02/04/2009 01:00 PM House JUDICIARY
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Select Committee on Legislative Ethics | |
| HB88 | |
| Adjourn |
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| *+ | HB 88 | TELECONFERENCED | |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE JUDICIARY STANDING COMMITTEE
February 4, 2009
1:18 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Nancy Dahlstrom, Vice Chair
Representative John Coghill
Representative Carl Gatto
Representative Bob Lynn
Representative Max Gruenberg
Representative Lindsey Holmes
MEMBERS ABSENT
Representative Jay Ramras, Chair
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CONFIRMATION HEARING(S)
Select Committee on Legislative Ethics
Herman G. Walker, Jr. - Anchorage
Dennis E. "Skip" Cook - Fairbanks
- CONFIRMATION(S) ADVANCED
HOUSE BILL NO. 88
"An Act extending the termination date of the Board of Governors
of the Alaska Bar Association; and providing for an effective
date."
- MOVED HB 88 OUT OF COMMITTEE
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: HB 88
SHORT TITLE: EXTEND BAR ASS'N BOARD OF GOVERNORS
SPONSOR(S): REPRESENTATIVE(S) RAMRAS
01/26/09 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/26/09 (H) JUD, FIN
02/04/09 (H) JUD AT 1:00 PM CAPITOL 120
WITNESS REGISTER
HERMAN G. WALKER, JR., Appointee
Select Committee on Legislative Ethics
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointee to the Select
Committee on Legislative Ethics.
DENNIS E. "SKIP" COOK, Appointee
Select Committee on Legislative Ethics
Fairbanks, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointee to the Select
Committee on Legislative Ethics.
JANE W. PIERSON, Staff
Representative Jay Ramras
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented HB 88 on behalf of the sponsor,
Representative Ramras.
DEBORAH O'REGAN, Executive Director
Alaska Bar Association (ABA)
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Responded to questions during discussion of
HB 88.
MITCHELL A. SEAVER, President
Board of Governors
Alaska Bar Association (ABA)
Ketchikan, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Responded to questions during discussion of
HB 88.
STEPHEN J. VAN GOOR, Bar Counsel
Alaska Bar Association (ABA)
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Responded to questions during discussion of
HB 88.
ACTION NARRATIVE
1:18:32 PM
VICE CHAIR NANCY DAHLSTROM called the House Judiciary Standing
Committee meeting to order at 1:18 p.m. Representatives
Dahlstrom, Gruenberg, Holmes, Coghill, Gatto, and Lynn were
present at the call to order.
^CONFIRMATION HEARING(S)
^Select Committee on Legislative Ethics
1:18:53 PM
VICE CHAIR DAHLSTROM announced that the committee would first
consider the appointment of Herman G. Walker, Jr., to the Select
Committee on Legislative Ethics.
The committee took an at-ease from 1:20 p.m. to 1:29 p.m.
1:29:44 PM
HERMAN G. WALKER, JR., Appointee, Select Committee on
Legislative Ethics, in response to the question why he wishes to
continue serving on the Select Committee on Legislative Ethics,
relayed that he decided to keep serving for one more term
because he felt that continuity within the committee was
important given that it is currently dealing with some serious
ethical issues. In response to comments and questions, he
relayed that the committee is guided by laws enacted by the
legislature, and therefore the committee relies heavily on input
from its legislative members when interpreting those laws.
REPRESENTATIVE HOLMES asked whether there are any provisions of
the Legislative Ethics Act that need clarification.
MR. WALKER indicated that the provision regarding constituent
services needs to be readdressed because the current statutory
language is so broad that anything could be considered a
constituent service; this broad language hinders the committee
whenever it attempts to interpret that provision of statute.
1:39:14 PM
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL made a motion to advance from committee
the nomination of Herman G. Walker, Jr., as appointee to the
Select Committee on Legislative Ethics. There being no
objection, the confirmation was advanced from the House
Judiciary Standing Committee.
