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Vital Statistics

• Founded: Formed in Albany on November 21, 1876 and, one year later, by legislative act, was written into the state constitution as part of Chapter 210. NYSBA is chartered as a private, nonprofit corporation.
  
  
• Membership Size: 77,000. The largest voluntary statewide organization of lawyers in the nation.
  
  
• Staff Size: The Executive Director, Patricia K. Bucklin, supervises 120 employees.
  
  

• Membership Gender Breakdown: 66% male, 34% female.
  
  

• Top Three Practice Settings of NYSBA Members: Private Practice - 43%, Sole Practitioner - 16%, In-house Counsel - 6%
  
  

• Top Areas of Concentration of NYSBA Members: Real Property - 17%, General Civil Litigation - 15%, Corporate - 14%, Trusts & Estates - 13%, Business - 13%, General Practice - 10%, Personal/Property Injury - 9%
  
  

• Budget: Approximately $21 million. No tax dollars are used to support NYSBA activities.
  
  
• Sections & Committees: There are 25 specialized substantive law sections with membership sizes varying between 500 to 5,000 members. There are more than 60 committees. Many of these groups publish material dealing with their field of expertise, much of which is not available through commercial publishers. These entities address professional development through continuing legal education programs, and improvement of laws.
  
  
• Decision and Policymaking Bodies: 297-member House of Delegates meets quarterly. The 27-member Executive Committee has the authority to act and speak for NYSBA, consistent with previous actions of the House, when the House is not in session.
  
  
• Location: One Elk Street, Albany NY. A 37,000-square foot facility that comprises a new building linked together with five 19th century townhouses. The design won the 1978 Progressive Architecture Design Award and the American Institute of Architecture's 1972 Honor Award.
  
  
• Purposes: (1) to cultivate the science of jurisprudence; (2) to promote reform in the law; (3) to facilitate the administration of justice; (4) to elevate the standard of integrity, honor, professional skill and courtesy in the legal profession; (5) to cherish and foster a spirit of collegiality among the members of the Association; (6) to apply its knowledge and experience in the field of law to promote the public good; (7) to promote and correlate the same and similar objectives in and among the bar organizations in the State of New York and in the interest of the legal profession and the public; (8) and to uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of New York.