Associations
Kane County Bar displays member talents April 11
The 150th anniversary of the Kane County Bar Association would not be complete without a musical showing of the theatrical talents of many members.
Although mounted infrequently in recent years, the shows have linked the bench and bar of the 16th Circuit in camaraderie and expressions of song and dance that poke collegial fun at each other and local institutions.
ISBA past president Loren S. Golden of Elgin has been the mainstay of Kane County bar shows during the past two decades, and he has created a musical score for the parodies and a few original pieces for this year’s performances.
The “Sesqui-Sensational Bar Show” will be staged on Friday, April 11, at the historic Arcada Theater in St. Charles. A 6 p.m. reception, with appetizers and cash bar, will precede the 7:30 p.m. curtain.
Tickets may be obtained by calling the Arcada box office at (630) 587-8400 or ordering online at www.o-shows.com. Prices are $45 for preferred seating and $35 general seating.
Still ahead in the KCBA’s 150th year is a Judges Night from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday, April 17, at the Mill Race Inn in Geneva. Law Day high school mock trials on Friday, May 2, will include re-enactment of an 1858 trial.
Ask-A-Lawyer public phone-ins are being handled from 9 a.m. to 12 noon on the second Saturday of each month, all year.
Tentatively scheduled are the annual meeting and memorial service on May 22, and the 150th anniversary dinner on June 12 at St. Charles Country Club. For details, call (630) 762-1915.
DAWL presents scholarships
Thanks to the DuPage Association of Women Lawyers Foundation, two law students have been awarded Judge Helen C. Kinney Scholarships of $1,000 each.
Belinda Wright, who graduated in January from The John Marshall Law School, received her scholarship during the association’s holiday party in December. Her DAWL award was matched by the law school.
Wright received both a juris doctorate and a master’s degree in tax law. She is awaiting participation in the July bar examination and hopes to practice finance and estate planning in DuPage County.
Her goal is to teach lifelong skills that will prepare clients for futures that may hold challenges such as divorce, debt and deaths of loved ones.
The other Kinney Scholarship recipient, Rocio S. Becerril, was unable to attend the December presentation because of finals week at the Northern Illinois College of Law. She will graduate in May 2009.
Current president of the Latino Law Student Association, Becerril has been a volunteer in the Resurrection Program, the Big Sister Big Brother Program, the National Immigrant Justice Center and the LARES mentorship program.
She has prepared income tax returns for low-income immigrants through the Center for Economic Progress and has participated in the Illinois Latino Law Forum.
A resident of Warrenville, Becerril has a masters degree in business administration and undergraduate degrees in French and communication.
Black Bar formed for Will County
The newly formed Black Bar Association of Will County held its initial meeting Jan. 24 in the 12th Circuit Courthouse. President Litricia P. Payne, an assistant public defender, conducted the event.
Chief Judge Stephen D. White was given a scales-of-justice paperweight in recognition of his encouragement to founders of the association.
Also honored was retired judge Raymond A. Bolden, who served from 1986 to 2001 and retired Dec. 31 from his law practice at Mitchell & Bolden, Joliet. Law partner Eric Anthony Mitchell presented the award and called Bolden a trailblazer.
The Black Bar Association has applied for affiliation with the ISBA. For information about future events and membership, call Litricia Payne at (815) 727-8666.
WSBA to install Placek
Cook County assistant public defender Marijane Hemza Placek will be installed as president of the West Suburban Bar Association during its 66th annual black-tie-optional gala on Saturday, April 19, at the Brookfield Zoo.
Placek is member of the Murder Task Force in the Felony Division, which was the focus of a recent book, “Defending the Damned.” She is a past president of the Bohemian Lawyers Association of Chicago.
The event will begin at 6 p.m. with a narrated tram tour en route at a 6:30 p.m. reception and silent auction. The 7:30 p.m. dinner and installations by Presiding Judges Paul P. Biebel Jr. of the Criminal Division and Edmund Ponce de Leon of the 4th Municipal District will precede music and dancing.
Other incoming officers are Vice Presidents James V. Murphy and Marilyn F. Longwell, Secretaries Marcia J. Nawrocki-Verburgt and Barry Locke, and Treasurer Ferdinand P. Serpe. Gustavo H. Santana is retiring president. Call (708) 352-5678.
Appellate Lawyers
A program on “The Roberts Court: Changes and Challenges” will take place during a luncheon meeting of the Appellate Lawyers Association on Wednesday, April 2, at the Chicago Bar Association. Call (847) 885-2410.
Bohemian Lawyers
The next dinner meeting of the Bohemian Lawyers Association of Chicago will be Probate Judges Night. It will begin at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, April 24 at the Klas Restaurant in Cicero.
