial real
estate and land use.
• Some growth opportunities in the
traditionally low growth area of insurance defense.
• Declines, and feared further
declines, in medical malpractice.
• Corporate transactional work
appeared to stay slow, with small
growth in the 4th quarter.
2003 was that many of the large firms
continued to be extremely cautious
about lateral associate hiring. We saw
much more aggressive hiring, however,
from mid-size and small firms. This
was true with both contingency firms
and hourly billing firms.
We continued to be told about very
aggressive cost-cutting measures at
firms of all sizes, including lower raises
and bonuses, as well as a decline in the
type and amount of employer-provided benefits.
Corporate legal departments
Corporate legal departments, like
large firms, have continued to show
caution in hiring or growing. This is
true even though many corporate legal
departments in publicly traded companies have seen their workloads grow as
Sarbanes-Oxley, and related compliance matters, need to be addressed. But
many corporate legal departments
have not seen their budgets keep up
with the increase in the work.
Lateral partners
Lateral partner movement continues
to the preferred method of growth for
many firms. Most firms have a wish list
of the practice areas they would like to
strengthen or acquire. Although firms
always seem willing to consider opportunities presented by lateral partners
with business or practice groups, most
firms have also become much more
sophisticated in their methods of due
diligence. It also seems like the trend
now is “when in doubt”, don’t do the
deal, whereas in the recent past, firms
would often make moves that in hindsight they wish they would have listened to their doubts.
Contract attorneys
We have continued to see growth in
the use of contract attorneys. Corporate
legal departments continue to provide
some of the most interesting opportunities for attorneys seeking contract
work. Law firms, especially those involved in complex litigation matters, also
continue to use contract attorneys to
assist them in particularly busy times.
James LaRosa, Esq. and Gary Mintz, Esq. are recruiters
with JuriStaff, Inc., the exclusively endorsed legal staffing
agency of the Philadelphia Bar Association. LaRosa can
be reached at (215) 751-9100, extension 302 or via email at [email protected]; Mintz can be reached at
(215) 751-9100, extension 315 or via e-mail at
[email protected].
Law firms
Our experience with law firms in
M. Burr Keim
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Touch
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and get the latest Bar Association
news in your e-mail every Monday
To sign up for this free service,
16
Inventive Combinations Mark Django
Django
526 S. 4th St. (near South)
(215) 922-7151
by Skinny D. Bockol
Django’s accoutrements are visible
through its entranceway’s glass-faced
door and adjoining storefront window.
Sunset-colored walls provide a playground for a multitude of farraginous
posters, including, inter alia “Charlie
Chaplin,” “Tabarin” and “The Wizard of
Oz.” Look closely; there’s the color of
emerald green somewhere in every one
of them.
Tables in this small hallway-shaped
restaurant are covered in white cloths,
over which have been draped another
layer of linen with blue flower prints.
Waitpersons (almost all women) wear
aprons over street clothes. The aprons’
prints emulate that of the top tablecloth. Miniscule glass lamps are illuminated with the smallest of candles.
A brioche baked in a flowerpot
arrives. Its bulb-shaped bread, redolent
of crusty wheat, reminds one of the
contraption used by Dorothy in her
attempt to return from Munchkinland
to Kansas. Beside the bread is an
upside-down porcelain butler urn
whose purpose could be to wet a
morsel of brioche, or shine ruby slippers.
Married owners Bryan Sikora and
Aimee Olexy provide “monthly”
menus, using the most luscious local
produce as staples for the freshest fare.
Bryan has plenary power for plating
the first courses and entrée courses,
while Aimee is benignly dictatorial in
designing, describing and hand-delivering desserts.
Both November’s and December’s
menu included saffron and sherry
infused mussel bisque, salt cod fritters,
and herb olive oil ($7). An unimpeded
wintry wind would have to be wafting
between your ears not to order this
soup. Cruelly creamy olive-colored liquid languishes in a low bowl until
your silver soupspoon dabbles its tranquility. A heated mouthful is transported to your lips, with your eyes measuring the spoon’s capacity. Those same
eyes shut dreamily as your tongue is
bathed by diluvial flavors hinting at
mussel broth and a shameless soupcon
of sherry. A cod fritter is delicately
chewed, escaping down your throat
after a burst of a scintilla of saltiness.
One’s medulla remains coated with a
satin aftertaste.
