President's Letter

Second Chances

It’s a call you never want to receive. I was out of town. My wife called to say my father had been hospitalized with an emergency. It didn’t look good.

Apr 1, 2025 2:50 AM CDT

There is a lot of talk about democracy these days, but there is not nearly enough understanding of its vital importance. How it works and should work. Why it matters. You’d be surprised at what’s not covered in school. But it is more than the responsibility of schools—it is a challenge for our profession. It’s up to us to make sure the knowledge stays fresh, the experience is not forgotten and the handwritten notes are still read.

Feb 1, 2025 2:10 AM CST

Reopening the Gift

“If we want our profession and our bar to be all we envisioned when we graduated from law school, then it’s time to get that box off the shelf and reopen it,” writes ABA President Bill Bay. “It’s too important a gift to leave unassembled.”

Dec 1, 2024 2:40 AM CST

Free and fair elections are the cornerstone of our democracy

This is a day to appreciate the fact Americans voted in large numbers. As citizens and lawyers, we are thankful for all who exercised their right to vote. We are particularly thankful for the election workers for their efforts to ensure the election was fair and the results are safe, secure and accurate.

Nov 7, 2024 12:07 PM CST

Seeing it

I have been thinking about our association. It’s a wonderful home. Full of history. Tradition. Friends. It’s a familiar place with familiar experiences, faces, acronyms, entities. It’s comfortable. I like it all. But does everyone feel that way?

Oct 1, 2024 3:10 AM CDT

Lawyers must protect democracy now

We are at a defining moment in our country. Over the last four years—most strikingly on Jan. 6, 2021—we have seen violent attacks on our democratic institutions. Make no mistake, we are facing a concerted, strategic campaign to destabilize the electoral process and disenfranchise voters. Threats to public officials and their families have skyrocketed, with threats to federal judges jumping 150% from five years ago.

Aug 1, 2024 2:40 AM CDT

ABA’s fidelity to diversity is unyielding

In this new era, the American Bar Association stands firm: Our dedication to diversity, equity and inclusion is unyielding. Our approach may change, but our goal does not. Because at its core, this is the lifeblood of our organization and our future. Our aim is not merely to adapt—it is to lead by example.

Jun 1, 2024 3:00 AM CDT

The ABA leads way on access to justice

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Legal Services Corp., the United States’ largest funder of civil legal aid. With a current congressional appropriation of $560 million, the LSC funds 131 independent legal aid programs with more than 800 offices serving every state and the U.S. territories. The American Bar Association was critical to the LSC’s creation.

Apr 1, 2024 2:50 AM CDT

AI and the Legal Landscape: Do not fear a zombie apocalypse

As lawyers and members of the ABA, we must not abandon our responsibility to guide this moment, as artificial intelligence’s transformative potential holds great promise and peril for every sector, especially the legal profession.

Feb 1, 2024 2:50 AM CST

The Power of Convening: ABA’s legacy and continued impact of convening minds and shaping progress

The word “convening” carries with it an intrinsic potency. From that initial assembly to today, the ABA has exemplified the power of bringing thoughtful minds together to achieve consensus and drive transformative change.

Dec 1, 2023 2:50 AM CST

A code of ethics is necessary to restore trust in the Supreme Court

“Trust in our institutions of government is a central tenet of our democracy. As lawyers, we are acutely aware that our democracy depends on faith in our court systems. … As members of the American Bar Association, it is our duty to safeguard and further our nearly century-long commitment as national leaders in defining the parameters of legal and judicial ethics,” writes ABA President Mary Smith.

Oct 1, 2023 3:50 AM CDT

Diversity of Viewpoints: Civility turns down heat, increases light to attain results

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan said at her 2010 confirmation hearing: “What I’ve learned most is that no one has a monopoly on truth or wisdom. I’ve learned that we make progress by listening to each other, across every apparent political or ideological divide.” It is especially important for the legal profession to promote and accept diverse viewpoints as it works to bridge the polarization and erosion of trust in our democratic institutions.

Aug 1, 2023 3:00 AM CDT

Civil legal aid shrinks the justice gap and makes the court system more equitable

The ABA has been a committed supporter of the Legal Services Corp. from its inception as well as all forms of civil legal aid. “Equal justice under law is not merely a caption on the façade of the Supreme Court building,” Justice Lewis Powell said in a 1976 speech to the ABA. “It is perhaps the most inspiring ideal of our society. It is one of the ends for which our entire legal system exists.”

Jun 1, 2023 2:50 AM CDT

Law Day Lessons: Civility, collaboration remain the answer to a better society

“As the legal community prepares to celebrate Law Day on May 1, we should look back on why this day exists,” writes ABA President Deborah Enix-Ross. “Law Day dates to the days of the Cold War, more than 60 years ago. … Today, as we struggle as a nation that often seems divided, Law Day is even more important.”

Apr 1, 2023 3:30 AM CDT

Gideon at 60: The right to a lawyer was established, but the promise of equal justice remains elusive

“Most Americans believe that access to an attorney during criminal proceedings is a foundational right in our country. But the right to have an attorney provided by the government has not always existed. Until 60 years ago, indigent defendants who could not afford an attorney had to defend themselves in court. But on March 18, 1963, that all changed. The U.S. Supreme Court rendered one of its most famous decisions in the case of Gideon v. Wainwright.”

Feb 1, 2023 3:00 AM CST

Second Chances

Our Inheritance

Reopening the Gift

Free and fair elections are the cornerstone of our democracy

Seeing it

Lawyers must protect democracy now

ABA’s fidelity to diversity is unyielding

The ABA leads way on access to justice

AI and the Legal Landscape: Do not fear a zombie apocalypse

The Power of Convening: ABA’s legacy and continued impact of convening minds and shaping progress

A code of ethics is necessary to restore trust in the Supreme Court

Diversity of Viewpoints: Civility turns down heat, increases light to attain results

Civil legal aid shrinks the justice gap and makes the court system more equitable

Law Day Lessons: Civility, collaboration remain the answer to a better society

Gideon at 60: The right to a lawyer was established, but the promise of equal justice remains elusive

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