Inside the Bar

Communicating With Members a Top Priority

by George Brown, State Bar executive director

Have you ever had one of those people in your life that you know but have never met? You know him because he's a friend of your friends; she may know as much about you for the same reason. I have one. His name is George also. He's been in my life for more than 25 years. I actually met him once, for about 10 minutes in a hallway when our mutual friends introduced us to each other.

George is an historian. He's a professor at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. As graduate students, he preceded me as a student researcher for the editorial department at the State Historical Society of Wisconsin. For his Ph.D. dissertation, he focused on the development of American thought and painting. One event that signified change was the New York Armory Show of 1913. In the art world, the Armory Show was a major turning point. It was the first major exposition of surrealism and cubism in the United States and it caused American thinkers to look at the larger art world outside their own borders.

Your State Bar reached a turning point last summer. Longtime Executive Director Stephen Smay resigned, and the new State Bar Center was opened and formally dedicated. And just as the Armory Show signified a lasting change in the art world, these events signified change in the State Bar.

Change is in the air at your State Bar. The new Bar Center is one example. The new facility is more than just an office building like the old Bar Center had become. The new Bar Center is a members' building. In addition to CLE programming and committee meetings, you can now use your building to meet with clients, hold mediations, or take depositions.

While continuing to provide you with many products and services that you use in your law practice, the staff and volunteer leaders are working to deliver what you want more quickly and efficiently. The practice of law is changing rapidly. Technology, multidisciplinary practice, more competition from more sources than ever before - all are or will affect how you practice law and maybe even what law you practice. The State Bar needs to position itself as a resource for you as you face these new challenges.

At the staff level, we are examining the way we work as well as on what we work, all to become more efficient. We are examining our current processes to eliminate unnecessary steps, and we are creating new processes to better serve you. These changes will take time. Some of them require improvements in technology. All of them will result in a Bar that better serves you.

I will report to you on these changes and others in future columns. Or, if I'm fortunate enough to meet you, I will report to you in person. As your new executive director, one of my ongoing responsibilities is communicating with you. This column is but one method. I hope to see you at local bar meetings, State Bar gatherings, or meet with you in your office. You can write me at the State Bar Center, email me, or call me directly at (800) 444-9404, ext. 6101. Next time you're in the Bar Center, look me up. I'd like to hear your thoughts.

Wisconsin Lawyer