1:39:52 PM
VICE CHAIR DAHLSTROM announced that the committee would next
consider the appointment of Dennis E. "Skip" Cook to the Select
Committee on Legislative Ethics.
1:40:25 PM
DENNIS E. "SKIP" COOK, Appointee, Select Committee on
Legislative Ethics, in response to the question of why he wishes
to continue serving on the Select Committee on Legislative
Ethics, relayed that he enjoys the work and can provide
continuity within the committee, as well as a historical
perspective. He added that over the years he's gained insight
into how the legislature works as well as what does and doesn't
work with regard to the Legislative Ethics Act. There have been
a number of changes made to that statute because the language
didn't comport with how things needed to work in order for the
legislature to be able to conduct its business.
MR. COOK, in response to a question, agreed that the provision
pertaining to constituent services needs to be readdressed.
This need was highlighted by a situation in which a great deal
of assistance had been given to a constituent. The committee
first attempted, via the issuance of an opinion, to establish an
hour limit, but this was not well received, so the statute was
rewritten such that the committee would interpret the provision
[on a case-by-case basis]. The problem with that is that AS
24.60.030(a)(2) simply says that public funds or facilities
cannot be used for the private benefit of a legislator,
legislative employee, or another person. This doesn't make
sense given that that's what legislators do for their
constituents, and given that the statute defines "benefit" very
broadly such that anything a legislator does for a constituent
can be interpreted as being for the constituent's private
benefit. The committee, he relayed, would appreciate having
legislators address this issue so that the committee won't have
to struggle with it.
MR. COOK, in response to other questions, offered his belief
that although the committee is sometimes limited by
confidentiality requirements, the committee receives good input
from those legislators who sit on the committee, and welcomes
input from other legislators as well.
REPRESENTATIVE GATTO, noting that identity theft has become
prevalent, questioned whether the disclosure requirements for
those who sit on the Select Committee on Legislative Ethics need
to be revised.
MR. COOK said he doesn't feel as though the disclosure
requirements are overly onerous. Given that legislators
themselves are required to disclose a lot of personal
information and that committee members work with legislators and
in some cases even judge their behavior, he doesn't mind
disclosing the same type of information about himself, he added.
MR. WALKER concurred that full disclosure is necessary given
that committee members are sometimes called upon to judge the
behavior of legislators.
1:51:39 PM
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL made a motion to advance from committee
the nomination of Dennis E. "Skip" Cook as appointee to the
Select Committee on Legislative Ethics. There being no
objection, the confirmation was advanced from the House
Judiciary Standing Committee.
HB 88 - EXTEND BAR ASS'N BOARD OF GOVERNORS
1:52:21 PM
VICE CHAIR DAHLSTROM announced that the final order of business
would be HOUSE BILL NO. 88, "An Act extending the termination
date of the Board of Governors of the Alaska Bar Association;
and providing for an effective date."
1:52:49 PM
JANE W. PIERSON, Staff, Representative Jay Ramras, Alaska State
Legislature, explained on behalf of Representative Ramras,
sponsor, that HB 88 would extend the termination date for the
Board of Governors of the Alaska Bar Association (ABA), and
noted that the Division of Legislative Audit has recommended
that the termination date for the Board of Governors be extended
to June 30, 2017, which is the date proposed by the bill.
1:54:04 PM
MITCHELL A. SEAVER, President, Board of Governors, Alaska Bar
Association (ABA), opined that the sponsor statement for HB 88
succinctly sets forth the duties of the ABA, that being to
screen applicants for admission to the ABA, and to discipline
members of the ABA to ensure that they adhere to professional
standards. Both of those activities are subject to supervision
by the Alaska Supreme Court. The ABA is also responsible for,
or involved in, a wide number of activities, including fee
arbitration, handling disputes between clients and their
lawyers, lawyer referral services, continuing legal education
(CLE), promoting pro bono legal services to low-income Alaskans,
and maintaining a fund that reimburses those clients damaged by
an the dishonest acts of an attorney.
