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Contact: Brandon Vogel
Dept. of Media Services
bvogel@nysba.org
518-487--5358
February 1, 2008
NYS CONFERENCE OF BAR LEADERS RECOGNIZES LOCAL BAR
ASSOCIATIONS WITH AWARDS OF
MERIT
The New York State Conference of Bar Leaders has
announced the winners of its 2007 Awards of Merit for local bar
associations. The awards honor local bars for their public service and
innovative programming to enhance the public’s understanding of
the law.
Recipients will be honored at a breakfast during the
New York State Bar Association’s 131st Annual Meeting, Friday,
February 1st at the Marriott Marquis in New York
City.
Awards are given in three member
categories—small, medium and large bar associations
in New York. They
recognize outstanding programs sponsored by local, ethnic, specialty,
minority and women’s bar associations. The awards program also
informs bar leaders of new activities and programs that promote public
welfare, public understanding of the law, or attorneys’
professional responsibilities.
“No other profession embodies a stronger
commitment to public service than the legal profession and these
programs - a few of several that competed for this year’s merit
awards – clearly illustrate the tremendous daily work that is
being done by lawyers and bar associations to improve awareness,
understanding and application of the law in our communities,”said
attorney Forrest Strauss of White Plains, Chair of the Conference of Bar
Leaders. “It’s an honor to
recognize the positive impact of these fine programs upon the service of
the greater public good.”
Awards will be presented to:
- Capital District and Women’s Bar Association
& Capital Region Bankruptcy Bar Association(small bar association—fewer than 500 members) for
jointly administering the Credit Abuse Resistance Education (CARE)
Program, established in November 2002 by Honorable John C. Ninfo,
II. It is estimated that 75 percent of
all college age students have at least one credit card and over 30
percent of all college students have four or more credit
cards. Through the program, attorneys
provide presentations educating high school students on safe credit card
use and financial responsibility.
- Albany County Bar Association(medium bar association—500-1,999 members) for sponsoring
and promoting “Capital Region Bike Safety Day,” where
volunteers instructed children on how to safely ride their bikes and the
importance of wearing a bike helmet. In
the event of a crash, bike helmets reduce the risk of serious brain
injury by 85 percent. At the event, 169
children received “free of charge” protective bike helmets
and learned how to properly adjust their helmets for
protection.
- Bar Association of Erie County(large bar association—more than 2,000 members) for its
Committee to Assist Lawyers with Depression. It is estimated that as many
as 15,000 lawyers suffer depression-related problems
in New York State. The committee initially
began as a five-member support group and its membership has grown to 15
members since its inception in September 2007. The committee is planning a day-long CLE symposium on anxiety,
burnout and depression to be held in April.
Formed in 1979, the New York State Conference of Bar
Leaders provides a forum for the exchange of information among local bar
leaders, as well as between the state bar and bar leaders.
The 74,000-member New York State Bar Association is
the official statewide organization of lawyers in New
Yorkand the largest
voluntary state bar association in the nation.
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