Staff Liaisons
The function of the staff liaison is to facilitate the operations of the particular division by acting as the information conduit between the division and the rest of the Bar and to assist the division president with organizing, planning and recordkeeping. The staff liaison works with the division president to ensure that all division work is consistent with the association's goals and objectives. The staff liaison acts at the direction of the division president, but should not actually perform the functions of the division. The staff liaison is listed at the bottom of the division board roster.
Specific staff liaison duties may include:
- Schedule meeting rooms, including arranging for catering
- Coordinate mailing of all meeting notices, minutes and other materials
- Work with division president to prepare agendas
- Attend division board meetings
- Coordinate the distribution of division information
- Provide information to division from Board of Governors, other divisions, committees or sources that may be relevant to the division's work
- Advise division about relevant policies and administrative deadlines
- Assist division treasurer in preparing budgets and financial planning documents.
- Inform division about finances
- Explain expense reimbursement rules and procedures
Publications, CLE Seminars and speaker referrals
Division presidents are sometimes asked to identify members who are willing to review substantive law articles submitted for publication in the Wisconsin Lawyer, review CLE books or help select CLE seminar speakers.
Address and phone number changes
Please notify the State Bar customer service representatives immediately of any changes in address, phone numbers or email for division board members. This will eliminate misrouted mailings and phone calls.
Division web pages on WisBar.org
Current rosters of the division boards are available on the
State Bar's Web site. Other information including past newsletters, minutes, and division resources are also listed. Please submit any updated information for your division's homepage to your staff liaison.
As part of the NRLD's homepage, chapters have the opportunity to list their own homepages. To start a homepage for your chapter, contact the State Bar's Web Producer,
Isaac Dalhoff.
Division and chapter files
The State Bar attempts to maintain a complete file of division documents. Your division file includes copies of past minutes, correspondence, rosters, and annual reports. Please submit copies of all relevant material to your staff liaison so that your files are complete.
Electronic mailing lists
An electronic mailing list, also commonly referred to as listserv or elist, enables people with common interests to share information easily through email. Messages are sent just like email, except they go to all subscribers of the mail list instead of to just one recipient. List participants can respond to messages, creating two-way communication among members. Email lists are a cost-effective way to improve member communication and camaraderie. It's a great way for associations serving large geographic areas to quickly communicate a timely message to all members, remind people of upcoming meetings, distribute information traditionally done through print communication, and so on.
The Government Lawyers Division, Nonresident Lawyers Division and Young Lawyers Division currently have Internet mailing lists for their board members. An Internet mailing list is also available to nonresident members at
nonres@elists.wisbar.org. There are currently 270 nonresident members signed up on this electronic mailing list.
Meetings
Goals for a Local Chapter
There are two goals for a local chapter:
- Encourage Wisconsin lawyers practicing in other states to meet, establish relationships and renew Wisconsin connections;
- Ensure that the division and the State Bar are satisfying nonresident lawyer needs.
Chapter meetings are a good opportunity for Wisconsin lawyers to meet, and to raise concerns about Bar actions and activities.
What Does the Division Expect
The division bylaws require each chapter to meet annually. The local chapter charter terminates automatically if the chapter fails to meet for two consecutive calendar years.
As a result, the division expects each chapter to:
- Coordinate with State Bar staff to send to each chapter member an invitation to an annual meeting;
- Host an annual meeting; and
- Provide a short, one page report of chapter activities and plans to Karen Beall after your annual meeting.
Local chapters may do more. Some chapters meet more than once a year, while others have scheduled continuing legal education presentations.
Planning an Annual Meeting
The State Bar staff will help plan the chapter's annual meeting. The following steps are suggested.
- Pick a convenient date and place. Estimate the meeting attendance. Decide whether to provide drinks and snacks, and to make alcoholic beverages available.
- Contact Karen Beall at (800) 444-9404, ext. 6120 or kbeall@wisbar.org. Find out whether the date conflicts with other State Bar activities. If a contract or deposit is involved, please contact Karen Beall, who will then contact the State Bar meeting planner, to coordinate the event. Also, tell Karen whether any chapter officer elections will be held at the meeting.
- Select a meeting program. Refer to the annual meeting program options listed below.
- Send Karen meeting details such as date, time, place, program and cost, using the Chapter Event Notification Form. A draft invitation will be sent to the chapter president for approval. The State Bar will e-mail the invitations to your chapter members.