MR. SEAVER noted that through the efforts of the ABA's staff and
countless volunteers, the aforementioned functions are performed
without any cost to the State of Alaska. He observed that this
is the third time in the past four years that the Board of
Governors has been before the legislature regarding a sunset
extension; each of the prior times, an eight-year extension was
recommended, but only shorter extensions were approved. He
concluded by indicating that the Board of Governors would prefer
to be granted the eight-year extension.
1:58:00 PM
STEPHEN J. VAN GOOR, Bar Counsel, Alaska Bar Association (ABA),
mentioned that he has been impressed with the dedication and
willingness of the Board of Governors to take on the very
difficult issues that it's confronted with, not the least of
which involves disciplining members of the ABA; the Board of
Governors is dedicated to the timely and complete investigation
and prosecution of complaints against ABA members, and
ultimately such cases are reviewed by the Alaska Supreme Court.
He remarked that the ABA is small compared to bar associations
in other states, and that although Alaska has a difficult bar
exam, it's one that's designed to illustrate minimal competence
to practice law, knowledge of Alaska law, an ability to spot
issues, and an ability to thoroughly explain a legal problem in
a manner expected of a lawyer.
MR. VAN GOOR encouraged the committee to recommend the extension
of the Board of Governors' sunset date. The [Board of
Governors] is functioning according to statute, he opined, and
noted that it is accountable to the Alaska Supreme Court. In
response to a question, he explained that every disciplinary
case that comes before the Board of Governors is considered both
by the lawyers elected to serve on it and by the three public
members appointed to serve on it; furthermore, under current
rules, at least one of the three members chosen to hear a
particular disciplinary case must be a public member. He
characterized the participation of the public members, both in
such hearings and on the Board of Governors in general, as a
tremendous asset in that it brings a different perspective to
the Board of Governors. He assured the committee that there is
oversight sufficient to ensure that the professional
responsibilities of the Board of Governors are being met, and
surmised that it is the lawyers themselves who are in the best
position to assess whether another lawyer's actions violate the
rules of professional conduct, since a certain degree of
expertise is required in order to understand the issues
involved.
MR. VAN GOOR, in response to comments, explained that cases come
before the disciplinary board of the Alaska Supreme court in one
of two ways: the cases are either prosecuted in front of a
hearing committee, or "we" present a stipulated disposition to
the disciplinary board and then to the Alaska Supreme Court.
Either way, there is public input, which has been extremely
valuable.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL referred to Recommendation No. 3 in the
Division of Legislative Audit's report regarding Audit Control
Number 41-20057-08: "The board should adhere to existing public
notice requirements for all meetings or modify the bylaws to
clearly address conference call board meeting procedures and
public notice requirements." He asked whether that
recommendation has been discussed by the Board of Governors yet.
2:07:15 PM
MR. VAN GOOR said he'd drafted some bylaw amendments for
consideration by the Board of Governors at its January meeting;
the Board of Governors voted to publish those proposed
amendments for member comment, and so he is anticipating that
the amendments will be back before the Board of Governors at its
May meeting.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL referred to Recommendation No. 2 in the
Division of Legislative Audit's report regarding Audit Control
Number 41-20057-08: "The board should consider developing a
database of disciplined lawyers in the Bar's website."
MR. VAN GOOR relayed that the Board of Governors is in the
process of revising its database so that such information can be
displayed on its web site.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL, referring to language on page 19 of the
aforementioned report, asked how the Board of Governors promotes
reform in the law and in judicial procedure.
2:09:23 PM
DEBORAH O'REGAN, Executive Director, Alaska Bar Association
(ABA), indicated that such reform is mostly promoted via court
rules and amendments to them. In response to a question
regarding language on pages 13-14 of the aforementioned report,
she said that the Lawyers' Fund for Client Protection (LFCP) is
not something that would be administered by a state regulatory
agency, nor is the fee arbitration process or the mediation
process or the Interest on Lawyer Trust Accounts ("IOLTA
funds"). Sometimes, she noted, lawyer referral services are
provided by private organizations, but the ABA isn't competing
with such organizations because there are so many ways to find a
lawyer, particularly with the advent of the Internet. Most of
the aforementioned services wouldn't be provided by anybody if
the weren't provided by the ABA. In response to a comment, she
clarified that although the ABA doesn't require lawyers to do
pro bono work, it does have a pro bono director whose job it is
to convince lawyers to do more pro bono work.
