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FBA Ewsletter www.FBAmich.org FBANewsletter Spring 2007 Federal Bar Association - Eastern District of Michigan Chapter - 49 years of service to our Federal Bench and Bar Gilman Award Luncheon President’s April 26th Column Grant P. Gilezan This year’s Leonard R. Gilman Award Luncheon will be held on Thursday, April 26, 2007 at 11:30 As our Chapter cele- a.m. at the Gem Theatre in Detroit. James C. Thomas brates its 50th year of service to the bench and is the 2007 Gilman Award recipient and Michigan bar, I want to share with Supreme Court Justice Maura Corrigan will be the you a few brief reflections featured speaker. on our past, present and The Gilman Award is given annually to an out- future. standing practitioner of criminal law who exemplifies Since its founding on December 3, 1957, our the excellence, professionalism, and commitment to Chapter is not only rich with history, but fortunately with leaders, like our Executive Director and Past public service of Len Gilman, who was U.S. Attorney President Brian Figot, who are dedicated to pre- at the time of his death in 1985. (cont’d on page 3) serving and remembering our history. The occa- sion of our Chapter’s golden anniversary has led Brian to locate information in our archives that NO, You Can’t Just Flush It deserves special recognition and consideration as we celebrate how we started and what we have Down the Sewer: become. Enforcement of Laws For example, of 148 charter members, five are That Protect Our Waters still active members of our Chapter. They are Hon. George Woods, Andrew Belanger, John Chase, The Chapter Environmental Law Committee Russell Paquette and Richard Tarnas. A half-cen- tury of practice and membership is an impressive will present a seminar on April 20, 2007 addressing and inspiring accomplishment, well worth taking a the successes and challenges of wastewater pretreat- moment to appreciate. ment within the Detroit Water and Sewage District Looking back thirty-five years to 1972, there are (DWSD). A panel composed of James Morgulec fifteen more members who remain active in our from the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C., Chapter today. They are Hon. Ralph Guy, Hon. Stephen Kuplicki, P.E., J.D. of the DWSD, and Beth Damon Keith, Hon. Cornelia Kennedy, Hon. Fred Gotthelf, who specializes in environmental law with Mester, Hon. Paul Komives, Norton Cohen, Jo- seph Dillon, Eugene Driker, John English, Richard Butzel Long, will address the group. Fellrath, Aldo Giglio, Hon. John Hausner, Norman The seminar will be held at the offices of Dykema Hyman, Hon. Charles Levin and Past President INSIDE THIS ISSUE Gossett in the 400 Charles Rutherford. It is not surprising that, in Selden Society pg.3 Tower of the Re- addition to consistency and dedication, other com- mon themes among the accomplished individuals News from naissance Center Student Chapters pg.3-4 from 12:00 to 1:30 in this fine group are excellence and leadership, as demonstrated by the number of past presidents Corporate Privilege pg.4-5 p.m. Lunch will be and award winners in their New Lawyers Seminar pg.5-6 served. The cost is ranks. $25.00 for mem- From Dave Weaver pg. 6-7 We have come a long WINNER Remembering Dr. Keith bers and $30.00 way over five decades when 4 YEARS and Mrs. Feikens pg.7 for nonmembers. you consider that we now National FBA In Memoriam Make your reser- have 600 Chapter members. Outstanding Judge Hillman pg. 7-8 Newsletter vations online at Another interesting com- McCree Recap pg.8-9 parison is that our Chapter A w a r d www.fbamich.org (cont’d on page 2) Calendar of Events pg. 11 (cont’d on page 3) 1 President’s Column (continued) base pay of federal judges is stuck at the 1989 level and there have been no COLA increases over that started with only two women members, and the stretch (causing real judicial pay to go down 25%, number of women members did not change over the while wages in America over that same time period next quarter century. Today, however, 28% of our increased by 19%). The three leading negative in- Chapter members are women, which coincidentally fluences on momentum developing soon on judicial is exactly the same percentage of women in the pay increases are: (i) the sense that the average practice of law across the country that was recently voter won’t enthusiastically support or meaningfully reported by the American Bar Association. appreciate the need for a judicial pay increase be- An even more noteworthy development is that cause federal judges at their currently frozen level the percentage of women in our Chapter leadership make much more than the average wage-earner ranks far exceeds this number. Over 70% of our in the United States; (ii) Congress is now requiring officers are