For fear of writer’s gout, I will not
mention this first course: “Game tart,”
braised boar, venison, pearl onions,
pastry, fried quail egg and foie gras
sauce ($12) except to say (1) its aromas
will leave you breathless; (2) its chunks
of “beef” will take “game-playing” to
new meaning; and (3) its warm concentrated egg yolk in lively livery foie
gras gravy will make your knees tremble and your ankles yearningly ache.
I would refrain from the curried
scallop and pistachio terrine, pesto of
fines herbes, rice chips and pistachio
sauce ($9). This is not an ample first
course, and evokes “interesting” in a
jello-jiggly risible way. It may be that
scallops are better left hurriedly uncurried, and never matched with pistachio
paste and pesto of high-fallutin’ “fines
herbes.” This item, which appeared first
in December, should be lost for
January as a New Year’s resolution. But,
as the old adage goes: “He who never
made a mistake, never made a discovery.”
“Inventive combinations” is the
expression most used to differentiate
Bryan Sikora’s cooking from chefs with
voids of imagination. He almost always
succeeds. His entrée course offerings
F E A S T S TO F A M I N E
JANUARY
CLE COURSES
are astonishingly comestible.
For instance, if you’re a placid
17
Is Another Joe McCarthy Ready to Appear?
by Bruce H. Bikin
History has a not-so-funny way of
repeating itself. There was a time in the
nearly rememberable past of our nation that was perceived as a time of a
great evil in the world. We sent men to
war in a small foreign country to fight
the spread of the great evil. Politicians
railed against the great evil as “un-American,” as a destroyer of our freedoms.
The great evil came from a distant land
and Americans did not really understand the evil, and feared what they
did not understand. They were soothed
by the words of politicians who told
them that we could all be safe if we
rooted out the evil that was attacking
our great country from within.
We had a mission. We had to find
that evil, wherever it hid and eradicate
it from our soil. This mission, this
search, this great investigation started
in April 1954 and was the first major
television spectacle of our history. It
was known as the Army/McCarthy
hearings.
In ordinary times, a two-bit demagogue like Joe McCarthy would not
have been able to interest any mainstream political activists or voters in
his decidedly paranoiac delusions of
“commie plots.” But the early 1950s
were decidedly not ordinary times.
Post-war occupied Europe sat divided between the western powers and
the Soviet/communist monolith. Even
the city of Berlin was divided. In
August of 1949 the Soviets had detonated their first atomic bomb. In 1951
Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were convicted of the treasonable offense of
passing American A-bomb secrets to
the Soviets. And then along came Joe
McCarthy, in one of the seminal
moments of television’s history, to tell
us all that there were communists hiding under our beds and in our communities, working to destroy and subvert our values and our way of life.
This turned out to be particularly true
in Hollywood, when harmless playwrights and screenwriters admitted, or
were coerced into admitting, before the
BOARD
Executive Director Sharon Browning,
urging Bar members to take on even
more pro bono work.
Outgoing Chancellor Audrey C.
Talley also presented plaques honoring
Board members whose terms were
ending at the end of December.
Honorees included Daniel-Paul Alva,
Merritt A. Cole, Albert S. Dandridge III,
Glenn F. Hing, Margaret Klaw, Tsiwen
M. Law, Jeffrey M. Lindy, Joseph A. Prim
Jr., Carl S. Primavera, Linda F. Rosen,
Melissa A. Schwartz, Joseph A. Sullivan,
18
COMMENTARY
nation that they had at one time been
members of the American Communist
party. They were then banned forever
from working in the film industry.
Thus came the blacklists.
All this may seem like a rehash of
ancient history, particularly to the large
segment of our membership that has
no personal memory of the times. But
if you read closely, there is a parallel
between the 1950s and today. That parallel lies in the willingness of our citizenry to sacrifice personal liberties for
a sense of momentary safety.
No event in our collective memory
was more shocking or terrifying than
the attacks on us on Sept. 11, 2001.
Seeing those hijacked airplanes slam
into the twin towers of the World Trade
Center and the Pentagon left us
speechless. Watching those towers collapse right before our eyes, killing
thousands, left us numb. Hearing the
stories about those trapped by the
flames on the upper floors choosing to
jump to their deaths rather than burn
made us all weep.
We all still harbor some residual
fears, both rational and irrational, that
something akin to those attacks may
happen again. We mostly do not
understand those events or why they
happened. That fear and confusion and
ignorance makes us vulnerable.
