Kathryn Grant Madigan's Blog

Welcome to the first post, in the first-ever Presidential Blog here at the New York State Bar Association. I am honored to take office today and want you all to know that for the next short year, I am your acting President, here to serve our diverse membership with a commitment to making a genuine and enduring difference.

For 28 years - as an active member of this Association - the State Bar has, in many ways, been my professional home – a place where I have found purpose, value and enduring relationships, and unparalleled opportunities for professional growth and service to our members, the public and our profession. In taking the helm of this great Association as its 110th President, my goal is for every licensed New York lawyer to find a home at the State Bar.

Over the course of my many years as a state and local bar leader and throughout my year as President-Elect, I have met with lawyers across this state and have marveled at your passion for the law and your commitment to serving your clients and your communities. I have listened to your ideas and concerns, what motivates and informs you. I have learned what we, as the largest voluntary state bar association in the country, do well, and what we can do even better.

I want to continue those conversations throughout this year. I hope - through this blog and my messages in the Journal - to engage and inspire you to become better lawyers, more effective community and bar leaders, stronger advocates for those who cannot speak for themselves, and defenders of the rule of law. I look forward to your participation in this blog in order to provide greater opportunities to expand these vital conversations. (If you are new to blogs, click the Comments link at the bottom of this message to post a response.)

Together we can continue to enhance our credibility and visibility as New York lawyers, influencing public policy not only here in New York, but in national and international arenas. There really is no place like home, and I can think of no better “home base” for all New York lawyers than our Association.

Welcome home.

Enhanced Funding for civil legal services in New York is an Association priority. We are delighted that Governor Spitzer agrees.

Last week we were presented with an opportunity by the Governor to weigh in with regard to new regulations proposed by the Board of Trustees of the Interest on Lawyer Account Fund (IOLA). Here is a link to the press release that was issued on May 31.

The IOLA program requires attorneys to deposit funds received from clients either in interest bearing accounts for the benefit of clients or in interest bearing IOLA accounts. The interest is pooled and managed by the IOLA Board of Trustees to fund non-profit civil legal services.

Currently, the top 80 banks handling IOLA funds pay a lower interest rate than is typical for accounts of similar size and characteristics, meaning that revenues used to provide civil legal services for indigents and underprivileged are reduced. The new regulations, if adopted, would significantly boost that interest rate resulting in considerable new revenue to pay for civil legal services programs in NYS and provide our most vulnerable population with greater access to civil legal services.

The IOLA fund was created in 1983 with the strong support of the New York State Bar Association for the express purpose of providing additional financial support to civil legal service organizations that were decimated by federal budget cuts. Access to justice is fundamental. We have a proud tradition of rendering millions of hours of pro-bono services to the poor. We applaud Governor Spitzer for making civil legal services funding a priority.

Please let me know your opinions on this vital issue.

On Thursday, May 31, the State Assembly’s Committee on Codes conducted a hearing on issues important to our Criminal Justice Section, including the videotaping of custodial interrogations, which is part of the Association’s legislative program.

At the hearing, four men, having served a combined 63 years in prison for crimes they did not commit, testified that videotaping would benefit not only those who have been wrongly accused but in the prosecution of those charged with criminal acts in the future. A bill (A8693 - Lentol), which would enable videotaping of interrogations (Section 18), and includes language drafted by the Bar Association’s Criminal Justice Section, has passed in the Assembly but faces some opposition from the Senate and the Administration.

Video taping ensures the integrity of the fact-finding process by accurately recording the full course of an interrogation, thereby reducing false denials that incriminating admissions were made, or that such admissions were obtained by coercion or intimidation. Recording also improves the quality of police interrogations through improved monitoring by supervisors, use of recordings for training purposes, and the use of taped admissions to confront suspected accomplices. Finally, recording helps prevent the inappropriate treatment of detainees and reduces the likelihood that the detainees can lodge false complaints of physical or psychological abuse.

This proposed legislation is beneficial to all sides of the equation as it creates a clear account of what was said by the accused and the accusers, and in the appropriate context. These records can be used at trial by the prosecution or the defense to assist them in making their respective cases.

