Colleagues,

I’m excited and honored to serve as Chair of the Section of State and Local Government Law. Thank you for affording me the opportunity to work with talented attorneys who address the kaleidoscope of legal issues impacted by state and local government laws. The energy, talents, interests, skills, and knowledge of our membership contributes greatly to the wonderful programming, publications, and other services offered by the Section. I look forward to partnering with the membership to drive the Section’s initiatives for the upcoming year.

Over the next year, I hope to inspire Section leadership to focus on service to and inclusion of our membership while centering Section activities on its history of embracing collegiality. My goals for the Section are consistent with those who’ve led the Section in years past and focus on providing high-quality CLE programming, publications, and networking opportunities by

• providing content-rich CLE programming on cutting-edge legal issues,
• producing publications responsive to the needs and interests of membership,
• broadening member participation in Section committee activities and in authorship of Section publications,
• establishing networking opportunities at meetings and CLE events, and
• recognizing the contributions of those who’ve contributed to the growth and success of the Section.

Implementation efforts for each of these Section goals will focus on the important and ongoing efforts of our Section’s leadership to grow membership and commit to diversity while providing a platform of activities inclusive of attorneys who share our Section’s interests and purposes. In addition, I plan to institute organized support for member pro bono and public service whether through formation of a Section committee or organized efforts through the Section’s existing committees.

Plans for this year’s Section meetings are underway. The Section’s Fall Meeting will be held in Kansas City at the University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Law from October 4–7, 2012. This Fall Meeting will highlight legal issues in public education and the Section’s flagship publication and law review, The Urban Lawyer, which is published by the Section in collaboration with UMKC School of Law. The CLE programming slated for the symposium will address an array of cutting-edge legal issues, ranging from student off-campus cyberspeech to urban public education reform. I’m thrilled that the UMKC School of Law is co-sponsoring this program and that an evening reception will provide our Section’s members and leaders the opportunity to recognize the contributions of the UMKC School of Law, Robert H. Freilich, UMKC Professor of Law Emeritus and National Editor ofThe Urban Lawyer, Professor Julie M. Cheslik, Editor, and past and present members of the Student Editorial Board. I’m also excited about the location of the meeting as Kansas City will afford the Section’s participants an opportunity to experience a beautiful city, terrific food, a stay at the Raphael—a historic landmark hotel—and great opportunities for collegial activity.

Programming and meeting plans are also in development for our Section’s other meetings, including the Midyear Meeting in Dallas, the Spring Meeting in Nashville, Tennessee, and the Annual Meeting in San Francisco next summer. The Spring Meeting will be our Section’s second collaborative venture with the Section of Public Contract Law and will be held in Nashville from May 2–5, 2013, in conjunction with the Section of Public Contract Law’s Annual State & Local Procurement Symposium.

I understand that not all of our Section’s members are able to come to our programs and meetings and am committed to leading our Section’s efforts to provide quality CLE webinars and timely and worthy articles in our Section’s quarterly State & Local Law News and the monthly Government eNews. I also plan to actively support our Publications Oversight Board under the leadership of its Chair, Marti Chumbler. The POB has worthy books geared for publication in the upcoming year, including Ethical Standards in the Public Sector, Social Media and the Public Sector, andMunicipal Law Deskbook.

I am mindful that our Section exists by and through its members and hope that you will send me an e-mail at mklimesh@seyfarth.com or give me a call at 312/460-5985 to talk about how our Section can serve or involve you in its activities. I look forward to meeting or hearing from each of you and serving you all in the upcoming year.