The American people support the
war in Iraq as a vehicle to ensure their
safety and to assure that another “9-11”
never occurs, even though there is no
evidence any Iraqi was involved. There
is rejoicing about the capture of Sad-
dam Hussein, even though there has
yet to be produced the first iota of evidence that Hussein had weapons of
mass destruction or even the remotest
of ties to al-Qaida.
We have not caught Osama bin
Laden and I guess there is fear we may
never. But we can certainly beat up a
fourth-rate army in a fifth-rate dictatorship run by an evil, delusional man.
And we did. And it made us feel good.
But no amount of flexing of our military might in Iraq is going to make us
truly feel safer from the bizarre and
irrational hatreds of the Muslim jihadis
who follow bin Laden. These are people who are willing to blow themselves
up to inflict damage on us. In fact, our
very presence in Iraq has reportedly
attracted thousands of such extremists
into that country just for the opportunity to fight the Great Satan.
This long prelude is not to discuss
the wisdom of U.S. foreign policy, but
rather to share my fears about our
future. I believe the U.S. is currently
ripe for the empowerment of another
Joe McCarthy. That thought scares me.
He may be on the political scene
now, waiting patiently to “morph” into
his new, dynamic persona. He may still
be in the shadows of American political life, learning the craft of fear and
suspicion. But I am convinced he will
come. I am convinced because the people of this country just do not understand why so many Arabs seem to hate
us and they do not understand what
we have ever done to be the object of
such determined hatred. We view ourselves as good people, tolerant people,
kind people. We raise our families. We
help our neighbors. We attend church
or synagogue. We give to the charities
of our choice. If we are all of the things
we believe about ourselves, why do so
many Arabs hate us?
In truth it doesn’t matter why they
hate us. That a sect of one of the
world’s great religions bears the U.S.
such violent animosity, and is willing
to perpetrate such horrific atrocities in
the name of their religious beliefs, may
be beyond our comprehension. We
may understand a Timothy McVeigh.
He was one of us. We may shake our
heads and ask for his life as punishment, but we understand, at least a little, what he was thinking. The jihadis
are a mystery. And their elusiveness
and their will-of-the-wisp existence
frustrates our straightforward nature.
We want to make someone pay. I know
I do.
This is why lawyers, and in particucontinued on page 19
decrescenso
reporting
1/4 page ad
Ralph N. Teeters, Kathleen D. Wilkinson
and Suzanne J. Young.
Talley also presented Board Chair
Jane L. Dalton with a gavel to thank
her for her work in leading the Board
during a busy year. Dalton said that the
Board approved 22 resolutions over the
course of the year.
Talley also recognized and thanked
Bruce H. Bikin, editor-in-chief of the
Philadelphia Bar Reporter, for his years of
service to the publication and Association. Bikin is stepping down as editor-in-chief of the Bar Reporter after
leading the publication since 1997. He
will continue as an advisory editor.
LUNARDI
Judges Visit State Civil Committee
Photo by Jeff Lyons
Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Civil Trial Division Supervising Judge William J.
Manfredi (right) and Common Pleas Court Judge Howland W. Abramson met with
members of the State Civil Committee on Dec. 3 and discussed the state of the court.
The judges also took questions from committee members.
LAWWORKS
non-profit entity and obtaining
501(c)(3) status with the Internal
Revenue Service. Some clients have no
immediate legal needs, but desire an
ongoing relationship with an attorney
who can assist them occasionally when
legal questions arise.
In addition to the pro bono referral
service, LawWorks volunteer attorneys
provide an ongoing series of community education and training seminars.
Here, local business attorneys deliver
presentations to local community
members in a variety of business law
areas. LawWorks’ community education program aims to empower those
who serve our local communities by
“Pop Pop” and carries around framed
photographs of his four grandchildren.
Lunardi also carries photographs of his
son, who is currently stationed in Iraq.
According to Lunardi, the biggest
change in the Association’s elections is
that diversity is much more reflected in
the membership. He said that when the
elections were held at the old Sheraton
at 17th Street and JFK Boulevard, the
candidates were all white men. He said
the Association’s demographics have
changed and it is now a much more
diverse organization.
Other major changes, according to
Lunardi, include advanced technology,
which allows for earlier nights instead
of counting votes until 9 p.m., and the
mail-in ballots, which causes slower
election days. In December’s election,
3,200 votes were received by mail and
only 621 members came out in person.
providing them with a background in
legal issues that are likely to arise in
their everyday activities.
