On Aug. 10, 2011, the Indiana Court of Appeals issued an opinion that addressed for the first time the issue of whether a photograph of vehicle damage is relevant and admissible to assist a jury in determining the extent of bodily injury in a trial arising from a motor vehicle accident.

Read the latest news from bar associations throughout Indiana.

One of the corner stones of our American system of jurisprudence is free and open access to the trial courts and judicial system. The ability of businesses to solve their disputes in an orderly fashion and the predictability of outcomes encourages business to be conducted in our country.

As an estate planning attorney, I regularly counsel clients about disability and death planning. If truth be told, however, I’m not always good at following my own advice. Attorneys procrastinate as much as the clients we represent, too often getting caught up in our daily endeavors and failing to make sure our own affairs are in order. As fall approaches, I’m making time to review my estate planning, and I encourage you to do the same.

This year marks an exciting milestone for IndyBar’s Women and Law Division. Twenty-five years ago, a number of visionary lawyers in our community founded WLD to create opportunities for professional growth and personal connections among women lawyers. A quarter of a century later, WLD remains a strong presence in the Indianapolis Bar Association.

View photos from the 2011 IBA Diversity Job Fair.

A third law firm has signed on as a visionary sponsor for the Indiana Bar Foundation’s We the People civics education program. Evansville firm Bamberger Foreman Oswald & Hahn has pledged $10,000 in support of the program, the foundation announced Friday, joining Barnes & Thornburg and Taft Stettinius & Hollister as top-level sponsors.

Reporter Jenny Montgomery writes about the conflict between the American Bar Association and NALP regarding collecting data from law schools.

This fall, the IndyBar Pro Bono Standing Committee will rejuvenate its School Education Advocacy Program through collaboration with FosterEd, a project of the National Center for Youth Law.

Read Indianapolis Bar Association news for Aug. 17-30, 2011.

Do you know what the term “articling” means? I did not until recently, but it is quite relevant to the discussions swirling around about the value and importance of a law school education.

When asked about the areas of law in which I practice, I say, among others, business law and litigation. Inevitably I am greeted with a curious look and a cocked head similar to a dog that has just heard a strange noise.

The Indiana State Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Section recently was recognized for its work with two awards at the American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division annual conference Aug. 6 in Toronto.

The Indianapolis Bar Foundation has extended the deadline for its Neil E. Shook Scholarship, which is given to a second-year student at Indiana University School of Law – Indianapolis.

Valparaiso University School of Law Professor Rebecca J. Huss will be given the Excellence in the Advancement of Animal Law Award at the American Bar Association’s annual meeting Aug. 6 in Toronto.

DRI’s 16th Annual Meeting will be held in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 26 to 30 at the Marriott Wardman Park. DRI’s commitment to provide blockbuster speakers will reach an all-time high at this annual meeting.

I had this dream for retirement when I got elected judge: I would work until I was 68, near when I would be forced to retire by mandatory retirement (assuming the voters thought I was still doing a good job through each of my re-elections), fade off the scene to my boat on Lake Cumberland, maybe work in the winter part time as an usher or scorekeeper for the Pacers or Colts, read U.S. history books, see a musical or play every once in awhile, and generally ignore any pleas for money from my then-adult kids.

Life moments. Some may be an accomplishment (winning a big trial), a disappointment, a funeral or a seemingly insignificant event. We all have them—some good, some not so good, but they are those events that for some reason stick with us for a lifetime.

Requesting appropriate insurance coverages and obtaining certificates of insurance verifying such coverages are in place may be one of the least understood, and thereby, among the most overlooked issues in commercial real estate loan transactions.

More than a dozen states and the District of Columbia now recognize same-sex relationships under various names, such as domestic partnerships, civil unions, or same-gender marriages.

There is a misconception among even the most educated of criminal clients that arrests, charges and convictions disappear off of one’s Indiana criminal record after a passage of time. This is not the case.

Read recent news from the IBA.

The Allen County Bar Association is accepting nominations for the 2011 Niemann Citation for Excellence and Professionalism, an award established in 2004 to honor the memory of attorney Scott T. Niemann.

Valparaiso University School of Law Professor Rebecca J. Huss will be given the Excellence in the Advancement of Animal Law Award at the American Bar Association’s annual meeting in August.

What looked early in 2011 like a blockbuster year for sentencing reform fizzled into a legislative session with mostly tinkering in the criminal law realm.