Interested individuals can visit http://bit.ly/13TayCI to submit a proposal. Speaker and topic proposals will be accepted until midnight Central time on Sunday, June 30.

Submission of a proposal is not a guarantee of acceptance to speak on the topic or that the topic will be selected for inclusion. ABA TECHSHOW’s goal in requesting submissions is to generate the largest possible pool of quality potential topics relevant to the legal community.

For more information, visit ABA TECHSHOW at www.techshow.com. ABA TECHSHOW will be held March 27-29 at the Hilton Chicago.

ABA TECHSHOW is the leading legal technology conference bringing lawyers together with technology that will be useful in their practice. ABA TECHSHOW is presented by ABA Law Practice Management Section. 2014 marks the 28^th annual ABA TECHSHOW.

With nearly 400,000 members, the American Bar Association is one of the largest voluntary professional membership organizations in the world. As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law. To review our privacy statement, click here. Follow the latest ABA news at www.abanow.org and on Twitter @ABANews.

These views are being presented only on behalf of the Sections of Antitrust Law and International Law. They have not been approved by the ABA House of Delegates or Board of Governors and should not be construed as representing the policy of the American Bar Association.

Please click on the link here for the cover letter and comments.

With nearly 400,000 members, the American Bar Association is one of the largest voluntary professional membership organizations in the world. As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law. To review our privacy statement, click here. Follow the latest ABA news at www.abanow.org and on Twitter @ABANews.

“With this candid report, the United States shines a light on the horror of modern slavery around the world, including here at home, and provides an important diplomatic tool,” Bellows said. “Through his brilliant leadership, Ambassador Luis CdeBaca has given other governments a foundation for eradicating human trafficking around the world and also inspired the U.S. legal community to act. His efforts to call attention to human trafficking in global supply chains and highlight the need for corporate conduct standards provide a model that the ABA is working to institute in the United States.”

In the TIP Report, the State Department places each country into one of three tiers based on the extent of each government’s efforts to comply with the “minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking” found in Section 108 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act. While Tier 1 is the highest ranking, it does not mean that a country has no human trafficking problems. On the contrary, a Tier 1 ranking indicates that a government has acknowledged the existence of human trafficking, made efforts to address the problem and complies with the TVPA’s minimum standards.

In conjunction with the release of the TIP Report, Secretary of State John Kerry is also honoring individuals around the world who have devoted their lives to fighting human trafficking. These “TIP Report Heroes” include advocates, lawyers, police officers and government officials who engage in tireless efforts to protect trafficked persons, to hold traffickers accountable for their crimes and to raise public awareness of this worldwide problem.

“We owe a special thanks to the TIP Report Heroes, who have relentlessly sought in their home countries to rid the world of modern-day slavery,” Bellows said.

On June 18, the ABA hosted a public question-and-answer session with the TIP Report Heroes. This event presented an opportunity for the general public to engage with the heroes in discussions about their work and their perspective on efforts to combat human trafficking globally. The ABA Task Force on Human Trafficking sponsored this program, and Chief Counsel Vivian Huelgo moderated the discussion.

To access the TIP Report, click here.

With nearly 400,000 members, the American Bar Association is one of the largest voluntary professional membership organizations in the world. As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law. To review our privacy statement, click here. Follow the latest ABA news at www.abanow.org and on Twitter @ABANews.

Panelists will talk about the recently announced enforcement actions that will be taken by the attorney general offices of California, Massachusetts and Washington against overseas manufacturers in Thailand, India and China that allegedly used stolen technology to compete unfairly against law-abiding companies in their states.

The panel, held from noon to 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, June 26, in Washington, D.C., will be moderated by Rob McKenna, former attorney general of Washington state and president of the National Association of Attorneys General. Panelists include Bill Kovacic, a George Washington University Law School professor and former Federal Trade Commission chairman; Tiffany Adams, vice president of public affairs at the National Association of Manufacturers; and Emilio Varanini, deputy attorney general in the California Department of Justice.

The event, which can be attended in person or listened to via webcast, will be held at Constantine Cannon LLP, 1301 K St. NW, Suite 1050 East. To RSVP, contact Jewel Wrenn at jwrenn@constantinecannon.com or call 202-204-4528. To register for the Web event, click here. All pertinent dial-in information will be provided with your confirmation. CLE credit is not available for this program.

An MP3 recording of the program will be posted on the section website. Section members can visit the committee program audio page after the program for access.

With nearly 400,000 members, the American Bar Association is one of the largest voluntary professional membership organizations in the world. As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law. To review our privacy statement, click here. Follow the latest ABA news at www.abanow.org and on Twitter @ABANews.