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG referred to Recommendation No. 1 in the
Division of Legislative Audit's report regarding Audit Control
Number 41-20057-08: "The board should recommend to the Alaska
Supreme Court that mandatory minimum CLE for attorneys be
adopted." He asked Ms. O'Regan to comment.
MS. O'REGAN explained that because of a recent court rule
change, lawyers will now have to have completed three hours of
Mandatory Ethics CLE (MECLE) by December 31, and must now report
the hours they've completed. The ABA anticipates being able to
provide the Alaska Supreme Court with some statistics around mid
April. In response to questions, she said she envisions that
the Board of Governors will continue recommending to the Alaska
Supreme Court that it mandate 12 hours of CLE, but noted that a
current Board of Governors cannot bind a future Board of
Governors.
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG mentioned that some states' bars have
started to provide programs in specialized fields of law.
MS. O'REGAN relayed that the Board of Governors had discussed
this issue in the past, but decided that the ABA was too small
of an association to be able to provide effective specialization
certification and so chose instead to simply recognize the
specialization granted at the national level by the American Bar
Association.
MR. VAN GOOR, in response to a question, relayed that [Rule
7.4(b)] of the Alaska Rules of Professional Conduct says:
(b) a lawyer may communicate the fact that the lawyer
has been certified as a specialist in a field of law
by a named organization or authority, but only if that
certification is granted by an organization or
authority whose specialty certification program is
accredited by the American Bar Association.
2:24:57 PM
MS. PIERSON, in response to a question about the effective date
clause, explained that the Board of Governors has a one-year
wind down period and so could continue to operate until 2010
should HB 88 not be enacted.
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG questioned whether the title should be
altered such that it too would stipulate a sunset date of June
30, 2017.
VICE CHAIR DAHLSTROM expressed a preference for moving HB 88
from committee as it's currently written, and suggested to
Representative Gruenberg that he discuss any possible amendments
with the sponsor before the bill is heard in its next committee
of referral.
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL, expressing an interest in maintaining
legislative oversight, said he is not yet convinced that the
sunset date should be 2017.
REPRESENTATIVE HOLMES pointed out that the [Board of Governors
of the] ABA has offered to provide the legislature with an
update every year, but the chairs of the judiciary committees
chose not to take advantage of that offer last year because of
scheduling conflicts.
2:31:26 PM
REPRESENTATIVE COGHILL moved to report HB 88 out of committee
with individual recommendations and the accompanying fiscal
notes. There being no objection, HB 88 was reported from the
House Judiciary Standing Committee.
2:31:52 PM
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Judiciary Standing Committee meeting was adjourned at 2:31 p.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| Dennis Skip Cook.pdf |
HJUD 2/4/2009 1:00:00 PM |
|
| Constiuent info ltrs - Obermeyer .pdf |
HJUD 2/4/2009 1:00:00 PM |
|
| HB88 Sponsor Statement.pdf |
HJUD 2/4/2009 1:00:00 PM |
HB 88 |
| HB88 2007 AK Bar Annual Report.pdf |
HJUD 2/4/2009 1:00:00 PM |
HB 88 |
| LB&A ABA 2008 Review p1-16.pdf |
HJUD 2/4/2009 1:00:00 PM |
|
| LB&A ABA 2008 Review p17-34.pdf |
HJUD 2/4/2009 1:00:00 PM |
|
| LB&A ABA 2008 Review p.35-46.pdf |
HJUD 2/4/2009 1:00:00 PM |
|
| Herman G Walker.pdf |
HJUD 2/4/2009 1:00:00 PM |
|
| HB88 version A.pdf |
HJUD 2/4/2009 1:00:00 PM |
HB 88 |