Finally, experienced LawWorks
attorneys provide training to other
local attorneys. This is an excellent
opportunity for attorneys to learn from
an expert, and to find out how they
can put their knowledge to good use
through pro bono work. CLE credits
Lunardi remembers years when he
would see thousands of voters on election day but thinks we will always
need the voting machines. “The in-person voting is too important to the
vitality of the Association to abandon it
completely...and I’d say that if only 100
people showed up,” Lunardi said.
Noting that candidates and their
supporters have been consistently
friendly and cooperative through the
years, Lunardi said that his goal has
been to get the elections done with
minimum fuss and maximum fairness.
He said that the Association staff is
phenomenal and has made it a pleasure.
“I look forward to election day
each year and enjoy spending time
with the staff - many of whom have
become my great friends -- and seeing
people I haven’t seen all year.”
Molly Peckman, director of associate development at
Pepper Hamilton LLP, is a member of the Philadelphia
Bar Reporter Editorial Board.
are available for participation in
LawWorks training seminars.
LawWorks is an exciting new program, presenting many different types
of opportunities for attorneys to lend
their expertise and strengthen our local
communities.
Steve Grumm is the LawWorks coordinator at
Philadelphia VIP.
Palawlibrary.com Discount Available
Palawlibrary.com – the most comprehensive and thorough online legal
research service dedicated to Pennsylvania law – is now available to Philadelphia Bar Association members at special discounted rates.
The new service is now accessible at
www.philadelphiabar.org, where full
details are available.
Palawlibrary.com has more Pennsylvania county court opinions than any
other online legal research tool. Additionally, it searches Pennsylvania court
opinions, legal newspapers (The Legal
Intelligencer and Pennsylvania Law Weekly),
jury verdicts and settlements, trial list-
ings and suit filing information.
The site also features daily court notices, Pennsylvania D&C Reports, and Pennsylvania state and local court rules.
Philadelphia Bar Association members can now save nearly 50 percent off
palawlibrary.com monthly and annual
rates. As an added bonus, Association
members receive exclusive discounts
on Jenkins services, including CLE,
(does not apply to Jenkins membership) and on annual subscriptions to
The Legal Intelligencer, Pennsylvania Law
Weekly and Law Journal newsletters. A
30-day free trial of the service is also
available to members.
COMMENTARY
Constitution shudder. We must be willing to fight for the right to go online
and seek information about whatever
interests us without Big Brother looking over our shoulder. We must be
willing to fight for the right to criticize
the government and its policies without fear of being called “un-American.”
We must be able to converse with our
clients without fears that we will be
required to disclose their secrets under
threat of prison or disbarrment.
Our Constitution is the one protection we have against such tyranny. We
must guard it and protect it and defend
it with all our strength and wisdom.
There is no one else who can or will.
lar the lawyers of this Bar Association,
will be so important to preserving and
protecting the freedoms that are so
fundamental to our way of life. We
must be ready to fight for the rights of
all people against the tide of fear and
suspicion that grows daily in this country and is being exploited by cynical
men and women for political gain. We
must be willing to fight the onerous
provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act
and the Patriot Act that cannot help
but make one who cherishes the
SLS
Consulting
1/4 page ad
19
Franco Corelli a Legend Before Technology
by Marc W. Reuben
In this, the fourth draft of a tribute
to the late tenor Franco Corelli (who
died in October in Italy at the age of
82), a wroter finally realized that there
are often situations that cannot be adequately described in words. Hearing
and seeing Corelli sing is one of them.
Not that the world isn’t brimming with
fine singers. But the atmosphere in
which Corelli sang is a world apart
from our own time, even if the divide
is only a few short decades.
Technology and the immediate
impact of media have reduced the
world of wonders by providing us with
unnatural wonders every day. Franco
Corelli made his mark at the start of
the stereophonic era, where there were
still many people alive who had heard
the voice of the greatest tenor of them
all, Enrico Caruso. Caruso stopped
singing in 1920 (he died in 1921) and
Corelli started in the late 1940s. When
Caruso sang at the Met there were no
electronic amplification systems for the
huge auditorium. The highest balcony
had to be reached by the human voice
solo, and Caruso not only sang well,
but is rumored to have cracked the
crystals in the Met chandelier with his
vocal power. For decades, people
ARTS & MEDIA
would comment on how Caruso broke
glass with his voice.
