We have a rare opportunity to support the Judicial Division. Our website declares our mission:
The Judicial Division improves the American judicial system and is the voice for judges and lawyers in their role as guardians of the rule of law.
Giving to the JD Fund for Justice and Education (FJE) supports our American system of justice through legal education and public service. What most already know is that the FJE is a 501(c)(3) charitable fund. But there’s more.
Think back to the JD programs and webinars that have enriched your life and brought enlightenment through understanding of complex issues. Just last March, the Judicial Division sponsored and participated in at least two webinars honoring Women’s History Month. Often combining with other ABA entities, the JD in the spring will offer weekly webinars and CLEs supporting a diversity of topics. Check out the JD website for these webinar events. Now, think back, too, to the minimal cost (if any) you had to pay or will pay for such programming.
We now have an opportunity to continue to support these special programs, the enrichment we receive and the edification opportunities it provides to us and others. There are many ways to give.
Let’s begin with Law Day. This year Law Day falls on Wednesday, May 1st, 2024. This is the day that the American Bar Association traditionally celebrates the rule of law and promotes a deeper understanding of our legal system. The Judicial Division also selected Law Day as a day to remind us of just how we put into action the means of supporting our legal educational programming. The rule of law is not free and neither is the programming that supports it. So let’s remember to put this date on our calendar as a reminder to replenish these funds. On May 1st, give generously to the Judicial Division’s Funds for Justice and Education.
But there are many other ways to contribute. Justice Linda Murnane never misses an opportunity to remind us of one “painless” means of giving (among others) to support her SCJ Conference and Tribal Court’s FJE. Each month she drafts from her bank account a “painless” sum which goes directly into these FJE accounts. By year’s end it quickly adds up to a generous sum. Formally, it is designated as a “Recurring Gift.”
But there are other more traditional ways of giving as well. Go to the JD website, hit donate and there you will find an array of ways to give. Make a single gift by credit card, ranging from $25-$2500. You can always make a legacy gift or charitable distribution from an IRA retirement account. You can make a remembrance tribute to honor a friend. Another easy way is to designate a portion of your expense reimbursement that will go directly into the JD FJE fund. There, too, are other more complex methods of giving. Remember, you can designate your conference’s FJE funds in all the means of giving to the JD. Be reminded, too, that JD has designated Law Day (May 1st) as our FJE giving day.
In the carefully chosen words of the JD website, this is what you are supporting:
Your giving ensures that protection of fair, impartial, independent and diverse courts will remain a focus of legal advances, educational programming, and resources for judges and legal professionals nationwide.