Under State Bar procedures, members of the bar may
file a specific objection to challenge the accuracy of any of the determinations by the
Board of Governors that a legislative position is chargeable to the annual membership fee
under Keller v. State Bar (1990) 496 U.S. 1.
A challenge by a member to any of the legislative positions listed
below must be made individually and in writing.
The written challenge must include the challenger’s name,
address, telephone number and bar membership number and should identify the challenged
legislative position.
A challenger must sign the challenge, postmarked on or before June
15, which is the 45th day following the publication date of this issue of the California
Bar Journal, or delivered in person to the State Bar’s San Francisco office by 5 p.m.
on or before June 15, directed to Judy Johnson, Executive Director, State Bar of
California, 180 Howard Street, San Francisco CA 94105-1639.
Challengers are still required to submit payment of the 2000
membership fee less only the $5 lobbying deduction. Failure to timely submit a challenge
shall constitute a waiver of any right to object to a particular legislative position
within this notice.
Objections properly filed within the deadline will be considered by
the Board of Governors at its next regularly scheduled meeting following the deadline or
as soon thereafter as the matter may be considered. The board shall decide whether to give
a pro rata refund to the challenger or to submit the dispute for expeditious arbitration
before an impartial arbitrator according to procedures described in the January 2000
California Bar Journal.
If the dispute is submitted to arbitration, the arbitration process
will determine whether the challenged positions are within the scope of permissible
activities for which mandatory fees may be used under applicable constitutional law. Upon
receipt of a properly submitted and timely challenge, the State Bar will place the
disputed amount of the challenger’s fee in an interest-bearing escrow account.
The list of legislative proposals approved and determined chargeable
on April 1 by the Board of Governors for the year 2000 is as follows:
11. Supports in principle AB 1138 (Strom-Martin) which is intended to
deter the unlawful practice of law by so-called “living trust mills” which
solicit the purchase of estate planning services, obtain personal and financial
information, and use that as the basis for marketing financial products. |
