"Where Do I Begin?"
Sharyn Aust Smith, CLA
Where do I begin? That was the first thought that crossed my mind when I was asked to write an article for TPJ on the events occurring during my tenure as Chair of the Legal Assistants Division from June 1991 to November, 1992. I generally remembered a time of anticipation, excitement, and a lot of hard work. Specifically, I recalled the specialty certification examination, the Task Force on Long Range Planning and Reorganization, the retreat by the Division Board, and various other issues.
During my tenure, the Texas Board of Legal Specialization ("TBLS") the State Bar Board, the Division membership, and the Texas Supreme Court approved the concept and plan for TBLS to administer specialty certification examinations for legal assistants in Texas. As a member of the Joint Task Force on Specialty Certification, I can tell you that this approval was no small feat. We had to come up with criteria for eligibility, recertification, budgetary considerations, etc. The Division sent out a survey to its members asking whether they would take a specialty certification exam and if so, in what areas. My mailman dearly loved me during that time. I was expecting any day that the U.S. Postal Service would call me to say that I had to come and pick up my own mail.
The Division Board determined that the approximately $96,000 which had been set aside for the certification process should in fact be allocated to fund the program. I was quite pleased to see in a recent District DirectorÕs report that TBLS has returned $50,000 of that allocation. The return of those funds indicates to me that the program is a success because the number of legal assistants taking the exams allows the program to fund itself.
The person who provided the most support and encouragement to me personally was Judge Linda Thomas of the 5th Court of Appeals in Dallas. Above all, her diligence, unending support, and tireless devotion to legal assistants, the Division, and the specialty certification exam program was an inspiration to us all. She has my eternal thanks because without her we would not have been able to accomplish our goal in the time period that we did. The members of the Joint Task Force on Specialty Certification worked very hard and provided the needed impetus to finalize the project. Also, Gary McNeil of TBLS was supportive, encouraging and instrumental in obtaining the approval we needed and in providing suggestions and recommendations. Of course, space does not allow me to thank everyone involved in the project, but there were many people involved in getting the specialty certification program off the ground and I will always be grateful to them. I am especially pleased to see that the exam has not only been well received by legal assistants in Texas, but that it will be expanding into new areas of testing.
Another major area of discussion during my tenure was the results of the Task Force on Long Range Planning and Reorganization. This group worked very hard to provide the Division with ways to improve services to the membership. I am pleased to see that a number of the Task ForceÕs recommendations have been approved by the membership and implemented by the Division Board. These issues provided "lively" discussions among the Board at its meetings and we even had a "retreat" to discuss the numerous issues that arose from the Task ForceÕs recommendations. One usually thinks of a retreat as a time of relaxation and opportunity for getting to know the participants more personally. Well, what can I say? We did accomplish a great deal during that retreat that we would never have been able to accomplish during our regular Board meetings. I want to personally thank everyone who took part in that fun-filled weekend.
During this time the Board passed a resolution which emphasized its purpose and made a distinction between Division members and those who deliver legal services directly to the public without supervision from an attorney. We felt that it was important for the Board to take a stand on the issue, in light of the diverse opinions being expressed on the subject.
A true highlight during my tenure as Division Chair was when Texas Secretary of State, John Hannah, presented to me as Chair of the Division an Official Memorandum from Governor Ann Richards setting forth the definition of a legal assistant, as promulgated by the American Bar Association and adopted by the State Bar and the Division, and proclaiming October 23, 1992 as Legal Assistants Day. As you know, the celebration of October 23rd as Legal Assistants Day has continued annually since then.
During my tenure the Board increased membership dues to $50 per year and made membership available to students. The additional funds made it possible for the Division to provide more services to its members and the new membership category strengthened our membership base by allowing students and new paralegals to join. Also during that time the State Bar began accepting Division members as non-voting members in the specialty sections of the Bar.
In this article I have tried to highlight those events which occurred during my tenure as Division Chair and which stand out in my mind. I know there are numerous others which I have not mentioned. One of my goals as Chair was to have a Board that worked well together for the good of the Division and also that maintained a strong working relationship with the State Bar, TBLS, Texas Forum participants and others. I will not deny that we had our "moments" but the majority of the time the Board members gave it their all, and I want to thank them all again. As Chair, I was privileged to meet many legal assistants and attorneys and to travel to many parts of Texas. I truly enjoyed this benefit and have many wonderful memories.
The Division's Board of Directors is a group of individuals from all over the State who work very hard for the membership. Your Directors not only represent each of you as members from their Districts, but they may also serve as liaison to other organizations and sometimes on ad hoc committees. They are dedicated, hard working and truly have the concerns of the membership and the goals of the legal assistant profession in the forefront of their minds. I am proud to say that I was a Chair of the Legal Assistants Division and had the opportunity to work with so many wonderful people.
TEXAS PARALEGAL JOURNAL
Fall 1996
©1996 Legal Assistants Division, State Bar of Texas