THE BAR ASSOCIATION OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MD. Pride in Membership, Leadership in Justice. PRESIDENT S MESSAGE By Mallon A. Snyder INSIDE THIS ISSUE

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1 THE BAR ASSOCIATION OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MD N EWSLETTE R Pride in Membership, Leadership in Justice Volume 62, Issue 1 June Current Update 6 A Balancing Act... 8 Techlectic 9 In Memoriam 10 New Practitioners 11 Committees/Sections Insert Find A Lawyer A Sign Up Form Insert Annual Meeting B Sponsors Insert Annual Meeting C Pictures 24 Pro Bono Specialty Bar 25 Associations 26 Rent/Lease Ads INSIDE THIS ISSUE Attorney Opportunity 27 Ads States Attorney 28 Schedules 29 Judges Schedules Back Cover Calendar PRESIDENT S MESSAGE By Mallon A. Snyder I m sure you ve heard the joke about the lawyer who.... I wonder if you know the number one answer on the Family Feud as to whom people trust least? Lawyer jokes seem to be more prevalent now than ever before. Although they are meant as humor, lawyer jokes reinforce the public's misperception that there is an underlying truthful basis for these jokes. Watergate and every "Gate" scandal since has fostered distrust of our profession. It wasn t always this way. In the fifties Gregory Peck, through his portrayal of Atticus Finch in To Kill A Mockingbird, presented the image of the American Lawyer as the noble protector of our precious civil liberties. It was the local lawyer to whom people turned in times of conflict, troubles, and crisis. The family attorney was a trusted and respected advisor to multiple generations of a family. At gatherings across the country parents were always proud to proclaim that "their child" was "Prelaw" even though there is no such specific major, even in my own family (I know for a fact that all my aunts and uncles heard this ad nauseam). Perry Mason, Owen Marshall and other TV courtroom dramas helped entice a generation of would be "Do Gooders" to flood American Law Schools with applications. As we all know, this is certainly not the case today. So what happened to cause this reversal of our reputation? Our country went through an unprecedented period of economic prosperity before collapsing into a recession. As jobs and economic opportunities evaporated, those feeling the financial pinch and others who felt that they were only one misfortune away from losing their homes felt greater disdain for the professions. A commonly held belief was that "Doctors and Lawyers make too much money." There was a refrain "The worst that can happen to them is that they have to purchase a previously owned Mercedes." It brings us little solace to know that doctors and other professionals are also on the receiving end of this shift in public opinion. How can we regain our former stature? Clearly we have done far too little by way of public relations. Often people misconstrue and misquote Shakespeare's King Lear "First let's kill all the lawyers". The line was not a slur against lawyers, but was intended to illustrate that the path to anarchy could only be attained by doing away with the guardians of justice and the rule of law. Today with so many hot-button issues including (Continued on page 4)

