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16 Jud. Div. Rec. 1 (2012-2013)

handle is hein.aba/judrc0016 and id is 1 raw text is: By Hon. William D. Missouri (Ret.), Upper Marlboro, MD little past noon on August 4, 2012, at the Westin River North Hotel in Chicago, IL, the gavel of leadership was passed from the Hon. Richard Dick C. Goodwin to me and I became the Chair of the Judicial Division (JD) for 2012-2013. The simple act of passing the gavel from Richard to me carried with it the duty, honor and obligation of increasing the profile of the JD and continuing the efforts to increase our membership. As the Division's past chairs know, leading the entity that is the voice of the Judiciary within the ABA requires commitment, dedication, and hard work. I pledge to work hard to ensure that the JD continues its upward progression. Speaking of past chairs, I am indebted to all who have preceded me in this posi- tion for their dedication and hard-work in increasing the JD's visibility within the Association. I am particularly indebted to the past chairs, beginning with the Hon. James A. Wynn, who devoted significant energy to the issue of judicial disqualifica- tion. Even after Judge Wynn's efforts, the need for work necessary to address this important issue persisted and consumed an inordinate amount of the Hon. G. Mi- chael Witte's year as JD Chair. After much work, Judge Witte and his successor, Judge Goodwin, likely thought that the issue was settled after the HOD (House of Delegates) passed Resolution 107 at the 2012 ABA Midyear meeting in New Orleans, LA. However, just as we thought it was safe to move on to other initiatives, the dis- qualification issue has appeared once again on the radar screen in a manner that demands attention. Fortunately, the JD has cemented a strong relationship with the ABA's Tort Trial and Insurance Practice Section (TIPS), which provides the basis for a strong partnership through which the issue of judicial disqualification can be addressed. In particular, the TIPS/JD partnership ultimately resulted in establish- ment of a respectful working relationship with the Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility and the Standing Committee on Professional Disci- pline. We look forward to continuing the working relationship with the two stand- ing committees to facilitate an acceptable amendment to Rule 2. 11 by the February 2013 Midyear meeting in Dallas, Texas. As most JD members know, the ABA Midyear Meeting will signal the half-way mark for me as JD Chair and Laurel G. Bellows' tenure as ABA President. I point out the obvious because President Bellows initiatives - Human Trafficking; Improving Cyber security; Preserving Justices; Preservation of the Civil Jury Trial; and Promoting Di- versity - must be a part of all JD members' conversation by that time. Because there are vehicles to address the issue of human trafficking (Task Force on Human Trafficking) and the preservation of civil jury trials (Commission on the American Jury Project), I am confident that important work on those issues will have been completed by the Midyear Meeting. In fact, with the exception of preserving justice by adequate funding of the courts and promoting diversity to ensure gender equity, all of President Bellows' initiatives can be addressed by articulating plans of S o action and taking steps to carry out the action plans. Court funding and diversity/ gender equity in the judicial system, on the other hand, require the commitment of those with allegiance to specific constituencies. For example, court funding can only be improved through legislative and executive action, while gender equity can only

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