Frequently Asked Questions

Organization of Section Leadership

What are the Section Officer Positions, and how do the Officer positions “work”?

Article III of the Section’s Bylaws identify the Officer positions as: a Chair, a Chair-Elect, a Vice Chair, a Secretary, a Budget/Finance Officer, and a Membership Officer. The Officers, with the exceptions of the Budget/Finance and Membership Officers, are essentially on a “ladder.” After serving a year as Secretary, the Secretary becomes Vice Chair; after serving a year as Vice Chair, the Vice Chair becomes Chair-Elect; and the Chair-Elect, after serving a year, becomes Chair of the Section. The Budget/Finance and Membership Officers are not on that ladder (i.e., the people holding those positions do not automatically move on to become Chair of the Section). The Budget/Finance Officer serves a three-year term. The Membership Officer serves a two-year term.

The Budget/Finance and Membership Officers can seek nomination to the “ladder” positions, but past Chairs of the Section cannot serve as an elected Officer or Council Member of the Section. Instead, the past Chairs participate in Council meetings “ex officio.”

What do the Officers do?

Article IV of the Section’s Bylaws describe the duties of the various Officers. In a nutshell, the Officers provide leadership regarding the Section’s various activities and participate in the activities of the ABA that might affect the Section, including participating in the ABA Section Officers Conference (SOC) to collaborate with officers of other ABA Sections, Divisions, and Forums. They pursue initiatives and actions to advance the Section’s mission and the interests of Section membership. A few of the Officer position duties are more specific. For example, the Secretary prepares the notes of the Council meetings and tallies the votes (e.g., on Section comments on regulatory and legislative proposals). The Secretary might also take notes at other meetings of the Officers, Council or Section members, as appropriate. The Budget/Finance Officer, not surprisingly, focuses on the Section’s financial status, including its budget, investments, income, and sponsorships. The Membership Officer oversees the Membership, Diversity & Outreach Division of the Section and reports to the Section Officers and the Council regarding actions proposed as they relate to membership, diversity programs, scholarship programs, or other similar programs to advance the recruitment and retention of members in the Section.

What is the Council and what does it do?

Article III of the Section’s Bylaws identify the Council as comprised of the Chair, Chair-Elect, Vice Chair, Secretary, Budget/Finance Officer, Membership Officer, two Section Delegates to the House of Delegates, 13 other Council Members, and the two immediate past Chairs ex officio. The 13 Council Members who are recommended by the Nominating Committee, serve three-year terms.

Article V of the Section Bylaws describes the duties of the Council - the Council governs the Section and ensures that the Section reflects a cross-section of the public procurement community. The Council members provide leadership to the Section, lead various Section initiatives, contribute their experience and expertise to Section comments on legislative or regulatory proposals, and vote on changes to the Section’s bylaws, Section policy initiatives or changes, and on comments.

Additional information about the role of Council members  is outlined in the Expectations of Council Members document.

I hear everyone talk about a “Section Director.” Who is that, and what does this person do?

The Section Director is the lynchpin of the Section! The Director is a member of ABA staff who keeps every single train of the Section running and on time. Because the Director is officially employed by the ABA, the Director makes sure that we comply with ABA deadlines, policies, and requirements. The Director can answer virtually any question you have about the Section, its programs, its Committees, its policies, and possibly life, but we’re trying to tackle some of Section-related questions here because we only have one Director.

How are Officers and Council Members Selected?

Article VI, Section 1, of the Section’s Bylaws describes the Section’s Nominating Committee. The Nominating Committee accepts nominations, including self-nominations, from Section members for the Officer, Delegate, and Council positions and makes recommendations to the Section on the nominees. All Section members attending the Section’s Annual Business Meeting during the ABA Annual Meeting have the right to vote on the candidates.

What can I do if I am interested in serving as a Section Officer?

Anybody who is a current Section member in good standing for at least two years is eligible to serve as an Officer. You can ask somebody to nominate you for a position or you can nominate yourself. Most candidates self-nominate by submitting a nomination form, statement of interest and resume to the Nominating Committee. You may also ask other Section members to support your application (although note, as a matter of policy, that our Officers refrain from involvement in the nomination process and neither Officers nor and the Nominating Committee members endorse applicants for Officer, Delegate or Council positions).

Other than being a current Section lawyer member and having been a Section member for at least two years, there are no prerequisites to serve as an Officer. As a practical matter, Officers generally have a strong and consistent track record of participation in Section activities and have served in other leadership positions. So, if you wish to serve as an Officer, someday, we encourage you to seek out leadership positions on Section Committees;  serve on the Publications Board, Public Contract Law Journal or The Procurement Lawyer boards; serve  as a conference director or conference co-chair  for one of our annual educational conferences; or other leadership position in the Section. Most individuals seeking an Officer position have previously served on the Council (although it is not required). Those interested in serving in an Officer position must be able to commit to serve the Section for six years in one of the “ladder” positions (including years as Immediate Past Chair and Previous Past Chair), three years if serving as Budget and Finance Officer, or two years as Membership Officer. If you have been an active, engaged, and consistent leader in the Section, we encourage you to nominate yourself for an Officer position. Note, however, that it is not uncommon for a nominee to be nominated on multiple occasions before being selected, so we encourage you to be persistent!