2 for Your information Bar Association... Main Line... (301) Julie Executive Director (301) maria Office Manager/LRS Supervisor (301) Cindy Association Administrative Assistant (301) monika (301) monica Lawyer Referral Service Operator (301) } Lawyer Line (301) lrs2@barmont.org Bar Foundation Yesenia CLE Seminars and Events Coordinator (301) montcle@barmont.org Pro Bono Program Client intake Lines (301) (301) The following staff listing is not for public information. It is for attorney use only. debbie, Program Administrator (301) debbie@mcbfprobono.org Jennifer Office Administration / Client Coordination (301) jennifer@mcbfprobono.org Jorge Office Administration / Client Coordination (301) jorge@mcbfprobono.org for LawYers who need help Anyone aware of Attorneys who are having problems with stress, depression, overwhelmed with their practice, family issues, and related illnesses, including addiction, that interfere with their professional or personal lives, please call the Lawyer to Lawyer Committee. Committee members can assist Lawyers in finding confidential and effective programs to help them. All calls are strictly confidential. deane a. shure, Chair (301) or deaneshure@gmail.com Jeffrey m. hamberger, Vice Chair (301) or jmh@hambergerlaw.com BAR ASSOCIATION OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MD NEWSLETTER (USPS ) ISSN is published monthly except July/August combined at $25.00 per year by the Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD 27 West Jefferson Street, Rockville, MD PERIODICALS POSTAGE PAID Rockville, Maryland POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD, Newsletter 27 West Jefferson St., Rockville, Maryland Julie Petersen, Executive Director & Editor Cindy Brandenburg, Assistant & Advertising Editor BAR FOUNDATION OFFICERS (Effective July 1, 2013) President: Daniel M. Kennedy, III President-Elect: Richard H. Melnick Treasurer: James A. Mood, Jr. Secretary: Carlotta A. Woodward Past President: John M. Quinn BOARD OF DIRECTORS Michael G. Banks Heather Q. Hostetter Hon. Mary Ellen Barbera Paul F. Kemp Bradford S. Bernstein Joseph A. Lynott, III Lynn C. Boynton Mimi L. Magyar Hon. Jeannie K. Cho J. Stephen McAuliffe, III Lauri E. Cleary Rachel T. McGuckian Heather Collier John C. Monahan Hon. John W. Debelius, III James A. Mood, Jr. David S. De Jong David A. Pordy Paul H. Ethridge Christopher W. Roberts E. Joseph Fitzpatrick, Jr. Hon. Roger W. Titus Jo B. Fogel Donna E. Van Scoy Hon. Ann S. Harrington Patricia M. Weaver Kevin G. Hessler COMMITTEE CHAIRS Bar Revue To Be Announced Cable T.V./Law School for the Public Lauri E. Cleary, Chair (301) CLE Breakfasts Erin L. Kopelman, Chair (301) Continuing Legal Education John Weaver, Chair (301) Diversity Charles B. Day, Chair (301) Endowment Patricia M. Weaver, Chair (301) Facilities Patrick C. McKeever, Chair (301) Fall Outing Alison W. Rind, Co-Chair (301) ; David Shapiro, Co-Chair (301) Governance Nancy A. Sachitano, Chair (301) Pro Bono Michael J. Goecke, Chair (301) School Mock Trial Bradford S. Bernstein, Chair (301) ; Casey L. Cirner, Co-Chair, (301) Speakers Bureau & Youth Initiative Program Mary Siegfried, Chair (301) Officers and Chairs ASSOCIATION OFFICERS President: Mallon A. Snyder President-Elect: Lynn C. Boynton Treasurer: Joseph A. Lynott, III Treasurer-Elect: Alan S. Zipp Secretary: The Honorable John C. Moffett Past President: Richard H. Melnick Executive Director: Julie Petersen EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Thomas M. DeGonia, II Sara M. Donohue David C. Driscoll, Jr. Casey Weinberg Florance Heather L. Kafetz Maura L. Lynch Terrence M. McGann Pilar C. Nichols Jessica Hepburn Sadler The Honorable Margaret M. Schweitzer The Honorable Karla N. Smith Special Master Holly A. Whittier New Practitioners Co-Chairs: Judith G. Cornwell & Kathryn E. Deckert COMMITTEE CHAIRS Assoc./Found. Ann. Mtg. & Law Day Alan S. Zipp, Chair (301) Bench/Bar-Circuit David C. Merkin, Co-Chair (301) ; Michael A. Taylor, Co-Chair (301) Bench/Bar-District Court Reginald W. Bours, Co-Chair (301) ; Richard D. London, Co-Chair (301) Budget James A. Mood, Jr., Chair (301) Community Outreach - Heather S. Collier, Co-Chair (301) ; Rhian McGrath, Co-Chair (301) Fee Dispute Resolution Robert C. Park, Jr., Co-Chair (301) ; Karen Robbins, Co-Chair (301) Judicial Selections Sara M. Donohue, Chair (240) ; Bradford S. Bernstein, Vice Chair (301) Lawyer Assistance Deane A. Shure, Co-Chair (301) Lawyer Referral Elizabeth G. Loggia, Chair (301) Leadership Development Casey W. Florance, Co-Chair (301) ; Thomas M. DeGonia, II, Co-Chair (301) Legal Ethics Samuel M. Shapiro, Co-Chair (301) ; Daniel L. Shea, Co-Chair (301) Membership Benefits Catherine H. McQueen, Co-Chair (240) ; James A. Mood, Jr., Co-Chair (301) Mentor/Mentee (sub of New Practitioners) - Ebtehaj E. Kalantar, Co-Chair (301) ; Rosalyn Tang, Co-Chair (240) Nominations & Elections E. Joseph Fitzpatrick, Jr., Co-Chair (301) Social John C. Moffett, Co-Chair (301) ; Keith J. Rosa, Co-Chair (301) ; Andrew L. Schwartz, Co-Chair (301) Softball Katherine G. Crowley, Chair (301) Specialty Bar Associations Jessica K. Chipoco, Chair (301) Strategic Planning Bradford S. Bernstein, Chair (301) Technology TBD, Co-Chairs Youth Courthouse Project Holly D. Reed, III, Co-Chair (301) ; Patricia P. Via, Co-Chair (240) SECTION CHAIRS Alternative Dispute Resolution Robert L. Baum, Co-Chair (301) Business Law Karen N. Shapiro, Chair (301) Collaborative Law LJ Pelham, Co-Chair (240) ; Joan M. Weiss, Co-Chair (301) Commercial Litigation Mary C. Lombardo, Co-Chair (301) Criminal Law Janet Hager, Co-Chair (301) ; Peter W. Larson, Co-Chair (240) Education Law David R. Bach, Co-Chair (301) ; Patrick J. Hoover, Co-Chair (301) Elder Law Morris Klein, Chair (301) Employment Law Gwenlynn W. D Souza, Co-Chair (301) ; Gregg C. Greenberg, Co-Chair (301) Estates & Trusts Jay M. Eisenberg, Chair (301) Family Law Casey W. Florance, Co-Chair (301) ; Christopher W. Roberts, Co-Chair (301) Immigration Parva Fattahi, Chair (202) Intellectual Property & Technology Michael L. Greenberg, Co-Chair (202) ; Raymond Van Dyke, Co-Chair (202) Juvenile Law Corey E. Talcott, Chair (240) Law Firm Management Amy B. Strent, Chair (301) New Practitioners Judith G. Cornwell, Co-Chair (301) ; Kathryn E. Deckert, Co-Chair (301) Chamber Chats Dana H. Whitten, Chair (301) Personal Injury Litigation Paul S. Chung, Co-Chair (Plaintiff) (301) ; Andre M. Forte, Co-Chair (Defense) (301) Real Estate Matthew D. Alegi, Co-Chair (301) ; Sarah Cline, Co-Chair (301) Taxation Law John S. Pontius, Jr., Co-Chair (410) ; Mark W. Schweighofer, Co-Chair (301) Workers Compensation Law William J. Inman, Co-Chair (301) ; Jeffrey W. Stickle, Co-Chair (301) The Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD Newsletter June, 2014