Champaign County Bar
Members of the Champaign County Bar Association, young and older, will attend a mixer from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Friday, March 28, at Crane Alley, an Urbana pub.
Also scheduled is an open house at the new Urbana offices of Land of Lincoln Legal Assistance Foundation in Urbana on Friday, April 11.
Chicago Bar
The Chicago Bar Association Symphony Orchestra will present a “Spring Song” concert at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 27, in St. James Cathedral at Huron and Wabash, Chicago.
Conducted by music director David Katz, the orchestra will perform Copland’s “Appalachian Spring,” Elgar’s “Serenade for Strings,” and Gershwin’s “Symphonic Picture from Porgy and Bess.”
The orchestra also will accompany flute soloist Judith Grubner in a rendition of Chaminade’s “Concertino for Flute.”
Commercial Law League
The Commercial Law League of America will hold its 114th national convention in conjunction with the 78th annual meeting of the Midwestern Region from May 1 to 4 in Chicago. Call (312) 781-2000.
DuPage County Bar
DuPage County Bar Association members who plan to run for third vice president or board member have until 5 p.m. Monday, March 31, to file petitions at the Wheaton office.
Election results will be announced during the Presidents’ Ball, scheduled from 6 to 11 p.m. Friday, May 9, at Medinah Country Club. The date of the installation is Thursday, June 5. Call (630) 653-7779.
DuPage County Bar Lawyers Lending a Hand will meet at 5 p.m. Thursday, March 27, at the Ray Graham Association headquarters in Downers Grove to help mail invitations for a fund-raising event.
The association will observe the 20th anniversary of the DuPage Bar Center during an open house on Thursday, April 17.
ECI Women Attorneys
Rumana Alam, an attorney licensed in Canada who recently worked for Carle Foundation Hospital, is the new president of the East Central Illinois Women Attorneys Association. The organization holds luncheon meetings on the third Tuesday each month at Biaggi’s Ristorante in Champaign.
Illinois Defense Counsel
A unique conference titled “What Women Lawyers Want (and Need)” will be presented Friday, April 4, at the University Club of Chicago by the Illinois Association of Defense Trial Counsel. Call (217) 636-7690.
The Women’s Bar Association of Illinois and Black Women Lawyers Association of Greater Chicago are co-sponsors of the program on building a legal career while balancing the demands of family life.
Illinois Paralegal
The annual meeting and elections of the Illinois Paralegal Association will take place Thursday, April 24, during a buffet dinner at Giordano’s Restaurant, 310 W. Randolph, Chicago. Call (815) 462-4620.
Jefferson County Bar
A People’s Law School at Rend Lake Country Club was conducted on Thursdays from Feb. 7 to March 20 by the Jefferson County Bar Association for the seventh year. The ISBA provides grants for such public education programs. Call (800) 252-8908 for details.
Justinian Society
Officers of the Justinian Society will be nominated during a dinner meeting at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 17, at Quartino’s Restaurant, 626 N. State, Chicago. Call Nina, (708) 459-8628.
Kankakee County Bar
ISBA President Joseph G. Bisceglia will be guest speaker at a dinner meeting of the Kankakee County Bar Association at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, March 27, at the Kankakee Country Club. Call President Roger C. Elliott at (815) 472-2634.
The association’s Society of Women in the Law will present scholarships during the event.
Northwest Suburban Bar
Cook County Judge E. Kenneth Wright will receive a Public Service Award during the Northwest Suburban Bar Association Judges Night, which begins at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 17, at Rosewood Banquets in Rosemont. Call (847) 221-2601.
A former teacher and associate dean of Joliet Junior College, Judge Wright is a board member of the Chicago Urban Day School and first vice president of the Chicago Bar Association. He has been presiding judge of the 1st Municipal District for five years.
Vermilion County Bar
Luncheon meetings of the Vermilion County Bar Association take place on the fourth Tuesday of each month in the Community Room at Old National Bank in Danville. Call President Thomas J. Mellen II at (217) 431-0685 for program information.
Winnebago County Bar
The Community Service Committee of the Winnebago County Bar Association is enlisting volunteers to deliver Mother’s Day corsages and cookies to women who live in Rockford-area shelters.
The committee expects to provide the gifts to about 65 women at WAVE, the Women’s Christian Care Center, Trinity House and Shelter Care Ministry. Call (815) 964-4992.
Women’s Bar Foundation
Dixie Lee Peterson, deputy general counsel for the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, has been elected president of the 40-year-old Women’s Bar Foundation. She is past chair of the ISBA Child Law Section Council.
Other officers are Vice Presidents Judith L. Schuch, Bates McIntyre Larson and Carol A. Hogan; Secretary Bernadette Z. Freeman, Treasurer Bernadette M. Barron, and Assistant Treasurer Mary A. Melchor. Rosemary Krimbel is immediate past president.