Kathryn Grant Madigan's Blog

President Elect Bernice Leber, immediate Past President Mark Alcott and Executive Director Pat Bucklin and I attended a variety of programs offered by the National Conference of Bar Presidents (NCPB) and National Conference of Bar Executives (NABE), followed by the 2-day House of Delegates meeting. And while I wish we had more time for sightseeing (I had 2 free afternoons over the course of a week), it was inspiring and motivating.

So what happened with regard to policy issues at the ABA Annual Meeting?

Mark Alcott successfully presented the Association's report urging the ABA to adopt a policy on mandatory retirement in the profession. Mark lobbied hard for this proposal before the House meeting and his remarks on the floor of the House were well received by the delegates.

We also dealt with an issue that has plagued our country for a number of years -- our government's treatment of detainees and the safety of captured US troops.

I am pleased to report that a resolution, co-sponsored by the New York State Bar Association and the New York City Bar Association, which calls on Congress to enact legislation to supersede President Bush's July 20 Executive Order that prohibited torture and inhumane treatment in Central Intelligence Agency interrogations but did not specify which methods would be allowed, was approved Monday afternoon.

Essentially, this recent Executive Order is inconsistent with United States’ obligations under Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions because it does not ensure that foreign persons captured, detained or interned are afforded the minimum protections required under national and international law.

Our position was clear -- that the rule of law applies to all branches and all actions of our government. Neither the ABA nor the New York State Bar Association should countenance the continued violations of international law, which has done incalculable damage to our nation, at home and abroad.

This Report and Recommendation was sponsored by the Association of the Bar of the City of New York and co-sponsored by the ABA Standing Committee on Law and National Security, the Section of Individual Rights and Responsibilities, the Center for Human Rights, the Task Force on Treatment of Enemy Combatants and NYSBA. We are indebted to Barry Kamins, Barbara Berger Opotowsky and Alan Rothstein from the City Bar, Michael Posner, Mark Agrast, Al Harvey, Neal Sonnett, Richard Macias and Jim Silkenat from the ABA. And I am proud of the role that our Association played in this critical issue.

I credit my son Jeb (a 2L at Cornell Law School) with helping me find the perfect quote from James Madison's Federalist Paper # 51 to sum up my remarks to the ABA House of Delegates:

"In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: You must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place, oblige it to control itself."

That’s it for now. And while this was a remarkable experience in California, I’m looking forward to coming home and to getting back to business in New York State.