3 Current update CirCuit Court notes the Circuit Court for montgomery County, south tower opened: The South Tower, formally known as the Annex, officially opened April 28, The South Tower may only be accessed by entering the Circuit Court from the Maryland Avenue entrance, the Monroe Street entrance or the T-level entrance via the Executive Office Building. The South Tower houses the family and juvenile divisions, including judges, masters, evaluators, case managers, self-help center staff and clerk s office staff. Most hearings and services previously held in the Grey Courthouse (27 Courthouse Square) relocated to the Annex. Courtroom numbers in the North Tower (formally known as the Judicial Center) have been renumbered in coordination with the South Tower. Phone numbers will remain the same. For more information please visit the court s web site at circuitcourt/index.html. LEGAL ETHICS HOTLINE david gavin pdgavin@yahoo.com Brian Barkley BBarkley@barkenlaw.com For a written confidential opinion, submit your written request, marked confidential, to Jeffrey M. Axelson, c/o Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD, 27 West Jefferson St., Rockville, MD The McCammon Group is pleased to announce our newest Neutral Judges rotation effective July 7, On July 7, 2014 Judges in the Circuit Court will begin an 18 month rotation until January 1, Since April 7, 2013 (90 days prior to the rotation) all Civil and Criminal cases that were newly assigned to Track 4 have been assigned to a judge in the new rotation. review of the family dcm plan. A working group with representatives from the Montgomery County bar has begun to examine the plan, including the services provided via the Family Division, to ensure their continued effectiveness and relevance in helping achieve resolution of the various issues giving rise to family law (Continued on page 5) Hon. Alexander Williams, Jr. (Ret.) Retired Judge United States District Court, District of Maryland Judge Alexander Williams, Jr. retired recently after serving his court with distinction for nearly twenty years. Prior to his appointment to the bench, Judge Williams served Prince George s County in many capacities, including as State s Attorney (elected for two terms), Public Defender, Hearing Examiner, Special Counsel, and as a Substitute Juvenile Master. Judge Williams also enjoyed a successful career in private practice in Maryland and DC. He is a Founder and the First President of the J. Franklyn Bourne Bar Association, Inc. and has served for many years as a Professor at Howard University Law School. Judge Williams now brings his distinguished record of accomplishment to The McCammon Group to serve the mediation, arbitration, and special master needs of lawyers and litigants throughout Maryland, DC, and beyond. Dispute Resolution and Prevention For a complete list of our services and Neutrals throughout MD, DC, and VA, call or visit June, 2014 The Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD Newsletter 3

4 president s message, cont d (Continued from page 1) equality in race, gender, sexual orientation, privacy and immigration status, the American Lawyer is every bit the champion of Civil Rights as ever before. We should strive to both educate and remind the lay public that these liberties must always be jealously guarded and it falls on the shoulders of the legal profession to stand as a bulwark and protect our freedoms. Most members of the public have never heard of Pro Bono Publico and the numerous efforts made by members of our association to serve the greater good without pay. Never in our history have more people been in need of legal services and have had to do without them due to lack of money. Our Foundation and Association have always been in the forefront of providing Pro Bono and Community Service. We have done much but need to do more to let our detractors know that the once noble calling of being a lawyer remains as such, and that s No Laughing Matter! Want to be part of the solution? Please contact our Bar Association Community Outreach Committee Chairs or the Foundation Pro Bono program they will gladly take your call. When you do good, you do well. Judge wolfe announces a district Court Courtroom set up Change A recent courtroom incident has resulted in changes to how the courtrooms are set up in District Court. Depending on the courtroom, the plaintiff / prosecution table will be switched with the defense table. The defense table will always be located closest to the lock-up, thereby avoiding having the defendant in close proximity to a plaintiff or to the prosecutor. This change took effect on Monday, April 28. The court intends to have the tables clearly marked with a tent sign indicating Plaintiff/State and Defense. CIRCLE TREATMENT CENTER Twenty Nine Years of Superior Service To The Community * DWI Evaluation, Education/Counseling (6 weeks and 26 weeks) * Adolescent and Adult Drug/Alcohol Programs * Outpatient Mental Health Services * Individual, Couples, Group therapy by licensed professionals * Approved and Certified by the State of Maryland 424 n. frederick ave., #8a, gaithersburg, md ~ COMPLETE CONFIDENTIALITY ASSURED save the date ~ 22 nd annual golf, tennis Charity Classic & silent auction monday, october 13, 2014 Manor Country Club Carrolton Rd. Rockville, MD Planning for Life, Planning for Legacies. ELDER LAW SPECIAL NEEDS ESTATE PLANNING The attorneys and staff at Elville and Associates thank the Montgomery County professional community for their confidence and collaboration as we work together to provide leading edge planning solutions to clients and their families Red Branch Road, Suites 100 & 300 Columbia, Maryland Rockville Pike, Suite 400 Rockville, Maryland Annapolis Exchange Parkway, Suite 300 Annapolis, Maryland The Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD Newsletter June, 2014

5 Current update (Continued from page 3) cases. Your input is invaluable and welcome; please contact Madeleine Jones, Family Division Coordinator, or to share your thoughts and suggestions with the working group. John W. Debelius, Administrative Judge for Montgomery County, MD CirCuit Court family division Family Division Services is now located in the South Tower in Room The following services are sited within that suite: Custody Assessment/Evaluation Intake Facilitation Custody/Access Mediation Intake Custody/Access Mediation Supervised Visitation Intake Family Law Self Help Center Family Law Case Management House of Ruth Abused Persons Program If parties are ordered to facilitation from the scheduling hearing, they will now come to Room 1500 instead of the library. Facilitation services are permanently located inside the Family Division in conference room A computer containing the Sasi-calc application is also available in that room. fee panel policy in guardianship Cases In guardianship matters, requests for attorney s fees for the Alleged Disabled Person or fees for the Guardian of the Property, shall be referred to the Guardianship Case Manager, who will review the requests and responses thereto. After review, the Guardianship Case Manager will refer the request to a member of the Guardianship Fee Review Panel (Judge Bair, Judge Callahan and Judge Jordan). If the Guardianship Fee Panel Judge determines that a hearing is necessary, the hearing will be set on that judge s docket Juvenile Bench/Bar meeting schedule The following is a listing of bench bar meetings scheduled for Juvenile. Meetings will be held in the South Tower, Third Floor, inside Juvenile Services (suite 3520) in conference room 3531, located in the Judicial Center, 50 Maryland Ave, Rockville, MD. Please note that there will be a change in location when the court moves into the new annex. delinquency, 12:30p.m. - 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 18 Wednesday, October 1 Wednesday, November 19 Child welfare, 12:30 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. Monday, July 21 Monday, October 20 Madeleine Jones, Family Division Coordinator mccc Law LiBrarY CheCK it out Lucky 7 free sources that will save You time, money & frustration Check out these terrific sources, available at your Rockville circuit court library 1. Rabkin & Johnson/Matthew (Continued on following page) June, 2014 The Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD Newsletter 5