The Association is currently engaged in establishing pilot programs in regions across the state to videotape interrogations, which we expect will be a positive experience. We support the creation of this legislation that would mandate the videotaping of interrogations, and other common sense initiatives that will enhance and preserve justice. The four innocent men who lost 63 years of their lives deserve nothing less, as do those accused in the future, who might otherwise meet similar fates.

The first day of my first full week as President brought me to Albany for our "Celebrating Diversity in the Bar" regional reception. What a treat! Together with a number of local and specialty bars, we honored Associate Judge of the Court of Appeals, Theodore T. Jones, and had an opportunity to meet and greet judges, bar leaders and lawyers of every stripe, most of whom were young, diverse and full of promise. The energy in the Great Hall was palpable.

One of the great strengths of NYSBA is the diversity of our membership -- in terms of geographic distribution, area of practice, practice setting and firm size. We are making headway in terms of gender; just under 1/3 of our members are women. We are making strides in gender equity within our leadership, although we can do more. And while we can count more minority attorneys among our membership, we are far from achieving the goal of a a profession that is reflective of the diversity of society at large. We do indeed have "miles to go" before we become truly inclusive of members from all races, ethnic groups, and other traditionally under-represented groups, including gay and lesbian attorneys and attorneys with disabilities.

It is not enough to have a diversity policy. Words alone, no matter how well intentioned, will not suffice.

Our Committee on Diversity and Leadership Development, co-chaired by Past Presidents Lorraine Power Tharp and Ken Standard, have been working hard for nearly 4 years to identify and mentor prospective leaders in our Association, monitoring our progress with our diversity initiatives within our Sections and Committees. These regional diversity receptions help us to reach out to our members and non-members alike to encourage participation, and leadership, in NYSBA. They -- and you -- are the key to our collective future.

We hope to see you at our Diversity Reception on January 28, 2008 at the Annual Meeting in NYC, and across the state in the year ahead.

One of the benefits of the State Bar Presidency is the opportunity to travel around our state and meet with the members of the local bars. Even before assuming office, I spent time with the Nassau and Suffolk County Bars, Bronx Bar, Queens Bar, even the Franklin County Bar (which is up there in Malone, near the Canadian border).

In my first week as President, I had the honor of attending the Annual Dinner Meetings of both the Monroe County (Rochester, for you down-staters) and Erie County (Buffalo) County Bar Associations.

I congratulate outgoing Monroe County Bar President Jill Schultz for an outstanding year and look forward to working with the new President Thomas G. Smith as their 112th President.

Steve Lamantia has devoted himself nearly full time to his presidency of the Erie County Bar and while he will be a tough act to follow, I believe that the new President, Cheryl Smith Fischer, is up to the task.

Both Erie and Monroe County are fortunate indeed to have such superb leadership and high level of volunteerism within their membership, as well as two of the best Executive Directors in the state, Kathy Bifaro and Mary Corbitt. It was a privilege to meet the honorees at both events, including their 50-year members, and I returned to my office with a renewed sense of pride in being a New York lawyer.

The call to service is alive and well in Western New York.

STATEMENT FROM NYS BAR ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT KATHRYN “KATE” MADIGAN REGARDING THE FAILURE TO ENACT A PAY ADJUSTMENT FOR NEW YORK’S JUDGES.

“The New York State Bar Association and its 72,000 members remain disheartened by the continuing failure of the New York State Legislature to adjust the level of compensation for New York State Judges. The lack of a proper pay increase sends an unwanted and undeserved signal to our judiciary, which has not even received a cost-of-living upgrade in more than 8 years and only 2 adjustments over the past twenty years.

“The Bar Association has worked tirelessly in support of a fair judicial pay increase only to be stymied by the political climate in Albany. It is time for partisanship to be laid aside and for this abandonment of our exceptional judges to be remedied in order that New York State may continue to retain and attract the most qualified judges in the nation.

“It is our hope that a judicial pay increase will be the first matter on the Legislature’s agenda when they return to Albany this summer and that it is approved and signed into law by Governor Spitzer. Our judges have earned it, they deserve it, and the Legislature ought to provide it without further delay.”