These views are being presented only on behalf of the Sections of Antitrust Law and International Law. They have not been approved by the ABA House of Delegates or Board of Governors and should not be construed as representing the policy of the American Bar Association. 

Please click on the link here for the cover letter and comments. 

With nearly 400,000 members, the American Bar Association is one of the largest voluntary professional membership organizations in the world. As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law. To review our privacy statement, click here. Follow the latest ABA news at www.abanow.org and on Twitter @ABANews.

Notable participants include former Homeland Security Secretaries Michael Chertoff and Tom Ridge, House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, DHS acting Under Secretary for the National Programs and Protection Directorate Suzanne E. Spaulding and Justice Department acting Assistant Attorney General of National Security John P. Carlin.

What:
Eighth Annual Homeland Security Law Institute
Sponsored by the ABA Section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice

When:
Thursday, June 20 – Friday, June 21

Where:
Capital Hilton
1001 16th St. NW
Washington, DC 20036

Program highlights include:

“An Overview of the U.S. National Security Division and What to Expect in 2013” — John P. Carlin, acting assistant attorney general for national security at the Department of Justice, will review the history and achievements of the National Security Division since its creation in March 2006 and look ahead at future challenges.
Thursday, June 20, 9 – 9:30 a.m.

“Our Nation’s Security: A Perspective from the House Committee on Homeland Security” — Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, will review recent legislation and discuss priorities in addressing the nation’s security and providing congressional oversight for the Department of Homeland Security.
Thursday, June 20, 9:30 – 10 a.m.

“A Look at the National Protection and Programs Directorate and What to Expect in 2013” — Suzanne E. Spaulding, acting under secretary for the National Protection and Programs Directorate, will address security challenges and how the NPPD is working to promote its mission. The NPPD leads the national effort to protect and enhance the resilience of the nation’s physical and cyber infrastructure.
Thursday, June 20, 4:15 – 5:15 p.m.

“DHS – 10 Years and Beyond” — A panel including former Secretaries Michael Chertoff and Tom Ridge will discuss the history of the Department of Homeland Security since forming  in 2002 and look ahead at its continued role in protecting the nation against threats.
Friday, June 21, 8:30 – 9:30 a.m.

“Kill or Capture? Drones, Trials and other Counterterrorism Challenges for the Second Term” — A panel of experts will cover the use of drones in killing terrorists, both in the U.S. and abroad, with a particular emphasis on the killing of an American citizen. It will also focus on captured terrorists being brought back to the United States for trial in civilian court.
Friday, June 21, 2:45  – 3:45 p.m.

For a complete list of conference panels and speakers, please click here.

For media credentialing, please contact Kati Rutherford at Kati.Rutherford@americanbar.org. This event is free and open to members of the press.

With nearly 400,000 members, the American Bar Association is one of the largest voluntary professional membership organizations in the world. As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law. To review our privacy statement, click here. Follow the latest ABA news at www.abanow.org and on Twitter @ABANews.

Shepherd, who is chair of the ABA Criminal Justice Section, asked the bipartisan task force to conduct a comprehensive review of federal criminal laws because the sheer number “[make] it impossible for the layperson to understand what is criminal and what is not.”

Shepherd warned that “punishment … can lose its deterrent, educative, rehabilitative and even retributive qualities under the barrage of overly broad, superfluous statues.”

The ABA identifies overfederalization and overcriminalization as liabilities with significant financial and legal costs. An ABA study revealed in 1998 that more than 40 percent of the federal provisions enacted since the Civil War were enacted since 1970. “While only a small fraction of our nation’s prosecutions are handled in federal court, the overwhelming number of regulations and statutes that carry criminal penalties are found on the federal side of the ledger,” Shepherd said.

Overcriminalization is evidenced by the 6.98 million offenders under supervision in 2011 in the United States. “Nearly half of the prisoners in the United States have been incarcerated for nonviolent offenses,” Shepherd said.

“Reducing overcriminalization saves taxpayer money and improves the lives of all citizens.”

Shepherd’s testimony on behalf of the ABA can be found here.

With nearly 400,000 members, the American Bar Association is one of the largest voluntary professional membership organizations in the world. As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law. To review our privacy statement, click here. Follow the latest ABA news at www.abanow.org and on Twitter @ABANews.

The recipients and projects funded are:

Arkansas Access to Justice Commission. Document assembly software for use in pilot assisted self-represented litigant clinics with attorneys working on a limited-scope basis.

Connecticut Access to Justice Commission. Outreach to expand donor base for new fellowship program placing new law school graduates in legal aid programs.

New Mexico Access to Justice Commission. Unified online legal aid intake system with the capacity to refer applicants to the appropriate provider and level of service necessary to deal with their problem (“triage”).