6 Current update (Continued from preceding page) Bender: Current Legal Forms with Tax Analysis: Lexis database Thousands of great, up-to-date, downloadable forms with concise explanations and suggestions. 2. SASI-CALC: Simple-to-use software that will calculate Maryland child support payments. 3. WestNext and Westlaw Classic: Both versions of this premier database now it s possible to download and Word versions of cases, forms and results to your home computer. 4. Bloomberg BNA: Premier subject legal newsletters with the latest legislative, regulatory and judicial updates on your favorite legal topics. Also includes the ABA/BNA ethics manual and Bloomberg company reports. 5. PACER: Complete dockets and full-text pleadings for federal district and bankruptcy courts. Use for informations or as sample documents. 6. New verdict database from Westlaw search local and national courts by awards, experts, cases, judges, injury type, etc. 7. MCCC Law Library site access from home before you arrive! site: Great for finding out library services, hours, free sites, etc. Remember Find your answer fast at the Montgomery County Circuit Court Law Library Hours: M-F, 8:00 a.m.-5:30 p.m. 50 Maryland Avenue, Rockville MD ; lawlib@mcccourt.com Providing legal representation in disability insurance denial and termination cases. Edward L. Norwind, Esq. Zachary A. King, Esq. lnorwind@karpfrosh.com zking@karpfrosh.com karpfrosh.com KarpFrosh.com economic VaLuations a BaLanCing act overdue Client Bills are stressful What can you do to reduce this stress? Plenty. At a presentation at the DC Bar last month, I discussed many ways to reduce the likelihood that a client s account will become delinquent. One way to reduce the stress is to make sure you get funds in advance. If your response is that you will lose half of your clients, try asking your clients up front for retainers that cover your bills. If this sounds stressful to you, it pales in comparison to the stress of writing off $10,000 to $50,000 because your client refuses to pay you or files bankruptcy. If you don t get paid, you are in the lending business and the business of practicing law. If these thoughts shake you up a bit, that may be a good thing. Each case you take should be analyzed for likelihood of payment when you take it on. If you do insist on payment and are a little less busy as a result, you might use that time for marketing so you can get more cases that do pay. Can you do more to prevent overdue bills and the stress that accompanies them? Geoff Gilbert, Esq. is an executive business coach to lawyers, accountants and corporate business executives. His background includes experience as a CPA at Ernst & Young and practicing law in Montgomery County for 15 years. Geoff also teaches stress classes at the University of Maryland in College Park. You can reach him at geoff@coachforexecutives.com. pushkin & pushkin, inc. Actuaries & Consultants since 1979 Pension Divorce Valuations Actuarial Valuations 401 (k) Marital Tracings Expert Testimony Wrongful Death & Personal Injury Analyses Loss of Earnings Studies Member of the National Association of Forensic Economics pushkin & pushkin, inc. 30 E Padonia Rd., Suite 406 Timonium, MD Baltimore: Washington: Business Advisory Solutions to Grow Your Law Practice E. COHEN AND COMPANY Y, CPAs Jennifer Hagstrom, H MBA CFO / Director of Operations Call l Us U for a Complimentary Cons ultation Translate Yo our Financial Stat Make Better Management Decisions Meaningful Performance Assessments: to Achieve Yo our Goals: Compare your firm s perform ance to others in Find opportunities to improve your your industry, without the accounting jargon firm s financial performance Analyze key areas of your bu siness: liquidity, Take action to resolve danger areas profit, sales, borrowing, assets, employees Become e more focused and profitable One Research Court, #101, Rockville, MD jhagstrom@ecohencpas.com 6 The Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD Newsletter June, 2014

7 Current update Youth Courthouse project Committee students from white oak middle school on a montgomery County police swat team Vehicle. Youth Courthouse project Committee members pictured with the students are Louise schwartz, esq., Co-Chair holly reed, esq., sue Carter, esq., and diana metcalf, esq. stephen J. dunn ATTORNEY AT LAW federal workers Compensation (owcp) office of personnel management (opm) disability retirement u.s. merit systems protection Board security CLearanCe appeals 110 West Road, Suite East Market Street Towson, MD York, PA Phone (410) Phone (717) Fax (410) LawYer s LiterarY CirCLe thursday, June 19th: We will be discussing August: Osage County, in preparation for the auditions to be scheduled sometime thereafter, and to perform it before our families and friends! thursday, July 17th: We will be discussing Silent Spring by Rachel Carson. This selection was recommended by Larry Johnson. As Amazon writes: This book appeared in September of 1962 and the outcry that followed its publication forced the banning of DDT and spurred revolutionary changes in the laws affecting our air and land. In august: The book under discussion will be Flight Behavior, by Barbara Kingsolver, as suggested by Peter Derry. Peter writes that this book is about monarch butterflies, rain, science, sheep, kids, religion and a small town in Tennessee. The members of our group in past years have read and enjoyed three (3) of Ms. Kingsolver s books: Animal Dreams (1995), The Poisonwood Bible (2000) and Prodigal Summer (2002); and the Book Selection Committee thought that it was time to read and discuss another one of her books. With some rare exceptions, all of our meetings are held in the offices of Miles & Stockbridge P.C., 11 North Washington Street, Suite 700, Rockville, MD, and begin at 4:30PM. If any of your friends and associates would like to join our group, all they need to do is to show-up for any of our meetings everyone is always welcome to attend and snacks are always served. Jim Demma Nancy Green Phone: / Nancy@NGreen.com 262 W. Patrick St., Frederick, MD Broker: SOLD Sale/Lease Carroll Creek Professional Office Center in Frederick Suites Available for Sale or Lease in Frederick s Most Prestigious Class A Professional Office Center. Located on the Carroll Creek Promenade in the Heart of Frederick s Historic District. Corner Suite 1,851 SF on 2 nd Floor, Elevator, Two Conference Rooms, Four Offices, Deeded Parking in Building. Additional Parking in Adjacent Library Deck. Walk to Restaurants and to the Courthouse. Just Reduced to $425,000 or Lease at $16 NNN. Call Nancy: Full Brochures for Commercial Properties available at - June, 2014 The Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD Newsletter 7

