Legislature(2021 - 2022)GRUENBERG 120
03/08/2021 01:30 PM House JUDICIARY
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Confirmation Hearing(s): Board of Governors of the Alaska Bar | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | HB 105 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE JUDICIARY STANDING COMMITTEE
March 8, 2021
1:33 p.m.
DRAFT
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Matt Claman, Chair
Representative Harriet Drummond
Representative Liz Snyder
Representative Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins
Representative David Eastman
Representative Christopher Kurka
Representative Sarah Vance
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CONFIRMATION HEARING(S):
Board of Governors of The Alaska Bar
Rick Castillo, Anchorage
William Granger, Anchorage
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record
WITNESS REGISTER
RICK CASTILLO, Appointee
Board of Governors of the Alaska Bar
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointee to the Board of
Governors of the Alaska Bar.
WILLIAM GRANGER, Appointee
Board of Governors of the Alaska Bar
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointee to the Board of
Governors of the Alaska Bar.
THERESA OBERMEYER
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified during confirmation hearings.
ACTION NARRATIVE
1:33:41 PM
CHAIR MATT CLAMAN called the House Judiciary Standing Committee
meeting to order at 1:33 p.m.
Representatives Drummond, Kreiss-Tompkins, Eastman, Snyder (via
teleconference), and Claman were present at the call to order.
Representatives Kurka and Vance arrived as the meeting was in
progress.
^CONFIRMATION HEARING(S): Board of Governors of the Alaska Bar
CONFIRMATION HEARING(S): Board of Governors of the Alaska Bar
1:34:18 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN announced that the only order of business would be
Confirmation Hearing for the Board of Governors of the Alaska
Bar.
1:34:36 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN opened public testimony.
1:34:56 PM}
RICK CASTILLO, Appointee, Board of Governors of the Alaska Bar,
stated that he was born in New Jersey, where he spent his youth
and shared his experience of growing up, raised by a single
mother, in Florida. He shared that he joined the army after
graduating high school, which brought him to Anchorage. He
recalled his education and work experience after enlistment that
included earning his bachelor's degree in supply chain
management from the University of Alaska in 2011; working in
transportation, distribution, oil and gas, and
telecommunications; and continued military service in the Alaska
National Guard. He explained that he had gained the knowledge
of leadership, reliability, integrity, and character. He shared
his experiences in community service that included the Alaska
Humanities Forum, Rotary International, and Northern Lights ABC
Parent-Teacher Association [PTA], and his candidacy for
Anchorage Assembly.
MR. CATILLO expressed his desire to advocate for Alaska and its
people and to represent the values of the industries in which
he has worked as a public member of the Board of Governors of
the Alaska Bar Association. He shared that his wife is employed
by Alaska Communications Systems, Inc. and his daughters are
enrolled in Northern Lights ABS in Anchorage.
1:38:12 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN asked why Mr. Castillo had chosen to
apply for the Board of Governors of the Alaska Bar, rather than
any other board or commission.
MR. CASTILLO answered that it is his understanding that the
Alaska Bar Association is the gateway through which attorneys
are permitted to practice law in [Alaska] and the vetting of
those attorneys is important to eliminate bad actors that may
reduce consumer confidence. He stated that, as a public member,
it is his desire to offer diversity from the public and from
private sector industries. He added that the development of
best practices is important and should include the structure of
educational and professional requirements which project the
values of the people of Alaska: integrity, honor, respect, and
liberty. He suggested that that appropriate institution and
promotion of those values would lead to attorneys doing what is
best for Alaska and would strengthen the brand of the [Alaska
Bar] Association. He stated his goals to influence the board to
evolve and grow responsibly and increase attorneys' and
lawmakers' pride in the association.
1:39:46 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN asked Mr. Castillo to share his understanding and
perspective on the continuing legal education requirements of
the Alaska Bar [ Association].
MR. CASTILLO offered to follow up with Representative Claman
with an answer.
CHAIR CLAMAN stated that "you're not familiar with what they
are" was an acceptable answer.
1:40:29 PM
WILLIAM GRANGER, Appointee, Board of Governors of the Alaska
Bar, testified that he is a lifelong Alaskan and has served on
the Board of Governors of the Alaska Bar for approximately 14
years, mainly in the role of its treasurer. He detailed
accomplishments during his tenure as a member that included the
purchase of the building in which the association is housed with
no increase to members' dues, and the challenges faced during
the COVID-19 pandemic. He expressed his pride and pleasure in
serving on the board and furthering its endeavors to influence
the attorney members' work and to change the entry process of
its members, disciplinary matters, and continuing education
requirements. He expressed his sense of pride from a personal,
professional, and moral standpoint. He acknowledged additional
challenges would be faced by the board with the recent
retirement of the long-tenured executive director of the
association.