- Approximately two weeks before the meeting, Karen Beall will send a meeting reminder email to chapter members.
- Submit the invoice or itemized receipt for the meeting, up to $500, to Karen Beall for payment or reimbursement.
Annual Meeting Programs
Annual meetings are well-attended when the program is interesting. Listed below are several chapter meeting options.
- Provide a continuing legal education program to satisfy Wisconsin's legal ethics requirement. Pursuant to Supreme Court Rule, a Wisconsin lawyer that does not elect the CLE exemption, must report three hours of ethics CLE each two year reporting period. The State Bar’s CLE Department has ethics video replays available to offer as a CLE program for chapter members. You may also choose to present your own CLE program. In order to obtain approval of proposed CLE programs for credit toward Wisconsin's CLE requirements, contact the Board of Bar Examiners at (608) 266-9760,
bbe@wicourts.gov.
- Offer a chapter meeting with a division or State Bar officer appearance to speak about Wisconsin news and State Bar developments. That program can be an opportunity for nonresident comments about Bar actions.
- Arrange for a "meet and greet" with a prominent local person. Ask the mayor, presiding judge or district attorney to deliver short remarks. Look for appellate judges who have a Wisconsin connection. During political campaigns, invite candidates. There are plenty of persons who would appreciate the chance to address a group of lawyers.
- Provide a social event, such as an evening reception or a sporting event, to give chapter members an opportunity to network.
If you are unsure of what type of program your chapter members would prefer, or what time of day or time of year chapter members would prefer to hold their annual meeting, an email poll can be sent to your chapter members from the State Bar office. State Bar staff will tabulate the email responses and send a response summary to the chapter president. You may also contact Karen Beall at 800-444-9404, ext. 6120,
kbeall@wisbar.org to discuss possible annual meeting program ideas.
Meeting Expenses
The division will pay up to $500 for the annual meeting cost, pursuant to the availability of division funds. Costs up to $500 the division will cover include invitation printing/mailing charges, travel expenses for a division-sponsored CLE program, hors d'oeuvres, beverages, telephone calls, room charges and incidentals.
Local chapters are not responsible for the cost of travel for division or State Bar officer appearance.
For additional information, please contact Karen Beall at 800-444-9404 x6120 or
kbeall@wisbar.org.
Reports
Annual Chapter Report
Please prepare a short, one-page report of the chapter activities. The report should detail chapter activities, planned activities and future expectations. Please note the attendance at the annual meeting, CLE programs presented, and guests at "meet and greet" functions.
Chapter Mailing Labels and Lists
Mailing labels, lists and demographic information for members of your chapter are available from the Bar Center. To ensure that you receive your order when you need it, please request the mailing labels or lists from your staff liaison, two weeks in advance. Please note that State Bar staff will coordinate any chapter meeting notice mailings from the State Bar Center.
Finances
Local Chapter Allocation
The Division currently offers each local chapter an annual allocation of up to $500 to promote and encourage local chapter activities, pursuant to the availability of division funds. Within this limit, any reasonable expenses rationally related to any local chapter meetings or other activity, member or prospect mailings or other chapter projects are subject to reimbursement. Meeting room deposits or charges, beverage or catering bills, postage or printing for chapter mailings or long distance phone charges are examples of eligible expenses.
Chapter Expense Policy
- Chapter presidents are required to give the NRLD staff liaison, Karen Beall, a completed Chapter Event Notification Form for each upcoming event.
- All contracts, which a chapter desires to enter into, must be submitted to the State Bar’s meeting planner for review and approval. State Bar members cannot sign contracts for State Bar events.
- Any request for use of Bar funds for any chapter event must be submitted to the NRLD President for approval before any commitment is made.
- The recommended amount of funds to be made available to a chapter shall be the lesser of:
- the amount needed by the chapter net of any revenue it collects for the event(s) and
- $500 per fiscal year
Chapter Revenue Policy
- Unless otherwise authorized by the State Bar Board of Governors, no local chapter may collect dues.
- Any registrations or income from events must only cover the amount of the event.
- If income for an event, plus the chapter allocation of $500 exceeds the cost of the event, the allocation amount will be reduced or denied.
- Chapters are not authorized to hold any funds.
