April 14, 2025 – Your voice as a member of the State Bar of Wisconsin is vital to help shape public policy, ensure access to justice, and grow support for the justice system. Regular readers of Rotunda Report will be familiar with the basics of grassroots advocacy: using the Advocacy Network to call and email their lawmakers on priority issues being considered in the legislature.

The Advocacy Network provides the framework with a pre-written message, if needed, and is the quickest and easiest way to share support or opposition on an issue. We encourage members to deliver a stronger impact by taking a few minutes to customize your message and then follow it up with a phone call to legislative offices.

Attorneys who have used the system have provided valuable insight on the profession to legislators. If you haven’t tried using the Advocacy Center, that’s OK—it is never too late and you can send a message at any time.

Mobilizing Others to Act

After sending a message of your own, go one step further and post a message to legislators directly on social media, share the “action alert” link online, and email friends and colleagues with a short note encouraging them to take action as well. All these actions are available and easy to use in the Advocacy Network when you send a message.

You can also share Advocacy Network alerts on social media and write a “call to action” for friends and colleagues. You can post a “web sticker” of the action alert on your webpage or blog (or the webpage of your firm, local bar, etc). While the system is directed toward members of the State Bar, you don’t need to be a member to send a message to lawmakers via an action alert. Using the Advocacy Network as a platform to send messages on a specific topic—like funding civil legal aid—helps to coordinate that effort with your legal colleagues and with State Bar advocacy staff.

Traditional media is also an effective way to mobilize people to act. Most newspapers will accept well-written, concise “letters to the editor” (LTE) on timely topics. An LTE should be between 150 and 250 words and capture the essence of your message in a way that inspires others to reach out to their lawmakers.

Finally, don’t overlook the value of talking with your colleagues in person. Whether in a law firm, local or affinity bar, or just socializing, bringing up your advocacy efforts and encouraging others to do the same can be a powerful motivator.

Attending Public Hearings and Listening Sessions

Most legislative proposals have a dedicated public hearing in both the Assembly and the Senate. Attending and delivering comments as a constituent can be a great way to ensure that your voice is heard directly by lawmakers who can advance, amend, or stop a bill. Of note are the upcoming budget public hearings on Monday, April 28 and Tuesday, April 29. Members can always testify on behalf of themselves, like Judicare did recently in Kaukauna in support of funding for civil legal aid. The State Bar’s elected leadership, including State Bar sections, represent the organization’s positions. But letting lawmakers know how proposals will affect your clients and community is vital. If you are interested in speaking at a hearing and would like some tips for testifying, don’t hesitate to reach out to State Bar staff for help.

Legislators also hold listening sessions in their districts. These meetings are more open-ended and allow constituents to give feedback and input on a variety of issues. Attending a listening session as a constituent is a great way to get some “face time” with your lawmaker and let them know what issues motivate you as an advocate.

You can also arrange to meet with your lawmakers in person or invite them to attend a meeting with you and others. This could be with other advocates on a topic of interest, with your firm or local or affinity bar, or for a charity or social event taking place in their district. Do keep in mind that lawmakers’ schedules can be busy, and that State Bar Advocacy staff can help you to organize these types of meetings.

Building a Relationship with Lawmakers

One of the best ways to increase your influence over the longer term is to build a relationship with your lawmakers. The best time to introduce yourself is at the beginning of a new legislative session, and the second-best time is now. Again, the Advocacy Network makes starting that process easy. By introducing yourself, sharing the issues you care most about, and offering yourself as a resource on topics you have expertise and experience on, you can start a dialogue that runs deeper than whichever bills or budget items are currently being debated. Like any other relationship in life, it takes time and patience to turn an introduction into a working relationship with your lawmakers, but every relationship begins with an introduction.

Learn More

Additional resources on grassroots advocacy are available in our Grassroots Toolkit at www.wisbar.org/GovRelations. If you’d like to ask questions or discuss anything in this article, including how to submit an LTE, arrange a legislator meeting, or learn about opportunities to be recognized as a State Bar “Advocacy Ambassador,” contact Devin Martin, Grassroots Coordinator at dmartin@wisbar.org or at 608-250-6145.

What You Can Do: State Bar of Wisconsin Advocacy Network

State Bar members are encouraged to send a message to their lawmakers expressing support on legislative topics which positively affect the legal system using the Advocacy Network.

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