Corelli, a six-foot, very handsome
and talented singer, was also rumored
to have the same vocal capacity. Not
only did he sing well, but the great
wind that issued from him could hurt
you if you stood too close. This quality
was looked upon as a miracle in the
age before electronic amplification. It is
a miracle even today, except that engineers can duplicate it without the need
for lungpower. Singing today with
proper amplification can produce a
great electric display from the merest
candle.
The very essence of singing had
been the ability of the singer to project
a powerful sound even in the most
unfriendly opera house. The old
Metropolitan in New York was a
notable hole, where sounds were often
swallowed and whole performances
had to be specially fitted so that voices
would not be overcome by the coldness of the hall. In comparison, the
Metropolitan Opera in Philadelphia, at
Broad and Poplar streets, was often
noted for its acoustical warmth and
was used as a classical recording venue
until very recently.
Audiences had no trouble understanding who was great, based upon
the ability of the singer to overcome
the technological limitations of concert
halls or ancient recording processes.
Caruso shouted into a tin horn in
order to make all of his recordings, and
his voice, limited through the frequency response of acoustic recording, still
managed to thrill millions. Even today,
listening to Caruso on the original
equipment is far more thrilling than
listening to digital. This is because the
modern amplification process has cutoff devices when voice becomes
painfully powerful. In the old days that
capacity did not exist. Old recordings
could not handle explosive sound. But
they could not filter them either and so
audiences got a small echo of unfiltered sound. The sound was less accu-
rate but more truthful.
When Corelli sang, usually with
much beauty, audiences knew they
were listening to a huge tree of a man.
A large trunk, tall and with the internal
capacity to produce both sound and
wind that passed through the toughest
concert halls and thrilled the top balconies. I have no doubt the engineers
had to tone down their amplification
systems when he sang Audiences had
only to hear him to know the power of
his voice and that what they were
hearing was the unvarnished power of
the greatest of human voices.
The age of Corelli was eclipsed by
the Pavarotti mania, which is itself in
the process of replacement these days.
Pavarotti is a great artist. He is not in
the same stylistic mode as Corelli. Pavarotti is a lyric tenor (lighter and sweeter) and Corelli and Caruso were dramatic (deeper). Both of them, because
they are great singers, used Caruso at
the yardstick.
Legends are often as much about
overcoming the ordinary events of our
lives as they are about extraordinary
feats. Technology is part of our times.
Corelli and Caruso existed in an age
where technology was secondary to
talent. Pavarotti was smart enough to
recognize that immortality still
gay chacker
& mittin
4 color
1/2 page ad
20
ARTS & MEDIA
depended on the ability to overcome the
limitation placed on talent by modern
technology.
Those who mourn Corelli need never
miss the sound of his voice, for he is well
represented in the current record catalog.
In opera after opera, the sound of that
bottomless voice that seemed to echo
from caverns and pierce the air for miles
was the sound of raw talent, easily identified and in no real need of help from
anyone.
I had an elderly neighbor who fled
from the czar and could remember see-
JURISTAFF
and how they rate in comparison to similar firms. Free seminars are also available
to cover these relevant and timely topics.
“We are very pleased to continue our
relationship with the Philadelphia Bar
through 2006,” said James LaRosa, president of JuriStaff. “We feel that this been a
great partnership for both JuriStaff and
ing the great Feodor Chaliapin sing
“Boris” in Russia. For as long as I knew
that neighbor, he never tired of re-enacting the death scene for me as we were
walking our dogs. And I never tired
watching him do it, because the experience has been one so indelible that the
glory of it lasted, even if the reproduction
quality was flawed.
The glory of Franco Corelli, a real man
who filled the air with a mighty sound,
will never die until the last waves of
sound created by him reach the end of
the universe.
Marc W. Reuben, a sole practitioner and advisory editor of
the Philadelphia Bar Reporter, has been writing about the
arts and media since 1973.
the Association, and in continuing, we
have the ability to build upon our prior
four years of service and with programs
that are already in place.”
JuriStaff plans more specialized programs that will cater to the specialized
needs of the Association’s many sections
and committees.
JuriStaff is located at 1429 Walnut St.,
5th Floor. Visit www.juristaff.com or contact them by calling (215) 751-9100.
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
Note: While the following listings have been verified prior to press time, any scheduled event may be subject to change by the committee or section chairs.
Thursday, Jan. 1
New Year’s Day – Bar Association offices closed.
Friday, Jan. 2
Day After New Year’s – Bar Association offices closed.