What can I do if I am interested in serving as a Council Member?

Anybody who is a current Section member and has been a member of the Section for at least two years is eligible to serve on our Council. Affiliated Professional members are also eligible to serve on the Council. Council Member terms are three years. A Council Member who has been elected to a three-year term is not eligible for election to a second consecutive three-year term.  After a three-year hiatus, a former Council member may apply for another term, but the Nominating Committee will give strong preference to candidates that have not previously served on the Council.

Council members commit and are expected to attend the (3) Section council meetings held each year.   

Similar to an Officer position, you can ask somebody to nominate you for a Council position or you can nominate yourself.  Nearly all Council candidates self-nominate.  You can also ask other Section members to support your application (although, remember that, as a matter of policy, our Officers refrain from engaging in the nomination process and neither our Officers nor the members of the Nominating Committee endorse applicants for Officer, Delegate or Council positions).

As with Officer positions, as a practical matter, our Council Members usually have a track record of participation in Section activities and have served in other leadership positions. For example, Council Members usually have been a Co-Chair or Vice Chair of one of our Committees, have participated in or planned at least one of our educational conferences, contributed to our publications, or have otherwise demonstrated  commitment to the Section and its mission. If you have been an active Section member, we encourage you to nominate yourself for a Council position. You may not always be selected the first time, but we are always looking for the next generation of leaders. Additional information on the expectations of council members can be found here.

Nominating Committee

What is the Section’s Nominating Committee, and what does it do?

Article VI of the Section’s Bylaws describes the activities of the Nominating Committee. The Nominating Committee reviews the nominees, including those self-nominated, for the position of Secretary and the four Council positions that are to be vacated in the next ABA year as Council Members’ three-year terms expire. If the Young Lawyer representative to the Council, the Section Delegate, Budget/Finance Officer, and Membership Officer will become open the next ABA year, the Committee makes recommendations on candidates to fill those positions as well. Prior to the Annual Meeting, it prepares a report to the Council regarding its recommendations for the positions. The Section membership votes on those recommendations at the Section’s Annual Business Meeting held during the ABA Annual Meeting.

How is the Nominating Committee appointed?

The Chair of the Section selects three Section members to serve as the Nominating Committee. Usually, the immediate past Chair is one of the members.

Can I nominate myself for positions that the Nominating Committee evaluates?

If you are a member of the Section, and have been one for at least two years, you can certainly nominate yourself for a Council or Officer position, understanding that Officers must be lawyer members. Don’t be shy. Nearly all people nominate themselves! Also, don’t feel discouraged if you are not recommended for a position the first time you try. It’s not uncommon to make a few attempts.

What do I need to submit to the Nominating Committee?

In January or February, the Nominating Committee will send out an email, and post on the Section’s website, information regarding the positions for which it is seeking interested nominees. That communication will describe the information you would need to submit. Usually, it includes a letter expressing interest and identifying your contributions to the Section over time.

Committees

What are the Section’s Committees, and how are they organized?

The Section includes three Divisions — the Procurement Division, the Membership, Diversity and Outreach Division, and the Operations Division. In each Division, there are a variety of different Committees. You can explore them on the Section’s website. The Procurement Division includes our Committees that address substantive issues of public contract law, such as cybersecurity, bid protests, mergers and acquisition, and small businesses (among many other topics). Our Membership, Diversity and Outreach Division, not surprisingly, includes our Membership Committee and our Diversity Committee as well as our Young Lawyers Committee. Our Operations Division consists of operational-related committees such as Finance, Publications Board, Annual Conferences, and Strategic Planning. Membership to the committees in the Operations Division are by appointment only.

What do the Section Committees do, and how can I get involved in their activities?

Our Committees hold meetings, usually monthly but perhaps bi-monthly if more appropriate to the Committee’s mission, where they discuss issues of interest to their committee members. For our Procurement Division Committees, for example, a meeting might include a panel discussion, a guest speaker, case presentations, or updates on regulatory developments. We welcome any Committee member to offer ideas for meeting topics.

Most, but not all, Committees meet in person at different locations. If you cannot attend live, Committees provide remote access that you use to participate. The meeting date and time should be provided in advance via email to members of the Committee. We ask our Committees to include meeting information on the Section’s calendar on the Section’s website and to post meeting details on the Section’s LinkedIn page.

Most Committees hold an organizational meeting in September to plan for the upcoming year and include a report of their planned activities in the agenda materials for the Fall Council Meeting held in conjunction with the Public Procurement Symposium in October or November. If you attend the meeting, then you may have an opportunity to volunteer for a Committee meeting or project.  Even if you do not attend the meeting, the plan is a good source of information for how to get involved and who to reach out to if you want to volunteer your time.