1:43:10 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN remarked that he has never heard anyone
accuse Alaska of having the easiest bar exam. He asked Mr.
Granger what he has observed in terms of the impact of the
current Bar exam and passage rates on the available pool of
attorneys in Alaska.
MR. GRANGER noted that Alaska's [candidate test] scores and
requirements to enter the association have been relatively high
when compared to other states and estimated them to be among the
top ten percent in the nation. He explained that an attorney is
required to take a test for consideration of admittance to the
Bar [Association] with a scored result. He stated that
candidates may take an exam in another jurisdiction and, should
the candidate fail to achieve the "cut" score, he/she would be
required to practice law in another jurisdiction for a period he
believed to be five years prior to consideration [to practice
law] in Alaska. He added that that the passage of the Uniform
Bar Code Test (UBC) had resulted in candidates being allowed to
be considered to practice law in Alaska under the five-year
rule. He suggested that [a candidate who is capable of]
practicing for five years without incident "works out pretty
well." He added that COVID-19 has had "interesting" impacts on
the testing and admittance to the Alaska Bar Association. He
added that there exist attorneys in other jurisdictions allowed
to practice law in those jurisdictions without having passed the
Bar exam and without having graduated from law school in that
jurisdiction and stated that those candidates would not be
allowed to practice law in Alaska.
1:46:30 PM
REPRESENTATIVE EASTMAN reiterated his question regarding the
pool of applicants.
MR. GRANGER stated that the pass rate [of the Alaska Bar exam]
is estimated to be 40 percent. He stated that there exists such
a small pool of applicants that a pass or fail [score] has a
dramatic impact on percentages. He added his observation that
the changes had not yet resulted in an appreciable change [to
the applicant pool]. He added that the "cut score" had been
reviewed as recently as within the prior 12 to 24 months by the
Alaska Supreme Court, which ruled that the association should
conduct a review of the "cut score" to ensure that it was
appropriate and make any recommended changes. He stated that
the board had no recommendations following its review.
1:47:58 PM
REPRESENTATIVE KURKA recalled Mr. Granger's length of service on
the board and asked him to share his opinion regarding the
performance of appointees made to the Alaska Judicial Council
during his tenure.
MR. GRANGER answered that it would be difficult for him to
monitor successes and failures of individual appointees and
added that he had had opportunities to review nominations for
recommendation to the governor, which are made at the governor's
discretion. He offered that there may have been historical
controversy regarding a lack of choices of qualified candidates
but expressed his confidence in the vetting process.
1:49:43 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN recalled his own prior six years of experience as a
member of the Board of Governors of the Alaska Bar Association
and that Mr. Granger had been a member for that entire [period
of service]. He asked Mr. Granger's opinion on continuing
education requirements and any impact from those changes.
MR. GRANGER allowed that he could not speak to exactly what
changes had been made and when, but the association has a
mandatory ethics continuing legal education (CLE) requirement,
and other CLE requirements are voluntary. He added that the
voluntary CLE program has been successful and has become a
revenue generator for the association. He expressed his delight
in the robust amount of time that the Bar Association at large
devotes to CLE.
1:51:30 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN asked whether the mandatory ethics training had
been passed during Mr. Granger's tenure on the board.
MR. GRANGER answered yes.
1:53:13 PM
THERESA OBERMEYER expressed her pleasure with the questions
posed by the committee to the nominees and expressed her opinion
that a close examination of the Bar Association would be
appropriate. She stated that Alaska is the only state that does
not have a law school and is the only state in which an elected
official is not required as a member of the Bar Association.
She referred to written materials she had submitted prior to the
committee regarding her own litigation. She requested that she
be considered for the public member position sought by Mr.
Grainger and referred to work history and resume she had
previously provided to the committee.
1:55:59 PM
CHAIR CLAMAN closed public testimony.
1:56:19 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SNYDER stated that the House Judiciary Standing
Committee had reviewed the qualifications of the governor's
appointees and recommended that the names of Rick Castillo and
William Granger, appointees to the Board of Governors of the
Alaska Bar Association, be forwarded to a Joint session for
consideration. She reminded the committee that signing the
reports regarding appointments to boards and commissions in no
way reflects individual members' approval or disapproval of the
appointees, and the nominations are merely forwarded to the full
legislature for confirmation or rejection.
1:57:57 PM
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Judiciary Standing Committee meeting was adjourned at 1:57 p.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| Board of Governors of the Alaska Bar Appointment - Rick Castillo Resume 3.8.2021.pdf |
HJUD 3/8/2021 1:30:00 PM |
|
| Board of Governors of the Alaska Bar Appointment - William Granger Resume 3.8.2021.pdf |
HJUD 3/8/2021 1:30:00 PM |