North Carolina Access to Justice Commission. Website with state-specific resource and referral information for veterans, and pro bono attorneys representing veterans.

Tennessee Access to Justice Commission. Pilot rural pro bono outreach projects to be established through faith-based organizations.

Vermont Access to Justice Coalition. Online referral tool from the state’s legal aid intake website to the Vermont Bar Association’s lawyer referral service, coordinated with the development of a panel of attorneys available to provide reduced-fee, limited scope representation.

Wyoming Access to Justice Commission. Pilot Skype-based remote law offices for civil legal aid at rural sites, as part of a broad redesign, coordination and expansion of the state’s legal aid delivery system.

The ABA Access to Justice Commission Expansion Project is funded by the Public Welfare Foundation and the Kresge Foundation. It is administered by the ABA Resource Center for Access to Justice Initiatives. The purpose of the project is to expand the number of state access to justice commissions, strengthen existing commissions, and promote innovative initiatives by commissions.

As of June 2013, there are access to justice commissions in 27 states and the District of Columbia. Access to Justice Commissions are formal entities that bring together the highest level of the state’s courts, organized bar, and other stakeholders to support the expansion of access to civil justice for low-income and disadvantaged people. Most of the commissions were created by the state’s supreme court. Several other state supreme courts are currently considering creation of a new commission.

Existing access to justice commissions have had a major impact in expanding support for self-represented litigants in the courts, increasing state-level funding for civil legal aid, developing new initiatives to increase pro bono services by attorneys, promoting collaboration and coordination among civil legal aid providers, building a commitment to pro bono and support for legal aid among law students and new lawyers, and increasing awareness among legislators and other key decision makers, the bar, the judiciary, and the general public about the legal needs of low-income and disadvantaged people and the social and economic benefits of ensuring that they do not go unmet.

With nearly 400,000 members, the American Bar Association is one of the largest voluntary professional membership organizations in the world. As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law. To review our privacy statement, click here. Follow the latest ABA news at www.abanow.org and on Twitter @ABANews.

These views are being presented only on behalf of the Sections of Antitrust Law and International Law. They have not been approved by the ABA House of Delegates or Board of Governors and should not be construed as representing the policy of the American Bar Association.

Please click on the link here for the cover letter and comments.

With nearly 400,000 members, the American Bar Association is one of the largest voluntary professional membership organizations in the world. As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law. To review our privacy statement, click here. Follow the latest ABA news at www.abanow.org and on Twitter @ABANews.

The media briefing is in advance of “Fostering Justice: Third National Conference on the Right to Counsel for Abused and Neglected Children,” occurring the next day at William H. Gates Hall on the campus of the University of Washington. 

Conference sponsors expect that the invitation-only symposium will build consensus around what lawyers can do to achieve better results for children, what the outcomes of past studies demonstrate and what research is still needed. 

Sessions at the conference will focus on messaging to various audiences, an overview of related litigation and legislation around the country, a myth-busting exercise highlighting misunderstandings about lawyers and children, and a mock appellate argument. The conference will also host a parallel symposium for current and former foster youth, taking advantage of their direct experience in the foster care system. 

“Fostering Justice” follows the national conferences “Raising Our Hands: Creating a National Strategy for Children’s Right to Education and Counsel” at the Northwestern University School of Law in Chicago in 2009 and “Improving Outcomes for Children” at the Nova Southeastern University Law Center in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., in 2012. The latter conference emphasized implementing the ABA Model Act Governing the Representation of Children in Abuse, Neglect, and Dependency Proceedings. 

What: Media briefing in advance of “Fostering Justice: Third National Conference on the Right to Counsel for Abused and Neglected Children” 

When: Thursday, June 20, 5 p.m. 

Who: Speaking and answering questions will be Angela Vigil of Baker & McKenzie LLP in Miami, Fla., a member of the ABA Section of Litigation Children’s Rights Litigation Committee Working Group; Washington state Rep. Roger Goodman; former Washington state Supreme Court Justice Bobbe Bridge, president of the Center for Children & Youth Justice; a current foster youth speaker; and Casey Trupin, coordinating attorney for the Children and Youth Project at Columbia Legal Services in Seattle. 

Where: Navigant Consulting
                 27^th floor conference room
                 1201 Third Ave.
                 Seattle, WA 98101 

For media registration, please contact Al Leeds at al.leeds@americanbar.org or at 202-662-1037. 

With nearly 400,000 members, the American Bar Association is one of the largest voluntary professional membership organizations in the world. As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law. To review our privacy statement, click here. Follow the latest ABA news at www.abanow.org and on Twitter @ABANews.