Message from the President, October 2018

I would like to thank committee chairs and committee members for planning diligently for the 2018-2019 meeting year. I hope each of you will join efforts to enhance your membership experience and have a positive impact in our community, while serving as ambassadors of the legal community.
As you know, our state, especially the eastern region, suffered great damage from Hurricane/Tropical Storm Florence. Fortunately, the storm turned south, which lessened property damage to residents in the Triad area. I hope we will keep those who suffered great loss in our thoughts and prayers.
In addition to adversities, such as natural disasters, we will also encounter many political challenges and decisions in the upcoming fall 2018 election. Voters will have the opportunity to vote on North Carolina constitutional amendments that: (1) impact whether voters should be required to show voter identification before casting a ballot; (2) determine how our judges are appointed; (3) determine whether an eight member Bipartisan Board of Ethics and Elections Enforcement should be established; (4) determine whether a tax income rate of seven percent (7%) should be adopted; (5) deal with strengthening protections for victims of crime, etc.; and (6) determine protections dealing with rights of people to hunt, fish and harvest wildlife.
In my experience, I have found that most lawyers desire to be well informed voters. In fact, the public expects lawyers to be well informed. I am sure that you have been approached countless times in informal settings by individuals with questions regarding topics directly and remotely related to the law.
The proposed amendment dealing with how judges are appointed to the judiciary will be addressed by our featured speaker, John Wester, with Robinson Bradshaw in Charlotte, North Carolina. Attorney Wester is a past president of the North Carolina Bar Association and a litigator. Consequently, I invite you to attend our next membership meeting scheduled for October 18, 2018. You may join us for “Mix and Mingle” at 5:30 PM, and our meeting at 6:15 PM, at Starmount Forest Country Club. I leave you with a quote by Thomas Jefferson. He said it best when he opined, “An informed citizenry is at the heart of a dynamic democracy.”