(high point: getting to recruit and work with national caliber speakers; low point: emceeing with a suit and tie while everyone else wears shorts.) Over the course of some 20 years of attending Convention, I have had the benefit of getting to know not just scores of members, but often their spouses and children. It’s what former OTLA President Hala Gores calls her “OTLA family” and I couldn’t agree more. If you’ve never been to Convention before, I highly encourage you to go this year, which will be held in Salishan. Unlike Sunriver, where many members often stay and recreate outside of the resort, Salishan is largely self-contained which provides more opportunities to network and connect with colleagues. But wait, there’s more. Remember Litigator Lunches? They’re gone. They were too formulaic and attendance was declining. In their place are Emerging Topics — hot, timely topics scheduled when the need arises, such as the release of the Oregon Supreme Court’s decision in Moody. The Workers’ Compensation Section continues to be very active and puts on its own CLE every spring. The Legal Staff Section puts on a ½ or full day CLE every year and has a very active listserv. Much like the lawyer listserv, legal staffers share information and best practices tips on their own listserv. With membership of only $95 a year, it’s one of the best bargains at OTLA which includes access to the staff listserv and provides value that is exponentially higher than the cost of entry. There are so many places today to get CLE credit both in person and online. But when it comes to Oregon-specific, in-the-trenches, cutting-edge education for civil plaintiff’s trial lawyers, no one delivers like OTLA. Now is time for my pitch: if you enjoy and benefit from OTLA’s broad range of educational opportunities — and how could you not? — we need you to attend. Providing this abundance of opportunities is expensive and if folks don’t attend, it’s not cost effective. Untold hours of member and staff time go into creating and staging these events. From an annual budget perspective, if one considers the income from member attendance fees, and the recognition at events that drives contributions from our Annual Partners (businesses that recognize the importance of the work OTLA does and provide valuable services for our members and their clients), Event Sponsors (lawyer members and their law firms) and Exhibitors (businesses attending President’s Message continued from p. 5 6 Trial Lawyer | Summer 2024
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