8 techlectic... by Pat Hoover south annex tech KnoCKout! Feeling over techified at work? Struggling to keep up with the younger tech savy lawyers? I wish I had good news to report on the ever accelerating proliferation of tech in the practice of law. I d love to provide good news to lawyer friends of mine who complain of feeling suddenly inadequate after decades of practice when up against the many increasing tech challenges thrown at them from every angle, e.g. opposing counsel. Oh yea, more and more, our own clients expect online, always open but fully secure, instant access to files; discovery exchanges of enormous data dumps through online transfer while simultaneously discussing issues by landline; video conferencing on the fly and available free of charge to users on all platforms whether, PC, Mac, tablet or smart phone; instant pdf creation, editing and OCR conversion, again without any limits as to time, place, platform, mobile or fixed positioning and that s just for starters. Sorry, guys, its just not going to happen. Case in point, the South Annex addition to Montgomery County s Circuit Court. I had the opportunity recently to tour the new courtrooms in the South Annex and I am here to tell you, WOW!!! Unbelievable, seriously awesome!!! Tech ready and fully wired, our new courthouse addition brings to life an excellent design and sound construction of perhaps one of the finest courthouses in the US, seriously. The new courtrooms are equipped with the latest and best in high tech design and equipment. These features are normally found inside only the finest, most well equipped and beautifully designed courtrooms. That s any courtroom, anywhere. Seriously, the new tech court I toured in the South Annex offered virtually every tech enabled trial feature, those usually found only in the newest recently built federal courts. But I digress, point is that we litigators had better be prepared to confront hearings, trials and dare I say it, 1:1 attorney motions practice, in which counsel makes frequent use of the wonderful new South Annex s trial tech features. These features include permanently installed flat screen monitors for both counsel at the podium, for the judge and multiple screens for the jury. Everything is hard wired into the Circuit Court s Technical Services Department and is synched up with video, audio and still imaging. Everything is presented in real time and every detail is preserved for appeal and reconsideration purposes. Also available is the latest Elmo projection device, which is permanently installed and available for an attorney s use in court by means of projecting images, including 3D objects, onto the several scattered flat screens sprinkled about the courtroom. Hardly a tech slow down, wouldn't you agree? My great pleasure and real appreciation at the fantastic job done by the builders and designers of the South Annex, with first and foremost, the critical input and real work that key members of our bench and bar have brought, served us all with results beyond my wildest expectations. I hope you too will come to share my appreciation and great enthusiasm for the many new ways and far better means we attorneys now have to ply our craft as lawyers-educators and client litigators appearing before the bench and the people of our community. 8 The Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD Newsletter June, 2014

9 in memoriam... william J. roberts On April 2, 2014, William J. Roberts, Esquire died at age 58 of brain cancer. At the time of his death, Bill was a highly respected member of our bar with an office in Poolesville. Last month, the early 1960 s era office building located at 255 North Washington Street in downtown Rockville was demolished to make way for new development. An effort was made by historic preservationists to save the building, but they were unsuccessful. Why, you might ask, am I mentioning a building that was just torn down? After all, that building was a rather unremarkable structure and, quite frankly, the preservationists had a pretty weak case. That building will forever be referred to by me as the Suburban Trust Building, a place where I spent the first 22 years of my legal career in an office on the fifth floor. While the building was not historically or architecturally significant, what went on in it before its demise will forever be important to me for, among other things, it was there that I first met and worked with Bill Roberts. I hired Bill as a law clerk while he was a student at the Columbus School of Law at Catholic University, and upon graduation, he joined my small law firm. It was there that a lifelong friendship began that endured until his untimely death. On the fifth floor of that building a number of other lawyers labored during their careers, including the late Vivian Simpson, a pioneer who served in 1942 as the first woman president of the Montgomery County Bar Association. Down the hall working in Vivian s office was Steve Johnson, another mutual friend of Bill s, who is now a judge of the District Court of Maryland for Montgomery County. By any measuring stick, Bill was not your normal lawyer. He was a true country lawyer, but in tradition of the late Senator Sam Ervin. Anyone who thought Bill s love of things rural meant he was an unsophisticated practitioner was in for a real shock. He was as smart as the best Wall Street lawyer, but he was much more than that. He could do, and did do, virtually anything. For example, long before the term geothermal energy became widely used, Bill, with no apparent construction qualifications, built from scratch his own home in Poolesville with that means of heating and cooling. After a long day of practicing law, Bill could be found working on and expanding his home and its outbuildings, and reveling in using the many machines he needed in his farm operation. Eventually, Bill found that the big city life in Rockville and the long commute down Route 28 were too much for him. He decided to become a true country lawyer and establish his own practice in Poolesville. How ironic it is that his beloved son, Will, now lives and works in the Big Apple! Our friendship did not end after his move to Poolesville, but deepened. Over the years, we spoke frequently on a variety of subjects and we each respected the other s advice and counsel. On my recommendation, the Board of Education of Montgomery County selected Bill to act as a Hearing Examiner to conduct hearings and provide reports and recommendations in a number of highly sensitive personnel and student issues. His work was extraordinary and thorough and was widely respected. One of the most difficult things for judges is to avoid becoming isolated because of the position. The key to avoiding isolation is to have friendships that endure and are maintained. For me, one of the key relationships in avoiding that isolation was the one with Bill Roberts, and I am sure that it was for Judge Johnson as well. When Judge Johnson and I learned that Bill had a serious health issue, we worked together to arrange a series of boys night out dinners with Bill. Those dinners were a joyful time for all three of us, and I think they meant a lot to Bill. They certainly did for me and Judge Johnson. The Suburban Trust Building and Bill are no longer with us, but buildings do not have an afterlife. Bill will live in my heart forever. With the dusk of his life fading, I am reminded of the famous poem by Welsh poet Dylan Thomas which ends with: Do not go gentle into that good night. Rage, rage against the dying of the night. Bill did, indeed, bravely fight the terrible disease that took him from us too soon. Another poem by Dylan Thomas, And Death Shall Have No Dominion also has a few lines pertinent to Bill: Though they sink through the sea they shall rise again; Though lovers be lost love shall not; And death shall have no dominion. I will always love Bill like a brother and death shall have no dominion over our friendship which will endure forever. Roger W. Titus June, 2014 The Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD Newsletter 9