Monday, Jan. 5
Public Interest Section Executive Committee – meeting, noon, 10th floor Board Room.
Family Law Section – meeting, 4 p.m., 10th floor Board Room.
Tuesday, Jan. 6
Philadelphia Bar Foundation Board of Directors – meeting, noon, 10th floor Board Room.
Wednesday, Jan. 7
Delivery of Legal Services Committee – meeting, 8:30 a.m., 10th floor Board Room.
State Civil Committee – meeting, noon, 10th floor Board Room. Lunch: $7.50.
Thursday, Jan. 8
Civil Rights Committee – meeting, 12:15 p.m., 11th floor Committee Room South.
Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee – meeting, 12:15 p.m., 10th floor Board Room.
Lunch: $7.50.
Legislative Liaison Committee – meeting, 12:30 p.m., 11th floor Conference Center. Lunch:
$7.50.
Committee of the Legal Rights of Lesbians and Gay Men – meeting, 12:30 p.m., 11th floor
Committee Room.
Chancellor’s Reception – 5 p.m., Park Hyatt Philadelphia at the Bellevue, Broad and Walnut
streets. Free to attend; no RSVP required.
Friday, Jan. 9
Women’s Rights Committee – meeting, noon, 10th floor Board Room. Lunch: $7.50.
Fee Disputes Committee – meeting, noon, 11th floor Committee Room South.
Monday, Jan. 12
Business Law Section – meeting, noon, 10th floor Board Room. Lunch: $7.50.
Tuesday, Jan. 13
Criminal Justice Section Executive Committee – meeting, noon, 10th floor Board Room.
Wednesday, Jan. 14
Philadelphia Bar Reporter Editorial Board - meeting, 12:30 p.m., 10th floor Cabinet Room.
FEASTS TO FAMINE
“prime rib” type of diner, try instead
roasted bison loin, braised cabbage
and sausage choucroute, potato and
horseradish cream sauce ($23). The latter makes the former seem like bland
canned food.
Bison loin is rich, red and lean. It
tastes like the combination of a wellaged juicy porterhouse filet and a perfectly cooked ostrich breast. The cabbage and sausage bring spikes of
melded garlic and pepper to the
palate. The potato-horseradish combo
brings comfort and tang. A lone baby
carrot adds sweet humor. The probability of tasting all these ingredients at
once is only worth betting on at
Django. Bring your own best burgundy as a complement.
Moreover, whenever the entrées
include “goat cheese gnocchi,” “tangled
lobster,” “spy apples,” “almond milk” or
“crispy tentacles,” you can bet the
house.
And finally, the best dessert for last.
It will be difficult to avoid the
hazelnut madeleine cakes, coffee ice
cream and creamy butterscotch sauce
($6), or a candied orange crème brulée
and crispy phyllo Napoleon in vanilla
sauce ($7). Notwithstanding, don’t hesitate to obtain the artisan cheese tasting plate, honey, nuts, dried fruits and
toasted croutons ($11).
Aimee presents her cheese selections as if they were characters in a
play, with identifiable personalities.
“This has a buttery complexion from a
late summer wheel,” she summarily
intones, pointing to the top of a round
plate with an ennead of chosen
cheeses, “while this one is brusque
from Corsican sheep where the grass
is really green.” Her joyous monologue mentions “the Netherlands,”
“Normandy,” “English Stilton” and
“aged in the Pyrenees.”
“Start at one o’clock for the mildest,
and simply head clockwise toward the
sharpest,” she counsels. I can only
advise that time cures all.
If you were to put BEST & BYOB &
PHILADELPHIA as your Westlaw
query, there’d be one result: “Django.”
OMNE TRINUM EST PERFECTUM
Thursday, Jan. 15
Philadelphia Bar Foundation Finance Committee – meeting, 8:30 a.m., 11th floor Committee
Room South.
Family Law Section Executive Committee – meeting, noon, 11th floor Committee Room
South.
Women in the Profession Committee – meeting, noon, 11th floor Conference Center. Lunch:
$7.50.
Friday, Jan. 16
Social Security and Disability Benefits Committee – meeting, noon, 11th floor Conference
Center. Lunch: $7.50.
The Philadelphia Lawyer magazine Editorial Board – meeting, 12:30 p.m., 10th floor Board
Room.
Monday, Jan. 19
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day – Bar Association offices closed.
