"When he sets a goal or promises something, you can pretty much take
it to the bank," she says. The 45-year-old Marshall will need plenty of inspiration
in the coming year as he grapples with the bar's problems. He insists he won't commute to
Sacramento to plead with lawmakers to fund the bar, as did his predecessor, San Diego
attorney Marc Adelman.
"The bar is really at a crossroads as to where it's headed," Marshall says.
"We really have an opportunity to restructure the bar, to do some things differently
than what we have done historically. I'd like to start taking some of those steps
now."
Marshall is just the kind of leader the bar may need right now, says Steve Grant, who
hired Marshall and guided him as a young attorney.
"He's extremely people-oriented and he's non-doctrinaire, which I think are two
good qualities," Grant says. "He's very good at distilling problems and avoiding
side issues. Most importantly, he's the best person you could possibly have if the
objective of the bar is to put together a broad-based organization."
Before the end of the year, Marshall wants his colleagues on the board of governors to
decide what to do with the bar's three properties in San Francisco and Los Angeles,
determine the amount of dues, voluntary contributions and credits it will include in the
annual bill to the state's lawyers, and take a close look at how the bar can be recreated.
No sacred cows
"There should be no sacred cows in the sense that every aspect of the bar should
be looked at to see whether we could do things differently and better," he says.
Longer-range planning will be undertaken after a series of forums Marshall wants to
sponsor, inviting friends and foes to address issues raised in recent months as the
legislature debated the bar's future.
The Conference of Delegates and the bar's 17 educational sections, both slated for
abolition in proposals before lawmakers in the last session, must become self-funding,
Marshall says.
He supports retaining the conference, which was lambasted in the past year by
politicians who disapprove of its liberal stands on a variety of issues. "The
conference is being pushed towards a more independent role, and I'd like to work with them
to attain that independence," Marshall says. "But I don't want them to feel
they'll be pushed out."
He pointed out that the majority of conference resolutions taken to Sacramento have
been embraced by the legislature and signed into law by the governor, and says it should
continue its role as advisor to lawmakers on statutes that will make the justice system
work better.
Marshall also believes the sections were improperly targeted and should remain in a
mandatory bar. He suggested that the larger and more prosperous groups, such as litigation
and business law, may have to help support the smaller sections.
Restarting discipline
The bar's top priority, if it receives funding from any source, is the reinstatement of
the discipline system, Marshall says. He also will fight to preserve legal services, try
to establish more effective communication between the bar and its members, "do what
we can with regard to IOLTA," and push hard for inclusion and access to justice.
Marshall is savvy enough to admit that the little issues may get scant attention and he
must focus on the big question: the survival of the bar itself.
"We're more than just a trade association, we're more than just a group that
should be dealing with discipline and admissions," he says. "There's a role for
us to play, and it's a very valuable role that we have historically played that has served
the state and this country well.
"The burden, which I don't think can be met, is upon others to show how that has
failed."
Marshall is a partner at McCutchen Doyle Brown & Enersen in San Francisco, where he
has worked since his graduation from Harvard law school. His practice is primarily
environmental and commercial, with a sub-specialty in white-collar crime.
He is the fourth McCutchen product to serve as a State Bar president. "McCutchen
has always been a place where people felt you should think about life outside the
firm," he says, emphasizing pro bono and community work. "It breeds
activism."
Born in Puerto Rico, Marshall is one of two sons of a non-commissioned officer in the
Air Force and his wife. The family moved often, and Marshall attended school in Spain,
Germany, Montana and Idaho.
Only one B
His mother, Jessie Ann, can recall only one B among dozens of A's on any of Marshall's
report cards. "I thought he could achieve anything," she says.
He graduated from the College of Idaho, where he excelled as a student and a wrestler,
with a degree in history and American studies, and a particular interest in German
military history. Thoughts of teaching were discouraged by an advisor who told Marshall
"there were lots of unemployed Ph.D.s out there."
Three years at Harvard law school led to McCutchen and life with a classmate, Piper
Kent, now an attorney with Lucent. The couple has an 11-year-old son, Kyle, whom Marshall
calls "my passion."
Working his way up
He got involved with the Bar Association of San Francisco when he heard it was
conducting a study on minority attorneys but not a single minority attorney was on the
study panel. He ultimately was elected president of BASF, and then joined the State Bar
board for a three-year term.
One of the casualties of a year as bar president will be Kyle's baseball team, which
Marshall has coached for years, and the north Oakland Little League, where he serves on
the board.
"My family is my favorite outside interest," Marshall says, "and Kyle's
activities dominate my calendar."
Coincidentally, his wife has taken a year's sabbatical and will try to step in for her
husband in some of his outside activities.
She admits she questioned Marshall's decision to run for bar president, particularly at
such a difficult time in its history.
Because the bar's future is important to Marshall, Piper says, he will devote himself
to it.
"Ray is a person who truly believes in whatever he undertakes," she says.
"He does it with a passion and with a sincere belief that the work he's going to do
will make a difference for the better."
His positive perspective and ability to build consensus will serve him well in the
coming year, she says.
"If the bar is going to survive," adds Steve Grant, "I think it has to
be much more inclusive, and Ray is an excellent person to bring that about."
Ready to go
As for Marshall himself, he's ready to tackle the bar's problems.
"Ultimately, my view is the State Bar is worth fighting for and preserving. Its
ideals should not go silently into the night. I feel I can make a major contribution to
that fight." |