10 new practitioner section Judith G. Cornwell, Co-Chair Kathryn E. Deckert, Co-Chair Thank you to everyone who attended and helped put on our Law Day program cosponsored with the Law Firm Management Section, especially our presenters, Amy Strent, Sara Kropf and Geoff Gilbert, and to those who joined us for our Law Day Happy Hour to celebrate Rich Melnick s term as President of our Bar Association! We hope that everyone has a safe and enjoyable summer. We will be working hard to plan another year of interesting programs and fun events, so please stay tuned for details! special olympics project Thank you to everyone who volunteered at the Special Olympics Spring Games at Landon. It was a great event and an excellent warm up for the Bar Association s third annual inspiration walk with the Montgomery County Special Olympics, which is scheduled for sunday, september 28, 2014, at Georgetown Prep. Please save the date and plan on attending, as it is a wonderful event and a lot of fun. who served as mentors. It is a true testament to the character of our membership that so many members took time out of their busy schedules to serve as mentors to our newly admitted attorneys. We also invite all those members of the Bar who have practiced for more than seven years to consider signing up to be a mentor in the Montgomery County Bar Association Mentor-Mentee Program. Please, share your experience and offer your guidance to us young attorneys who need it most and are eager to accept it. Likewise, if you have been practicing law for less than seven years and would like guidance from an experienced attorney and to get involved in our community of attorney s, apply to get a mentor. In the Montgomery County Bar Association Mentor-Mentee Program, experienced attorney-mentors share their time, energy and wisdom with their new-practitioner mentees, and mentees receive invaluable advice on the practice of law, enjoy the special camaraderie of the Montgomery County Bar Association, and begin what often can be a life-long relationship. For more information about the program, or if you would like to participate as a mentor or mentee, please contact Rosalyn Tang at rozduke02@gmail.com or Eby Kalantar at ekalantar@offitkurman.com. Also, applications to be a mentor or mentee are available on the BAMC website, Eby Kalantar, Co-Chair Rosalyn Tang, Co-Chair Mentor-Mentee Committee The deadline for submission of copy for the July/August newsletter will be July 10th. ChamBer Chats Come join us for June s Chamber Chat which will be kindly hosted by the honorable robert a. greenberg on wednesday June 11, 2014 at 12:30 p.m. Judge Greenberg has been an Associate Judge since January 11, Prior to his appointment he was an Assistant State s Attorney in Montgomery County from 1981 through He also served as a Member on the Peer Review Panel of the Attorney Grievance Commission from 1999 through No R.S.V.P required, but is appreciated for planning purposes only. the Chamber Chat is open to all members of the Bar, not just members of the new practitioner section. Judge Greenberg s Chambers is located in the Circuit Court Building at 50 Maryland Avenue, North Tower 9th floor Room If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at (301) or dkw@eqkmrh.com. Dana Whitten, Chair Chamber Chat Committee mentor/mentee Committee We would like to express our genuine gratitude to all members of our Bar Exclusively devoted to the practice of immigration law. Representative clients include: biotech personnel US citizenship cases We welcome the opportunity to be your immigration resource. MyGreenCardLawyer.com Maria Glinsmann Matthew Glinsmann The Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD Newsletter June, 2014

11 Committees & sections Business Law section We are working on putting together our next presentation titled Boilerplate Contract provisions and Litigation. Please stay tuned for information concerning the details of this event. If you have any questions or suggestions regarding the Business Law Section, please do not hesitate to contact me. Karen Shapiro, Chair CirCuit Court BenCh Bar Committee meeting dates June 4, 2014 All meetings are open and any members of the BAMC are welcome to attend. Meetings are held on the 1st Wednesday of the month at 8:00 a.m. in the Administrative Judge s Conference Room 309 on the 3rd floor of the Circuit Court building in Rockville. Remember to let the Clerk know if you have any concerns, questions or suggestions. Phone: ; lknight@mcccourt.com. If you have any concerns to bring to the Committee s attention, please feel free to contact any Committee member or Committee Co-Chairs David C. Merkin at (301) or david@merkinlawgroup.com; or Michael A. Taylor at (301) , mtaylorlaw@aol.com. David Merkin, Co-Chair Michael Taylor, Co-Chair CoLLaBoratiVe Law section meeting dates June 12, 2014 Meetings will be held at 5:30p.m. on the 4th Wednesday of the month in the upstairs conference room of the Bar Association building. We will meet on thursday, June 12th from 5:30-7:00 p.m. at the Montgomery County Bar Building (27 West Jefferson Street, Rockville MD). We'll be discussing the differences between mediation and the collaborative process, and how to help your potential clients choose the method that is best for them. The Collaborative Law Section will also be entertaining ideas for next year s section meetings. What presentations would you like to see about Collaborative Law? Please bring your suggestions to share at the June meeting. Realtor Jeanne Koerber of RE/MAX Town Center provides great food for our meetings! You do not need to be a member of our Section or collaboratively trained to attend our meetings. While only attorneys can join the Section, we welcome collaborative practitioners of any profession to attend our meetings. PLEASE RSVP to Joan Weiss at weissattorney@comcast.net. LJ Pelham, Co-Chair Joan M. Weiss, Co-Chair CommunitY outreach Committee save the date: september 28, 2014 the third annual BamC/special olympics inspiration walk! (Continued on following page) June, 2014 The Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD Newsletter 11