Tuesday, Jan. 20
Board of Governors Cabinet – meeting, noon, 10th floor Board Room.
Wednesday, Jan. 21
Workers’ Compensation Section Executive Committee – meeting, 10:30 a.m., 11th floor
Committee Room.
Workers’ Compensation Section – meeting, noon, 11th floor Conference Center. Lunch: $7.50.
Federal Courts Committee – meeting, 12:30 p.m., 10th floor Board Room. Lunch: $7.50.
Thursday, Jan. 22
Lawyer Referral and Information Service Committee – meeting, noon, 11th floor Committee
Room.
Friday, Jan. 23
Investment Companies Committee – meeting, noon, 11th floor Conference Center. Lunch:
$7.50.
Tuesday, Jan. 27
Young Lawyers Division Executive Committee – meeting, noon, 10th floor Board Room.
Criminal Justice Section – meeting, noon, 11th floor Conference Center. Lunch: $7.50.
Wednesday, Jan. 28
Business Lititgation Committee – meeting, noon, 11th floor Conference Center. Lunch: $7.50.
Thursday, Jan. 29
Board of Governors – meeting, 4 p.m., 10th floor Board Room.
Business Law Section – Pyramid Club, 1735 Market St., 53rd floor. Tickets: www.philadelphiabar.org.
Unless otherwise specified, all checks for luncheons and programs should be made payable to the Philadelphia Bar
Association and mailed to Bar Headquarters, 1101 Market St., 11th fl., Philadelphia, Pa. 19107-2911. Send Bar
Association-related calendar items 30 days in advance to Managing Editor, Philadelphia Bar Reporter, Philadelphia Bar
Association, 1101 Market St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19107-2911. Fax: (215) 238-1267. E-mail: [email protected].
21
PEOPLE
Elliott R.
Feldman, a
senior member of
Cozen O’Connor,
was recently honored by the
National
Association of
Subrogation
Professionals (NASP) at its 2003
Conference. Feldman, who serves on
NASP’s Board of Directors and who
was national chair for the conference
“Celebrate Subrogation,” received the
President’s Award for his continuous
dedication and significant contributions to the association.
Bennett G.
Picker, former
Chancellor of the
Philadelphia Bar
Association and a
partner at Stradley
Ronon Stevens &
Young, LLP, was a
plenary speaker
and facilitator at the two-day American Bar Association National Institute
on advanced mediation and advocacy
skills training in Philadelphia on Nov.
21 and 22.
James E. Elam, a partner with Elam
Reavis, LLP, was featured in Philadelphia
magazine’s “IT” list as one of 22 people
to follow in Philadelphia.
G. Lawrence DeMarco, a partner
with DeMarco & DeMarco, P.C., addressed students at Temple, Drexel and
West Chester Universities on the civil
and criminal ramifications of sexual
assault and date rape during October
and November.
David M.
Laigaie, a shareholder with Miller,
Alfano & Raspanti
P.C., presented “A
Legal Primer:
Introduction to
Compliance and
Health Care Fraud”
at the recent American Academy of
Opthalmology’s annual meeting in
Anaheim, Calif.
John R. Washlick, a member of
Cozen O’Connor, was a featured speaker at the second annual Mid-Atlantic
Health Care Compliance Conference on
Nov. 17 and 18 at the Borgata Hotel in
Atlantic City, N.J.
Ian M. Comisky, a partner at Blank
Rome LLP, moderated the program
“Guidelines Under Attack – The Protect
Act” on Dec. 10. The program was pre-
22
sented by the American Bar
Association Criminal Justice Section,
Section of Taxation and the Center for
Continuing Legal Education.
William J. Levant, a partner with
Kaplin Stewart Meloff Reiter & Stein,
was a panelist at the seminar
“Judgment Enforcement in
Pennsylvania” on Nov. 13.
Heather C.
Giordanella, an
associate with
Miller, Alfano &
Raspanti P.C., was
recently elected as
vice president of
the Temple
University Owl
Club Executive Board.
Stephen A.
Sheller, founder
and managing
partner of Sheller,
Ludwig & Badey,
has been named to
the Drexel
University Board of
Trustees. Sheller
also was a co-presenter of “Individual
Plaintiff Litigation as a Public Health
Strategy” at the 2003 National
Conference on Tobacco or Health in
Boston on Dec. 11.
Howard Brod Brownstein, a
principal of NachmanHaysBrownstein,
Inc. made a presentation in
Washington D.C. to the Conseil
National des Administrateurs et
Mandataires Judiciaires, consisting of
French bankruptcy judges and trustees.
