The pilot program, which will be tested in 2013 with four IndyBar sections—the Appellate Practice Section, the Family Law Section, the Government Practice Section and the Real Estate and Land Use Section, will call for a small increase in section dues, which will in turn allow section members to attend all one-hour brownbag programming presented by the section at no cost.

The slate for the 2013 Indianapolis Bar Association Board of Directors is now complete with the appointment of four Vice Presidents and the Counsel to the Board by President-Elect Kerry Hyatt Blomquist.

News from around the IndyBar!

December 31st is right around the corner, and with it comes important considerations for year-end tax planning. Special breaks are still available for 2012, and taking action before December 31 could reduce taxes for 2013 and beyond.

Average starting salaries for legal professionals in the United States are projected to rise 3.0 percent overall in 2013, according to the just-released Robert Half Legal 2013 Salary Guide.

Photos from around the bar.

Like most attorneys, we always enjoy meeting lawyers from other practice areas and interests, but while it is easy to say “go network,” we found it somewhat a daunting task.

Members of the legal community gathered to pay tribute to the value of professionalism in the practice at the IndyBar’s Professionalism Luncheon, held Thursday, October 11 at the Columbia Club.

October 15, 2012 was a day 423 lawyers will remember for the rest of their lives. That’s because it was the day they were sworn into the Indiana bar. I was pleased to be there too on behalf of the Indianapolis Bar Association.

These IndyBar members–and their innovative ideas–are just a few of those who will be honored at the Indianapolis Bar Association and Foundation Recognition Luncheon on Thursday, November 8, 2012.

More than 25 percent of the cases pending in the United States District Court, Southern District of Indiana, have a least one pro se litigant. To address this community need, the Court launched the Mediation Assistance Program (MAP) in September 2009.

If you recall, smoking is now prohibited in most Indiana workplaces (exceptions being places like riverboats, horse racing facilities and other gaming facilities, retail tobacco stores, and bars that do not employ individuals under the age of 18 or allow individuals under the age of 21, other than employees, to enter, among other things). The law requires employers to prohibit smoking in areas within eight feet of a public entrance to a “place of employment” or a “public place.”

It is with great pleasure that I will host this year’s IndyBar Destination CLE, taking place in Sedona, Arizona from November 15 to November 17. To entice your attendance, this year’s CLE will be held at the Enchantment Resort & Mii amo Spa, nestled into the red rock wall of Sedona’s Boynton Canyon.

A special relationship exists between the Indianapolis Bar Foundation and the Indianapolis Bar Association. It is easy to think of the IBF as the “fund raising arm” of the IndyBar. And that isn’t wrong.

Read news briefs from around the IndyBar!

The Indianapolis Bar Association’s Nominating Committee has announced the selection of John C. Trimble of Lewis Wagner LLP as the 2015 President of the Indianapolis Bar Association.

Think networking is difficult or intimidating? Wish you could easily meet and talk with leaders in the legal community? The IndyBar has a solution!

It falls upon me to make the happy announcement that the Board of Directors of the Indianapolis Bar Association has approved the creation of a new section of the bar — the Indy Attorneys Network.

News from around the Indianapolis Bar Association.

Did you know that a number of Indiana women played important roles in the national fight for women’s suffrage?

Students, check out the scholarships available from the Indianapolis Bar Foundation. Two scholarships for the Winter 2013 IndyBar Review session are up for grabs. The application deadline is November 1.

Reach for Youth is seeking local attorneys to serve as volunteer judges at Teen Court, a program designed to reduce recidivism for first-time juvenile offenders by giving them a second chance to repair the harm they’ve caused without experiencing formal court prosecution.

Chosen by the bar’s Professionalism Committee, the 2012 recipient of the Silver Gavel Award is the Hon. Anthony Metz III of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Indiana, while the 2012 Professionalism Award will be presented to Sally Zweig of Katz & Korin PC. Both recipients were roundly praised for their professionalism by the committee, which is chaired by David K. Herzog of Faegre Baker Daniels LLP.

Photos from the Bar Leader Series Class X kickoff.

News and commentary on the upcoming election are nearly impossible to escape at this point. Take a break from the non-stop back and forth political banter with several upcoming election-related non-partisan events and programs.