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| Half way through the year - time flies when
you’re having fun! - and it’s time for another Message from the Chair.
In my last column, I listed one of the advantages of section membership
as being included in the section’s “Directory of Participating Members:
Attorneys and Affiliates.” Because of the Directory lists areas of
practice, it is more than a mere roster of members. It is a resource
that can be used by section members and others to find section members,
both attorneys and affiliates, who practice in a specific discipline.
Since I wrote my last column, the 1997 edition of the Directory has been published and distributed. Upon distribution, several people called me to complain that they weren’t listed. When I looked into the situation, I was astounded to learn that only about half of the section’s members are listed. I am sure some members are not listed as a matter of preference; however, I fear many members are not listed because of inadvertence. In early 1997, every section member should have received a letter from Jackie Werndli requesting information to be listed in the Directory. The letter concluded, “If you are interested in participating in the Directory, please complete the enclosed from and return it to Jackie Werndli at The Florida Bar. Please return the form no later than February 24, 1997.” Only about half of the section’s members returned the form. Those who did not return the form are the ones not listed in the Directory. If our Directory were merely a roster of members, then we would list every member, but because we list areas of practice, we depend on the responses of section members in compiling the information to include in the Directory. Section members who do not return the form and provide the information are not listed in the Directory. Unfortunately for those who wanted to be listed and who were not, there is nothing that can be done now to include you in the 1997 Directory. The cost of an update or addendum would be about the same as the cost of the Directory. The section’s budget contemplates preparation of the Directory every other year. I am making this the subject of my column
in hopes that the next Directory will be more representative of the the
section’s real makeup. As part of the column, I am including a sample
of the form that will be used when the section begins preparing the 1999
Directory. Take a moment now to fill out the form an send it in.
If your address or your areas of practice change in the future, send in
an updated form. When the 1999 Directory is being prepared,
you will receive another blank form. Send it in as an update.
Plan now to be included in the 1999 Directory. Don’t miss out on
this advantage of section membership.
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Message from the Chair