The presentation provided an overview
of corporate renewal in the U.S.,
including bankruptcy process and outof-court workouts. The visit of the
Conseil, attended by representatives of
the French Embassy to the U.S., was
hosted by the American Bankruptcy
Institute.
Debra Lee Bowers, an associate at
Zarwin Baum DeVito Kaplan Schaer
Toddy P.C., discussed the Pennsylvania
Workers’ Compensation Act with
employers and business owners on
Dec. 5 in Lancaster, Pa.
James D. Rosener, a partner
with Pepper Hamilton LLP, has been
elected president of
the Philadelphia
Chapter of The National Association of
Corporate Directors.
Roger J. Braunfeld, an associate
with Blank Rome LLP, was honored by
the Jewish Business Network of
Lubavitch House at the annual Lights
of Tomorrow honoree event on Dec. 10.
Beth Cohen, of
counsel at Towers
Perrin, recently received the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton
Distinguished Alumna Award. The
award was established to highlight the accomplisments
of Wharton alumnae and to build a
stronger bond between Wharton
alumnae and the women on campus.
Samuel H.
Pond, a partner
with Martin, Banks,
Pond, Lehocky &
Wilson, has been
appointed to the
Board of Directors
of the Pennsylvania
Federation of Injured Workers.
Joseph C. Crawford, a partner at
Wolf, Block, Schorr & Solis-Cohen LLP,
has been inducted as a Fellow of the
American College of Trial Lawyers.
Jay Barry
Harris, a senior
partner with
Fineman Krekstein
& Harris, P.C., has
been elected a
member of the
American Board of
Trial Advocates.
Mari Shaw, of
counsel with
Obermayer Rebmann Maxwell &
Hippel LLP, was
honored by the
Philadelphia Business
Journal as a one of
the recipients of the
Women of Distinction Award on Dec. 9.
William R.
Sasso, chairman
of Stradley Ronon
Stevens & Young,
LLP, has been elected to the Philadelphia Convention
and Visitors Bureau
Executive Committee for a one-year term.
Stanton M. Lacks, principal in
Lacks & Associates, recently appeared
on the nationally syndicated Fox News
program “Day Side with Linda Vester”
as a panel commentator analyzing
Pennsylvania juvenile law in the recent
high school hazing case involving
three varsity football players from
Mepham High School in New York.
Barbara W. Mather, a partner with
Pepper Hamilton LLP, has been selected as the first woman to chair the
Swarthmore College Board of
Managers.
Philip L.
Hinerman, a
partner with Fox
Rothschild LLP, has
been elected vice
president of the
Pennsylvania
Resources Council.
A nonprofit citizens’ action organization founded in
1939, PRC serves as an important link
between industry, government and
grass-roots organizations, initiating
dialogue to seek solutions to environmental problems.
Richard C.
DeMarco, an
associate with
Klehr, Harrison,
Harvey, Branzburg
& Ellers LLP, was a
recent faculty
member at the
National Business
Institute Seminar “Practical Guide to
Zoning and Land Use in Pennsylvania.”
Kevin B. Scott, a
partner with Fox
Rothschild LLP, was
a moderator of a
panel discussion
titled “Interest Rate
Swaps: A Primer,”
held at Bear Stearns
in New York on
Dec. 5. The program, presented by the
Pennsylvania Association of Bond
Lawyers, dealt with the economics and
legal aspects of swaps in general, with
a review of recent amendments to the
Local Government Unit Debt Act.
Douglas F.
Schleicher, a
partner with with
Klehr, Harrison,
Harvey, Branzburg
& Ellers LLP, was a
faculty member at
the National
Business Institute
Seminar “Emerging Issues in Delaware
Indoor Air Quality and Toxic Mold
Litigation.”
Names Are News
“People” highlights news of
members’ awards, honors or
appointments of a civic or community nature. Information may
be sent to Jeff Lyons, Managing
Editor, Philadelphia Bar Reporter,
Philadelphia Bar Association, 1101
Market St., 11th floor, Philadelphia,
Pa. 19107-2911. Fax: (215) 238-1267.
E-mail: [email protected].
Photos are also welcome.
Saul Ewing
full color
full page ad
23
Jay Roberts Jewelers
full color
full page ad
24

knipes cohen 1/4 page ad - Philadelphia Bar Association

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