Former LAKC and LAKC Foundation board member, Sylvan Siegler, passed away September 4, 2010 at the age of 85. Sylvan, along with friend Stan Weiner, was instrumental in starting and continuing the annual Tax Seminar hosted in partnership with the UMKC School of Law. A memorial service is planned for Tuesday, September 7th at 10am at Congregation Beth Shalom, 9400 Wornall Road.

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/kansascity/obituary.aspx?n=sylvan-siegler&pid=145069774

Lawyers Encouraging Academic Performance (“LEAP”) needs your help!  In August, Operation Breakthrough, an organization whose mission is to help children who are living in poverty develop to their fullest potential by providing them a safe, loving and educational environment, will be preparing their kids to return to school.  As part of that preparation, the kids will need new uniforms and school supplies.  LEAP is raising money to support these efforts and, on August 6, 2010, plans to distribute school supplies and gift cards to purchase school uniforms for 375 school age children.  Any contribution is welcome and is tax deductible.  If you would like to contribute, please make your checks payable to LEAP and send them to Paul Redfearn at Traders on Grand Building, 1125 Grand Boulevard, Suite 1805, Kansas City, MO 64106.

Please join us on June 3, 2010 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
at Sol Cantina for LAKC-YLS’s annual meeting.

 

At the Annual Meeting, we will introduce our new officers and elect our new board of directors.  For the 2010-2011 year, we have four open board positions and wonderful candidates.  Please come meet the candidates and vote.  If you cannot attend, please see the attached ballot, which includes a biography on each candidate and instructions on how to cast your vote by mail or email.

 

In celebration of all of our successes in 2009-2010, we will have free food and drinks. We hope to see all of you there!

 

Sol Cantina is located at 408 E. 31^st Street, Kansas City, Missouri.

LAKC-YLS will host the annual Court Crawl on June 24th from 1-5pm. A judicial reception follows at Maker's Mark from 5-7pm. The Court Crawl is $35 for summer associates and clerks and $50 for attorneys interested in CLE credit (3.0 MO, KS pending). To register for the Court Crawl, contact Sarah Lepak, 816-474-6550 or slepak@shb.com. (Reservations are not necessary for the Judicial Reception - members are encouraged to attend.)

LAKC's Annual Meeting and CLE Luncheon will be held Wednesday, June 9th at 810 Chop House in the Power & Light District. Legal Aid of Western MO's Volunteer Attorney Project will present a one hour ethics CLE on the VAP and attorneys' ethical responsibility to perform pro bono work. (1.0 MO - KS Pending). In addition to the CLE, the 2010-11 Board of Directors will be elected. The slate of officers and directors is as follows:

The 6th Circuit Judicial Commission interviewed all applicants today and nominated a panel of three persons to Governor Jay Nixon to fill the position of Associate Circuit Judge of the 6th Circuit (Platte County), created by the retirement of Judge Daniel M. Czamanske. Governor Nixon will make the appointment from the panel of nominees within 60 days.

The nominees are Thomas C. Fincham, Roseann A. Ketchmark, and Christopher T. Patterson.

Thomas Fincham is in private practice of law at the firm of Fincham & Salmon in Kansas City, Missouri. He is also a part-time municipal court judge.

Roseann Ketchmark is an Executive Assistant United States Attorney, Western District of Missouri; and

Christopher Patterson is in the private practice of law at the firm of Patterson Law Office LLC in Kansas City, Missouri.

The Judicial Commission, chaired by Chief Judge Thomas H. Newton of the MO Court of Appeals, Western District, is composed of attorneys Scott L. Campbell and James D. Boggs, and lay members Judy Stokes and David B. Barth.

Judges, lawyers and law professors are going to teach the people of Kansas City a thing or two about the law.  The Lawyers Association of Kansas City and The University of Missouri Kansas City School of Law, together with assistance from the Missouri Bar and a committee of volunteer attorneys have put together a core program of basic information in this seven-week course for the lay person to help inform the public about the law and the legal system.

 

For seven consecutive weeks, each Wednesday evening from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., beginning on March 24^th and running until May 5^th, enrollees of the Mini Law School for the Public can learn about the court system, how it works, what to expect when bringing or defending a case, and other valuable information about basic legal topic areas like employment law, criminal law, elder law, family law, real estate and legal ethics.  The sessions will be held in the beautifully renovated student courtroom at the UMKC School of Law, at 51^st Street and Oak, where a variety of legal professionals will speak about basic information the public should be aware of when thinking about a legal issue and how to approach it.  Up to 150 attendees are expected and the cost is just $40.00 per person for all seven sessions.

 

Similar presentations of The Mini Law School for the Public received excellent attendance in St. Louis and Columbia over the past two years, and this is the first one to be held in Kansas City.

