May 4, 2021
ANNUAL MEETING SPONSORS
UPDATE YOUR CONTACT INFORMATION
The State Bar will be mailing orange postcard reminders regarding membership reporting and fees in June for the July 1, 2021 - June 30, 2022 fiscal year. Please be sure to log into the membership portal and verify or update your contact information (Bylaw 2.02 (b)) by June 1.
Information that you will need to verify or update include:
  1. Name of Employer (If sole practitioner, enter the sole practitioner’s name)
  2. Address of Principal Place of Business
  3. Telephone and Fax Numbers
  4. Email Address
  5. Financial Responsibility Disclosure (FRD) (Bylaw 4.01 and Rule 4.01)
  6. IOLTA Account Information (Rule 10). Your IOLTA account should be titled: “Attorney or Firm name, IOLTA Account.” (Rule 10.05 (f)) IMPORTANT NOTICE: If your IOLTA account has any reference to the West Virginia Bar Foundation or the West Virginia State Bar, please take immediate action with your financial institution to have the reference removed.

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BAR ID CARD ONLINE SERVICE UNAVAILABLE  
The WV DMV is currently unable to process requests for Bar ID cards due to an upgrade of their system. The online system has been taken offline and will be offline until further notice. If you need confirmation of your status as an active member of the Bar, in order to obtain access to a correctional facility, please ask the facility if they will use/accept the procedure below: 
The State Bar staff is working with DMV and the Department of Transportation to get this issue corrected as soon as possible. Keep watching the Bar Blast for updated information.
WV STATE BAR OFFICE ACCESS
The State Bar Center will be open for individual/in-person access for members beginning March 1, 2021. Masks will be required. Group meetings will continue to be held via Zoom access until further notice. Bar staff remain available and happy to answer questions and/or assist members of the Bar and public, via telephone or email, during normal operating hours of 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. The Bar can be reached by calling 304-553-7220.

News
Workers’ Compensation Litigation Process

Senate Bill 275, effective June 30, 2021, changes the litigation process for Workers’ Compensation claims. The Workers’ Compensation Board of Review seeks input on the process of implementing the new legislation. A virtual meeting of the State Bar Workers’ Compensation Committee is scheduled for Wednesday, May 12, 2021, at noon. Committee members and all other interested participants may join the meeting by going to : https://zoom.us/j/3045537220?pwd=M2ExUnlZUXcxQ0JZdlg1MVpUTXlqUT09Passcode: 800800
 
To join audio by telephone dial: 1-646-558-8656 and use meeting ID: 304 553 7220
2021 State Bar Membership Directory - NOW AVAILABLE
The 2021 edition of the West Virginia State Bar Membership Directory is now available.
Click here to login and download a digital pdf version or
Click here to order a paper version.
Events

2021 Legislative Update
MAY 5, 2021 - 1:00 p.m.

Host: West Virginia Bar Association
CLE: 1.2 CLE credits
Location: Online - Zoom
Cost: Free for WV Bar Association members and $10.00 for non-members
Speaker/Topic: WV Department of Economic Development Cabinet Secretary Mitch Carmichael will recap the 2021 WV legislative session on the bills passed, the bills that didn't make it, and what is ahead for West Virginia.


The Pathway to Lawyer Well-Being Webinar
MAY 6, 2021 - 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Host: West Virginia Judicial & Lawyer Assistance Program
CLE: 3 CLE credits in attorney well-being (ethics)
Cost: Free Webinar
Speakers/Times:

1:00 to 1:50 - "The Psychology of Transitions" by Robynn E. Moraites, Esq., Executive Director of the North Carolina Lawyer Assistance Program

2:00 to 2:50 - "Transforming Stress" by Colleen Harshbarger, MS, Wellbeing Solutions

3:00 to 3:50 - "Compassion Fatigue in the Legal Profession"  by
  • The Honorable William S. Thompson, Circuit Judge of the 25th Judicial Circuit
  • David Wandling, Esq., Logan County Prosecuting Attorney
  • Rachael Fletcher Cipoletti, Chief Counsel of the WV Office of Disciplinary Counsel
Location: Live, Interactive Webinar (Will be capped at 475 participants)
WVJLAP ANNUAL CONFERENCE & RETREAT
MAY 14 - 16, 2021
2021 Wellness Weekend
Host: West Virginia Judicial & Lawyer Assistance Program
CLE: 5.6 CLE credits in attorney well-being (ethics)
Cost: $150 CLE & Banquet (See registration for optional costs)
Location: Stonewall Resort, Roanoke, WV

Save the Date
2021 BASIC MEDIATION TRAINING
JUNE 2 and 3, 2021
Host: State Bar ADR Committee
CLE: 16.5 credits including 1 Ethics
Cost: $150
Location: Flatwoods Days Inn and Suites and Flatwoods Conference Center, 350 Days Drive, Sutton, WV

A block of rooms has been reserved at the Flatwoods Days Inn & Suites at the discounted rate of $99.00 plus and taxes and fees for June 1 and 2. To receive the discounted rate, inform the hotel that you are attending the WV State Bar's event when making your reservation. The reservation contact number is 304-765-5055.  

Information on the Advanced Mediation Training, scheduled for July 29, 2021, coming soon

Save the Date for a live Bridge the Gap Program
July 23, 2021
Rescheduled from our Spring event
 
Host: West Virginia State Bar Young Lawyer Section Bridge the Gap Program
About: Each new lawyer admitted to practice after July 1, 2018 through December 31, 2020 will have thirty-six months after their date of admission to complete the program. All new lawyers admitted on or after January 1, 2021 will have twenty-four months after their date of admission to complete the program.
Location: The Summit Bechtel Reserve – Glen Jean, West Virginia
Date and Time: July 23, 2021, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Cost: Free

The Summitt Bechtel has 24 rooms available for the program. Reservations can be made by calling Curtis George at 304-465-2800 or Curtis.george@scouting.org. Please reference BTG2021 when making your reservation. Room rates are $125 for a king or queen room or $140 for a room with two queen beds and a sofa.  *

Only attorneys admitted after July 1, 2018 OR attorneys admitted prior to July 1, 2018, who have not previously completed the Bridge the Gap requirements, may attend the live course and satisfy the mandatory Bridge the Gap requirements.
 

Registration will be open on the West Virginia State Bar website beginning June 18, 2021.
CLE Announcements
Temporary Waiver of Online and In-house
Continuing Legal Education Credit Limit

Due to ongoing concerns associated with the COVID-19 virus, the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia has granted a request from the Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Commission for a temporary waiver of current CLE rules and regulations which limit the CLE credits for online and in-house credits to 12 credits, or half of the mandatory continuing legal education requirements FOR THE 2020-2022 reporting period.
Extension of the Bridge the Gap Requirement
Attorneys admitted to the WV State Bar between July 1, 2018 and December 31, 2020 have been granted a one-year extension of time to complete the mandatory Bridge-the-Gap Program.
The extension was based on a determination by the Court that attorneys within that time frame were adversely affected by the cancellation of the Bridge-the-Gap program scheduled in April 2020 due to COVID.
The West Virginia State Bar
www.wvbar.org
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