![handle is hein.journals/trends27 and id is 1 raw text is:
eby Philp A.temChar
N by Philip A. Fleming'
S hen I became a
new member of the Section
about 15 years ago, I was
told that there would be
many opportunities to pur-
sue professional interests
and personal goals, that the
Section supported, its mem-
bers, and, in addition, that
the work of the Section
would be substantively
interesting and perhaps
even challenging. I found
the Section to be open,
friendly, and collegial, and it
did fulfill its promises to
me.
As we begin a new ABA
year, we do so ai a time
when much of the substan-
tive law that our members interpret
and apply is undergoing potentially
massive changes in Congress, in the
courts, and in the states. In addition, if
Congress enacts regulatory reform leg-
islation, all who engage in the regula-
tory process will of necessity have to
become more familiar with the prqvi-
sions on risk assessment and cost/ben-
efit analysis that are contained in the
Philip A. Fleming practices with
Crowell & Moring in Washington,
DC.
major bills as of this writing inJune.
While the ABA does.not have a posi-
tion on the use of these powerful tools,
my personal view is that both should
be'used more in federal rulemaking,
but both require assumptions and
value judgments that limit their use-
fulness. For this reason, I hope that
whatever legislation emerges will not
be as overly prescriptive as some of the
initial proposals, and that it will
include language requiring the values
and assumptions used in both risk
assessments and economic
analyses to be made explicit.
While all the foregoing
substantive and procedural
law changes challenge us indi-
vidually and collectively as we
seek to equip all SONREEL
lawyers to better serve their
clients, our Section has extra-
ordinary resources. Our
14,000 members have vast
experience in all the substan-
tive areas embraced by our
energy, environmental, natural
resource, and general commit-
tees. NAe are from 43 states
and four other countries, and
we know the economic and
social landscape of our home
locales. We see the effects of
local, state, national, and
international policies on
advantaged and disadvantaged
clients and on our firms and employees.
Some of us hold, or have held, impor-
tant positions in federal, tribal, and state
governmeints. Our practices take us all
over, and many transactional energy
lawyers these days travel to all comers
of the globe. And, our.political views
cover the spectrum.
What we do with our experience can
make a difference. We reorganized the
Section's leadership and staff responsi-
bilities under Kinnan Golemon's leader-
ship this past year; expanded the
continued on pae 8
N by Parthenia B. Evans
he Section's leadership is pleased
to announce the approval by counsel
of a five-year Strategic Plan to move
the Section successfully into the 21st
century.
The Strategic Plan reflects the
Section's new mission:
To be the nationalforum for lawyers
working in areas affecting natural
resources, energy, and the environment;
committed to providing member and
public services to enhance professional
skills, development, and dialogue.
To help achievethis mission the
plan sets forth the following seven
goals:
* Goal I: We will equip'lawyers to bet-
ter serve their clients.
Pathenia B. Evans practices with
'Stinson, Mag & Fizzell, PC., in
Kansas City, MO.
* Goal 1I: We will attract and retain
members and increase our diversity
, 'Goal ill: We will strengthen our
infrastructure.
Goal IV: We will increase our visibil-
ity.
* Goal V: We will grow good leaders.
Goal VI: We will increase our
involvement in the ABA.
* Goal VII: We will determine what
our public service ought to be and
assist members in meeting public
service goals.
In developing the objectives for the
plan, the Strategic Planning Team care-
fully evaluated who the members of
the Section are and what services are
needed and valued.
Achieving Our Goals
Goals I and II are chiefly being imple-
mented.by the Section's Service
Groups: Education, Publications, and
Membership. The newletter's Outreach
column discusses in more detail how
the Service Group chairs are fulfilling
their mandates for achieving these
goals.
The remainder of the goals give
expression to the Section's commit-
ment to look ahead and beyond the
immediate future to ensure the Section
can well serve future generations of
lawyers. These lawyers will find it
essential to participate in a worldwide
network of lawyers. The Section is
committed to increasing its participa-
tion in a wide range of activities on a
local, national, and international level.
Equally important is the Section's
goal of fostering good leaders. For this
reason, the Section believes it essential
to identify members, through the com-
mittee structure, who can be the next
generation of Section leaders. The
Section is achieving this goal through a
host of activities designed to work
continued on page z
Meeting] the Rext Centary
SONREEL's Strategic Plan Is Put into Action
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