 

The organizers welcome the public to attend and learn more about the law.  These sessions are intended to inform the public about many of the legal pitfalls, issues, procedures and rules that govern law practice and the courts.  The sessions are not aimed at teaching lay persons to represent themselves in court and speakers will not be allowed to address very specific facts about any one person’s case or legal issues.  The Mini Law School is a public information service of the Lawyer’s Association of Kansas City, UMKC School of Law, The Missouri Bar, and Missouri judges, attorneys, law professors and legal professionals dedicated to educating the public about the legal system.

 

For additional information and to register, visit the Mini Law School page at www.lakc.net or call 816-474-6444.

The Sixth Circuit Judicial Commission is accepting applications for two associate circuit judge positions of the Sixth Judicial Circuit (Platte County), to fill vacancies created by the impending retirement of the Honorable Daniel M. Czamanske and the appointment of the Honorable Gary D. Witt to the MO Court of Appeals, Western District.

See PDF below for additional information and application instructions.

6th Judicial Court Judicial Vacancies.pdf

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

It is time again for LAKC-YLS’ Santa Snow Ball, which will be taking place on Wednesday, December 16, 2009!  If you are not familiar with Santa Snow Ball, this event provides an evening of fun for families staying in local homeless shelters during the holiday season.  Each child under the age of 18 receives a gift, everyone is provided dinner, and there are countless activities for all to enjoy, including a visit with Santa, face painting, craft-making, and story-telling.  The law firm of Lathrop and Gage has generously agreed to host the event, which will run from 5pm until 8pm.  LAKC-YLS is seeking volunteers and donations for the event. 

 

Additionally, this year we are offering a Santa Hotline, where, for a small donation, we will arrange to have Santa or Mrs. Claus call your child to discuss their wishes for the holiday season. 

 

VOLUNTEERS

There are a number of different volunteer opportunities associated with this event:

 

December 15, 2009:  We will need volunteers during the lunch hour to help wrap the presents for the children.  Last year we provided presents for approximately 150 children, which took a lot of wrapping!  We will provide pizza for lunch and begin wrapping at noon.

 

December 16, 2009:  We will need volunteers prior to and during the event to decorate the venue, do activities with the children, visit with the families, help serve dinner and then clean up at the end of the evening.  Generally, we have a couple of shifts:  Shift 1: 4:30-6:30 Shift 2- 6:30-8:30.  If you can help decorate during the afternoon, we will begin decorating around 3pm.

 

If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Anne Pond at alpond@vomer.com or (816) 421-0644.

 

DONATIONS

In addition to volunteers, this event requires a substantial amount of resources.  Please help us make the holiday season brighter for these children and families.  A donation of only $5.00 supports an entire family's activities for the evening; a donation of $10.00 covers one person's meal; and a donation of $20.00 will buy a gift for a child.  Donations can be paid to the LAKC Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization, earmarked for Santa Snowball. Every donation is appreciated and goes directly to the support of this event: the dinner for every attendee, the presents for the children, and the supplies for the activities.

 

If you are interested in making a donation, you may do so securely online or mail check payable to Foundation of LAKC, 118 N. Conistor, Suite B #201, Liberty MO 64068. Questions? Please contact Justin Dean at justin.dean@kc.frb.org or (816) 881-2353.

 

SANTA HOTLINE

REGISTER A SPECIAL CHILD IN YOUR LIFE FOR SANTA’S HOTLINE

Back by popular demand, LAKC-YLS is excited to again offer the opportunity to register your children (or grandchildren, nieces and nephews) to receive a special call from Mr. or Mrs. Claus.   Calls will be made December 14-17, from 5-8 p.m.  Sign up each child for only $5 each.  All proceeds will benefit Santa’s Snow Ball, a holiday party for local homeless families.  For more information, please see the flyer link below.  To register, please fill out the registration and child information forms (links below), and send them along with your payment to Stacey Meyer Bowman at the address provided on the forms.  Contact Stacey Bowman at stacey.bowman@huschblackwell.com or call (816) 983-8397 if you have any questions.

 

1) Santa Hotline Flyer

 

2) Registration form 

 

3) Child Information sheet

 

SANTA’S HOTLINE VOLUNTEERS

How would you like to play Mr. or Mrs. Claus for an excited child this year?  Don’t look much like the jolly bearded one or his wife?  That’s okay as long as you can impersonate their voices.  A personal call from Santa or Mrs. Claus will be sure to make the child’s day.

 

The LAKC-YLS is looking for volunteer attorneys to make phone calls to children December 14-17, from 5-8 p.m.  All calls can be made from the comfort of your own office or home.  An example script (see link below) will be provided along with information forms on each child.  If you’re interested in volunteering, please contact Amy Luck at aluck@sbg-law.com or call 816-410-4657.

 

Santa Hotline Volunteer Guidelines: PDF