women; almost 40% of our Executive increases in budgets to be accompanied by equal Board members are women; and over 40% of our off-sets elsewhere and is also cutting court budgets committee chairpersons are women. This robust overall; and (iii) Congress wants to link its members’ level of activity and contribution by women mem- ability to get a pay increase to the passage of judicial bers is a significant feature of who we are and of our pay increases. The transition in power in Congress diverse brand of opportunity and success. As with this past November makes it unlikely that the new any dynamic change and improvement in an orga- majority will try to go that way until they get more nization, it is gratifying to know that our Chapter’s established in their positions and assess whether history has its own share of bold visions realized. there is sufficient support. Having recently attended the National FBA All of these matters, but especially enhancing Mid-Year Meeting in Washington, D.C., I have a judicial pay, are essential to sustaining the compe- few additional thoughts on how bold visions and tency, excellence and diversity of the federal bench actions, at the Chapter and National levels, are for the benefit of our judicial system and all persons needed to ensure that long-overdue improvements participating in it. I can see how the average lay are put in place that are vital to sustaining an inde- person would not easily see the priority of any of pendent, well-qualified and experienced judiciary. these judiciary issues compared to foreign policy The Mid-Year Meeting included thought-provoking and domestic economic policy. I can also appreciate presentations on the problems plaguing judicial ap- that the judiciary is not in an appropriate position to pointments, security and compensation, including lobby on its own behalf. For these reasons, I think remarks from Kristine Lucas (Senior Counsel, Sen- that such vital matters regarding our judicial system ate Judiciary Committee), Elisabeth Cook (Deputy should be addressed primarily by lawyers, individu- Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Policy, ally and through bar associations. Department of Justice) and Cordia Strom (Assistant I believe that our Chapter and its members should Director for Legislative Affairs, Administrative Office lend their support to National FBA’s initiative to of the U.S. Courts). lobby Congress and the executive branch in favor There has been quite an unfortunate lack of of improvements to judicial appointments, security responsiveness, support and priority extended to and compensation. In that connection, I will explore the judiciary by the other branches of our federal with our Chapter’s officers and Executive Board the government. There are twenty emergency court va- possible adoption of an appropriate resolution in cancies across the country (with only ten nominees, support of positive action on these matters. due largely to the vagaries of the nomination/confir- I encourage all members of our Chapter to reflect mation process). The last time Congress passed a on the future of our judiciary and to take a moment bill authorizing new judgeships was in 1990. Little to support the FBA by independently contacting is expected to be done soon to alter or hasten the members of Congress to ensure that the impor- pace of the nomination process, especially in light tance of these issues is fully appreciated and that of the 2008 presidential election. Similarly, the improvements are promptly implemented. I see violence affecting federal judges in Chicago and this not only as a chance to make an important dif- Atlanta a few years ago has yet to produce legisla- ference, but our duty, as lawyers and officers of the tion that would afford basic security improvements. court, to exercise our unique standing to serve the Any bills on that issue aren’t likely to garner any best interests of the judicial system, and in turn our stand-alone support, but would likely need to be clients and society, who depend on it remaining an tacked onto another, unrelated lead bill. equally strong third branch of government. Most compelling of all is the judicial pay issue, which is facing challenges on three key fronts. The 2 Protect Our Waters (from page 1) Meeting of the Selden Society or by mailing a check to Executive Director Brian On Monday, April 30, 2007, the Chapter, together Figot, 30100 Telegraph Rd., Suite 428, Bingham with the District Court and Professor Brian Simpson Farms, MI 48025-4564. Questions? Contact William of the University of Michigan Law School, will host Schikora (313-568-6685) or Christine Dowhan-Bailey a meeting of the Selden Society. The event will take (313-226-6822). place at 12:30p.m.
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