I am very excited to have the opportunity to lead the Montgomery Bar Association in 2025! There have been so many tremendous leaders in this Association for whom I have the utmost respect. Our Immediate Past President Lisa Shearman certainly fits that bill. I thank Lisa for adeptly serving our organization with diligence, commitment, and class. Lisa will be a very tough act to follow!

The MBA has been an invaluable part of my professional life ever since joining the bar in 2003. In many ways, I feel like I have grown up in the MBA. During my first few events when I was fresh out of law school, I remember feeling out of place. From my ill-fitting suit to my lack of war stories, I wondered how I would ever fit in with a group of lawyers who seemed so connected with one another and light years ahead of me in terms of achievement. Fortunately, I stuck with it and kept coming back to the MBA because my former boss, and now longtime partner Bob Morris, encouraged me to stay involved. I joined committees, wrote articles for this Sidebar, became a Young Lawyer officer, and gradually learned how to carry myself as a member of this esteemed organization. Through it all, one of the lessons I learned is that membership in the MBA, like any other worthwhile endeavor, is a function of what you put into it. The time I have put into this Association has not only allowed me to enjoy so many career benefits, but also allowed me to build friendships along the way. Now, more than 20 years later, when I enter a room at one of our events I hardly feel out of place. I feel a sense of belonging or, as my staff tells me when I am off to another MBA event, my second home.

For 140 years, the MBA has been the professional organization in Montgomery County for lawyers and judges because of the collective efforts of our members in maximizing their involvement in this Association. The practice of law has undoubtedly changed, yet our Association retains the same value for so many of us because the MBA has evolved. During my time as a member of this Bar, our membership has made purposeful, positive changes to be a more inclusive organization. I am proud of these efforts and believe we have constructed an infrastructure that will continue to cultivate diversity and inclusion in our membership and leadership. Of course, we still have work to do and I look forward to continuing that work this year with so many of you. A feeling of belonging is the experience that all of our members should enjoy.

One of the unique aspects of our MBA is the relationship that we enjoy between the bench and bar. To that end, I want to thank the Honorable Gail Weilheimer, who has now ascended to the federal bench, for reaching out to me about a civil rights trip that many members of our bench embarked upon in 2024. Her Honor recommended the trip for our membership and we have jumped into action to schedule the same opportunity for our members this year. The trip will be from June 1^st-3^rd where our group will visit historic landmarks in Atlanta, Montgomery, Selma, and Birmingham. If, by chance, the trip is not sold out by the time you are reading this, please do not miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

Our close relationship with our bench provides the MBA with excellent growth opportunities for lawyers that participate in the MBA’s Lawyer Referral Service. As a young lawyer the LRS was a great way for me to start to develop my practice. Over the past few years I have had the pleasure of serving as the Chair of the LRS Committee during which time we have instituted changes to improve the referrals we provide to our members. This year we are rolling out a new LRS panel entitled HOPS (Helping Our Pro Ses), where we will pair lawyers with pro se litigants for arbitration matters pending in Montgomery County. With more than 50 pro se arbitrations occurring every month in our Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas, we are confident the HOPS program will provide a benefit to the court, the public and our membership. I thank President Judge Carolyn Carluccio and our court administration department for their support of this new endeavor. Please consider signing up for the HOPS program!

            I also want to highlight a few of our fun events that we have scheduled this year. Dressing up in a tuxedo has never been my first choice for a Friday evening. For this year’s annual Dinner Dance we are transitioning to a Spring Fling on May 2^nd where we’ll enjoy a garden party at the Morris Arboretum. Our annual event at the Elmwood Park Zoo will be Halloween-themed on October 24^th, which is sure to be a hit with our membership’s families. Perhaps the most fun will be our Annual Bench Bar Conference from September 18^th-21^st at the Sagamore situated on an island on idyllic Lake George. I have already heard from many members who are brimming with excitement as it will be the first time our MBA visits this fantastic location. Stay tuned for registration information and consider lessening the drive by joining us on Thursday night where we will kick the long weekend off with an arrival reception.     

I look forward to serving YOU in 2025 as we continue to maximize our membership in this wonderful Association.