12 Committees & sections (Continued from preceding page) The Community Outreach Committee facilitates volunteer opportunities on the second Friday of every month at Shepherd s Table. Shepherd s Table provides basic services to those in need and specifically provides a dinner meal from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., seven nights a week. Please contact Dan Shaivitz at ds@eqkmrh.com if you are interested in volunteering. Volunteer as an individual, a firm, or get a group of friends and family together to participate in this wonderful, can t miss, service opportunity! If you have any thoughts or comments for the Committee, please contact Heather Collier at hcollier@draggalaw.com or Rhian McGrath at rmcgrath@lerchearly.com. Heather Collier, Co-Chair Rhian McGrath, Co-Chair CriminaL Law section The Criminal Law Section is proud to announce and invite members of the bar and the legal community to attend the retirement party for the honorable michael J. algeo. The party will be held on wednesday, June 4, 2014, at 5pm at the Vis arts Building in the Rockville Town Centre. Tickets include open bar, hors d oeuvres, dessert, a gift to be presented, tax and gratuity. Tickets are $50 for private members of the legal community (must be paid in advance) and $25 for courthouse staff (must be paid in advance). Please RSVP by May 28, 2014 by submitting payment, your name, address and phone number to Teresa Casafranca PO BOX 10402, Rockville MD If you would like to be a sponsor or have any questions please contact Teresa.Casafranca@gmail.com. Janet Hager, Co-Chair Peter Larson, Co-Chair employment Law section Many thanks to Judge michael mason, Judge anne albright, Judge patricia mitchell, and al Brault, for planning the Attorney's Fees CLE. It was a very informative discussion about the recent changes to the Maryland Rules. Thanks as well to Judge irma raker, Joyce smithey, and Erik Johnson for participating in the mediation panel on Law Day. Have a good summer everyone! Gwen D Souza, Co-Chair Gregg Greenberg, Co-Chair family Law section Our final Family Law Section event until the Fall will be the family Law section end-of-year Celebration on June 3, 2014 from 5:30-7:30pm. Please join us in honoring our previous Family Law Practitioner of the Year Award recipients AND to announce this year s winner! Registration forms will be ed through the listserve. Thanks again to John Weaver and everyone who attended the annual rita rosenkrantz Basic family Law training, particularly those of you who Financial Solutions for Law Practices Banking services designed to save you time and money. Online Banking Express Deposit ewire Notification Escrow Manager Positive Pay PROVIDING CAPITAL SOLUTIONS Bethesda Silver Spring Member FDIC NMLS ID# The Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD Newsletter June, 2014

13 heading Committees & sections have agreed to accept a pro bono case as part of the training!! Another big thank you goes out to Bryan Renehan and Paul Reinstein for another excellent, informative annual family Law update last month. We also want to extend our appreciation to all of the individuals who assisted Bryan and Paul in preparing the extremely thorough and helpful materials for this CLE! If you were unable to attend this seminar and are interested in purchasing the materials, please contact Yesenia in the Bar Foundation office at or montcle@barmont.org. It is our great pleasure to announce that Christopher roberts will be joining Casey florance to serve as Co-Chairs of the Family Law Section for the year. Chris and Casey want to encourage YOUR involvement in next year s Family Law Section. If you are interested in helping or serving on a committee, please let them know. Stay tuned to the listserve and be sure to check out the July-August BAMC Newsletter for other announcements concerning next year s activities and events. It has been our honor and pleasure to serve as Co-Chairs of the Section and we hope all of you have a wonderful, restful summer. Kristina Badalian, Co-Chair Kate McDonough, Co-Chair Casey Florance, Co-Chair immigration Law section meeting dates August 20, 2014 November 19, 2014 September 17, 2014 December 17, 2014 October 15, 2014 These will be brown bag lunch meetings and will be held at 12:30 p.m. on the 3rd Wednesday of the month in the upstairs conference room of the bar Association building, located at 27 West Jefferson St., Rockville, MD. Parva Fattahi, Chair Law firm management section meeting dates June 19, 2014 Meetings will be held at 8:00 a.m. on the 3rd Thursday of the month at the offices of Hostetter Strent, 7201 Wisconsin Ave., Suite 675, Bethesda, MD. Amy Strent, Chair LawYer assistance Committee meeting dates September 10, 2014 February 11, 2015 October 8, 2014 March 11, 2015 November 12, 2014 April 8, 2015 December 10, 2014 May 13, 2015 January 14, 2015 All meetings will be held on the 2nd Wednesday of the month at 5:00p.m. in the upstairs conference room of the Bar Association building, located at 27 West Jefferson St., Rockville, MD. Deane Shure, Co-Chair LegaL ethics Committee meeting dates June 26, 2014 July 24, 2014 All meetings will be held 4:30p.m. at the offices of Axelson, Williamowsky, (Continued on following page) June, 2014 The Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD Newsletter 13

