YLD e-Blast: February 2022

By Claire O’Brien and Michael Cohen

DATES TO KNOW

March 1-31 | Legal Feeding Frenzy
April 19 | Insurance Law, Workers’ Compensation and Young Lawyers Division Joint Networking Event | 5 p.m.

LEADERSHIP NOMINATIONS OPEN

It is time to make your voice heard in the selection of the leadership of the YLD! Please begin thinking about who should lead our organization in the coming year(s).

In accordance with Article VII, Section 3 of the North Carolina Bar Association Young Lawyers Division Bylaws, we wish to notify you that the Nominating Committee is now accepting nominations for candidates for the offices of Chair-Elect, Secretary, and Administrative Division Director for the 2022-2023 bar year.

Pursuant to the YLD Bylaws, the Committee will accept nominations from the YLD membership, exercise independent judgment in carefully considering all nominees, and submit one nominee for each position to the YLD membership for a vote at the YLD Annual Meeting in June 2022.

To submit a young lawyer for consideration by the Nominating Committee, please email our NCBA Communities Manager, Cheyenne Merrigan at [email protected]. Your nomination should include the following:

• Nominee’s name
• Nominee’s contact information (including email, phone number, and physical address)
• Nominee’s firm or employer
• The position for which you are nominating the nominee (Chair-Elect, Secretary, Administrative Division Director)
• Nominee’s date of birth (to confirm eligibility)
• A statement of support (no more than 500 words)
• Please confirm that you and the nominee are NCBA members

Nominations must be properly and completely submitted by March 4, 2022. The Nominating Committee will announce its nominees on or about March 25, 2022.

Legal Feeding Frenzy

The 2022 Legal Feeding Frenzy, sponsored annually by the Office of the Attorney General, the NCBA Young Lawyers Division, and the NC Bar Foundation and Feeding the Carolinas, is scheduled for March 1-31. Food banks across our state are struggling to meet the increased demand caused by the ongoing pandemic and are in need of your support. Feel free to reach out to NCBA YLD LFF Committee Chairs Spencer Fritts ([email protected]) or Meredith Brewer ([email protected]) with questions. To learn more or donate, visit the website here: https://www.ncbar.org/members/communities/divisions/young-lawyers-division/legal-feeding-frenzy-2022/.

Writing Competition

The YLD is excited to announce its second Annual Writing Competition, a chance for imaginative self-expression in the context of a friendly competition among the YLD community! Each winner will receive a gift basket and will have their piece published on the NCBarBlog. The deadline for submission is March 7, 2022. This year’s topic is “Legal Visionaries,” and the YLD invites its members to write a blog post about how they envision the practice of law changing between now and when they someday retire. Additional details and other rules for the competition can be found here.

Law Week and Liberty Bell Committee

The Law Week and Liberty Bell Committee’s Moot Court Subcommittee is seeking attorney and student volunteers for its regional competition to be held on Saturday, March 19, 2022. If you are interested in helping to judge or serve as a timekeeper, please provide your information by following this link. Serving as either a judge or timekeeper is a wonderful way to be involved with our student participants and keep the interest in our legal profession alive and well in our younger generation. Please sign up by Monday, March 14, 2022. Thank you so much for your interest in helping facilitate our Moot Court competition. We are very grateful for all of your help and dedication year after year. If you have any questions please contact Kadija Lewis at [email protected] or Sidney Thomas at [email protected].

Due to uncertainty regarding the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, the Law Week and Liberty Bell Committee has decided to extend the deadline for student teams to register for the Moot Court Regional Competition to be held virtually on Saturday, March 19, 2022. This registration will be extended for another week. Teams should register by Sunday, March 6, 2022. Please share this information among middle and high school students. This is an exciting opportunity to network and meet members of the North Carolina bar. If you have any questions or concerns please contact Kadija Lewis at [email protected].

The Law Week and Liberty Bell Committee has several competitions with upcoming deadlines. Please click here to see additional information about each competition. If you have any questions please contact Sidney Thomas at [email protected] or William Walton at [email protected].

GET INVOLVED

Connect with the YLD through the Online Community Platform

We encourage all YLD members to connect with the YLD through the Online Community Platform! To learn more about the Online Community Platform, check out this blog post and these FAQs.

Volunteer with the Young Lawyers Division

We want your talents, energy and viewpoints in the YLD! Whether your passion is for serving the public, serving the profession, writing articles for publication, improving the administration of justice, building your skills and gaining experience, or helping those in need, we’ve got a role that’s perfect for you! To get involved and join one of our committees, please review your options and complete this online form. If you have questions about membership or committee participation, please reach out to Administrative Division Director Collins Saint.

NCBA Pro Bono Opportunities

Be sure to check out the exciting pro bono opportunities available across the state! Click here for NCBA/NCBF Volunteer Opportunities.

BarCARES

COVID-19 has brought about many changes to our everyday lives. Oftentimes, unprecedented changes serve as triggers or stressors. BarCARES is an organization focused on improving the mental health and overall quality of life for NCBA members, local bar groups, and law students, offering no-cost assistance in dealing with personal, family, financial, work, and/or career stressors. Visit BarCARES online or call 800.640.0735 to speak to someone immediately or arrange a telehealth appointment.

NCBA Career Center

Our online career center averages between four to seven new North Carolina jobs a week! Members searching for employment can post their resumes anonymously, and members searching for employees receive a 15% discount on postings. Email questions to Tesha Blancett.

e-Blast Ideas? NCBarBlog Post Ideas?

If you’d like to see additional or new content in the e-Blast Newsletter or featured on the NCBarBlog, email your YLD Communications Committee Co-Chairs, Michael Cohen and Claire O’Brien – they’d love to hear from you!