14 Committees & sections (Continued from preceding page) Bender & Fishman, 401 N. Washington St., Suite 550, Rockville, MD Sam Shapiro, Co-Chair Dan Shea, Co-Chair membership Benefits Committee meeting dates The Bar Association offers its members discounts and special offers on a range of services, including court reporting, data recovery and forensic specialists, financial planning, e-discovery consulting, mortgage services, printing and marketing, private investigators, process servers, and real estate settlements. If there any benefits that you believe the we could or should offer, please contact me at (240) or via at kmcqueen@offitkurman.com. Kate McQueen, Chair personal injury Litigation section The Personal Injury Litigation Section will not be meeting again until August We will have exciting new speakers and topics for discussion in the fall. In the meantime, please enjoy the Spring/Summer and be safe. Paul Chung, Co-Chair Andre Forte, Co-Chair real estate section June 10, 2014 Meetings will be held on the 2nd Tuesday of the month at 8:00 a.m. at the offices of Shulman Rogers, located at Park Potomac Ave., 6th Floor, Potomac, MD Matthew D. Alegi, Co-Chair Sarah Cline, Co-Chair taxation Law section Thank you to the 35 participants in our April CLE entitled The Anatomy of an Operating Agreement. As we are starting a new year as Section Co- Chairs, we welcome your comments and suggestions for future meeting and CLE topics. how to be prepared for an irs audit While only 1% of all tax returns will be audited, it is the best practice to prepare for an audit before you file your return. This means that you have followed the tax laws and kept good tax records. The IRS generally has three years to examine a tax return from the date of filing. This period increases to six years if the tax is under reported by over 25%. In cases of fraud, the IRS has no time limit to examine a tax return. Every charitable contribution requires written proof to include the amount of the contribution and the date of the contribution. When donating noncash property, use the fair market value of the item given. Business expenses are another area that is commonly examined. Expenses for meals and entertainment and travel draw additional scrutiny. It is recommended to keep records of where you were, who you were with and the business purpose of the expense. Medical and dental expenses can be deductible if they exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross income. If you sell stock or real estate, you may have to pay capital gains tax on your profits. Your profit is calculated by taking the selling price and subtracting (Continued on page 20) RONALD I. WEINER, PHD, LLC Specializing in Forensic Mental Health Services for over 40 years COMPREHENSIVE PSYCHOSEXUAL RISK ASSESSMENT & TREATMENT PLANNING SERVICES SEX OFFENDER TREATMENT SERVICES WHITE COLLAR CRIME & FRAUD FORENSIC SENTENCING EVALUATIONS RONALD I. WEINER, PHD, LLC 801 ROEDER ROAD, SUITE 950 SILVER SPRING, MD (PHONE) (FAX) 14 The Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD Newsletter June, 2014

15 List your Firm in The Find A Lawyer Area of the BAMC Website & the Area of Practice Listing in the Lawyer Directory *... NEW SIGN-UPS ONLY... * Attorneys already listed in the Find A Lawyer Section of the Website and the Area of Practice Listing in the Lawyer Directory will be billed separately. Don t Be Left Out... Have your firm listed, with a link to your website, in the Find A Lawyer area of the Bar Association website and, as an added bonus, your listing will also appear in the Lawyer Directory & Desk Reference Area of Practice section (if your registration is received within a specified time period). A single category listing is $110, with additional category listings for $10.00 each. There is no charge for a subcategory, as long as you are paying for the initial category. NAME: WEBSITE: PHONE: (PLEASE PRINT) (PLEASE PRINT) Please print out the 2-page document found under the Find A Lawyer link on the website. Please highlight your Areas of Practice and return with this form. Your initial category listing is $110, with each additional category being $10. There is no charge for the subcategory, as long as you are paying for the initial category. Please make checks payable to the Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD and forward with this form to: 27 West Jefferson St. Rockville, MD NEW LISTINGS... $ (Find A Lawyer Link and Area of Practice Listing in the Lawyer Directory) Additional Practice Area Categories $10 each $ TOTAL Amount Enclosed $ RETURN BY JULY 31, 2014 (for inclusion in lawyer directory). If you have any questions or concerns, please call Cindy at Office Code A/4099

16 2014 Annual Meeting We would like to t

17 /Law Day Celebration hank our Exhibitors... Please support our Exhibitors with your business!

18 annual meeting photos 18 The Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD Newsletter June, 2014

19 annual meeting photos Planning is More Important Than Ever for Seniors and Their Families. F We welcome your referrals for: Medicaid Planning V eterans Benefits info@felintonlaw.com Offices in MD, DC and FL Over 32 Years Experience. Mindy FelintonF When I have clients who may be f acing f inancial issues that come with caring for their older or infirmed loved ones, I always refer er them to Mindy; she is kind and compassionate to their situation, and extremely emely knowledgeable in the field of elder law and planning. Stuart Plotnick, Esq., Roc kville, MD June, 2014 The Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD Newsletter 19

20 Committees & sections (Continued from page 14) the amount you paid for the investment. This is known as your cost basis. Starting in 2011 the broker-dealer was required to report the cost basis to the IRS on Form 1099-B. For older purchases, it is recommended to keep your old statements with purchase and transfer information. For real estate, your cost basis is increased by improvements. Please note that for the sale of your pri- mary residence, the first $250,000 of profit ($500,000 if married filing jointly) is tax free. Additional profit is subject to capital gains tax. Now is the time of the year to meet with a tax professional to discuss tax planning for It will make next year s tax season go smoother and could result in a lower tax bill. John Pontius, Co-Chair Mark Schweighofer, Co-Chair The deadline for submission of copy for the July/August newsletter will be July 10th. need a referral for Virginia or DC criminal or traffic cases? Jonathan r. oates Virginia criminal attorney, Jonathan oates, has tried two first-degree murder cases before a jury. Jon has handled hundreds of criminal and traffic cases in all northern Virginia jurisdictions, and meets clients in our Falls Church office. Jon is fluent in Spanish. his cell is (202) washington, dc criminal attorney, david wooten, has tried many felony cases before a jury, including a recent acquittal in a sex offense case in Montgomery County. David is fluent in Spanish, having served in the Peace Corps for two years in Ecuador. his cell is (202) david m. wooten Law offices of Jezic, Krum & moyse, LLC andrew V. Jezic In 2011 and 2013, andrew Jezic, a former prosecutor in Montgomery County, was selected to the list of best criminal lawyers by Washingtonian magazine. From , Mr. Jezic has been recognized as a Super Lawyer. He has tried 85 cases before a jury, and has handled over 25 homicide cases. Andy is co-author of the treatise, Maryland Law of Confessions, published by West. He is fluent in Spanish, and handles serious felony cases in D.C. his cell is (240) open on weekends free consultations phone: (240) (703) offices in wheaton, md, washington, dc and falls Church, Va Visit Jezicfirm.com 20 The Bar Association of Montgomery County, MD Newsletter June, 2014