If you want to participate on one of our Committees, you may sign up on the Section’s website. On the homepage, you’ll see a heading for “Committees.” You can “explore our Committees” and then choose to “visit a Committee.” You’ll be asked to log in with your ABA username and password if you have not done so already.

I see “Committees” references to “Communities” on the Section’s website. What’s the difference?

The ABA established the “ABA Communities” platform where Section members who are interested in a particular topic can post and exchange information on their section’s community pages. Each PCL Section Committee has a “Community” that serves that purpose of allowing members to obtain, post, and exchange information. The link to each Community page can be found on a Committee webpage.

Committee Leadership

How are Section Committee Chairs and Vice Chairs chosen?

The Chairs and Vice Chairs of our Committees are appointed by the Section’s Chair-Elect for the ABA year (September 1 – August 31) when the Chair-Elect will serve as Section Chair. So, the Chair-Elect for the 2022– 2023 ABA year will appoint the Committee Chairs for the 2022– 2023 ABA year, when he or she will be Chair of the Section.

There are no prerequisites to serve as a Committee Chair or Vice Chair other than being a member of the Section. As a practical matter, Committee Chairs and Vice Chairs have been active Committee members. For example, Chairs may have served as Vice Chairs of the Committee, helped plan or run Committee meetings, participated in comments or publications written by the Committee, assisted with Committee reports, or otherwise demonstrated commitment to the Committee and a desire to lead it. The Chair-Elect will often seek the input of the current Committee Chairs regarding those the Committee believes should be Chairs or Vice Chairs for the upcoming ABA year. The Chair-Elect also may seek expressions of interest from those who are not currently in the Committee leadership but are interested in being appointed. Of course, you are welcome to express your interest directly to your Committee Chairs or the Chair-Elect.  The Chair-Elect also may consider diversity among the Committee leadership, including limiting the number of people from any specific entity serving in Committee leadership.

What are the expectations of Committee Chairs?

Find our Expectations for Committee Chairs. Generally, the Chairs organize the Committee Plan for activities for the coming year, organize and run the Committee’s meetings, plan for succession by encouraging Committee members to be engaged as potential leaders, consider possible comments and coordinate their drafting, identify book or white paper opportunities and otherwise lead the Committee’s activities consistent with the Committee’s mission.

What can I do if I am interested in becoming a Committee Chair?

If you would like to be considered for a Committee Chair position, the best way is via your involvement in the Committee’s activities! Volunteer to organize meetings, participate in drafting comment letters or publication projects, or serve as a Vice Chair first. You can also alert your Committee Chairs or the Chair-Elect of your interest in a leadership position on the Committee.

How are Vice Chairs of Committees chosen?

Vice Chairs are appointed in the same manner as Committee Chairs. There are no prerequisites to serve as a Committee Vice Chair other than being a member of the Section. If you want to help plan the Committee’s activities and otherwise assist with its mission by, for example, arranging panels, updating the Committee website, or assisting with comment letters, you should alert the Chairs of your Committee know that you would like to be Vice Chair. You can also express your interest directly to the Chair-Elect, who may request that members who are interested in a Vice Chair position express their interest in response to a survey early in the year.

Is there a limit on the number of Chairs or Vice Chairs for a Committee?

The Section currently does not have any limit on the number of Chairs or Vice Chairs for any of its Committees. Some large committees with numerous active members, such as the Bid Protest Committee, will have numerous Co-Chairs and Vice Chairs. Other Committees, like the Legislative and Regulatory Coordinating Committee, which is a “working” Committee that assists with the Section’s commenting function, but does not hold meetings, have few Co-Chairs and Vice Chairs. The number of positions ultimately depends on the Committee and what best serves its members’ interests.

Are there term limits for Committee Chair and Vice Chair positions?

Committee Chairs are expected to serve for three years and plan for the succession of the Committee’s leadership, with staggered “terms” so that experienced Co-Chairs remain to assist and mentor newer Co-Chairs to learn the role. We are committed to ensuring, to the greatest extent possible, that our Committees provide a space for those who are interested and committed to have a leadership position and promote the Section’s commitment to diversity and balanced perspectives.

The Vice Chair position is flexible and does not include an expectation that a Vice Chair will leave that position (note: this is not a forced march; you can step down at any time!). It is not uncommon, for example, for a Chair of a Committee to step down to a Vice Chair position and continue to participate actively in that capacity.

What can I do if I am interested in becoming a Committee Vice Chair?

If you would like to be considered for a Committee Vice Chair position, the best way is to be involved in your Committee’s activities! Volunteer to organize meetings, participate in comments or publication projects, help with the Committee website or LinkedIn posts, assist with Committee reports, or participate in whatever manner you believe will be beneficial to the mission.  You can also alert your Committee Co-Chair or the Section Chair-Elect know that you are interested in a leadership position on the Committee. After the first of the year, watch for requests by the Chair-Elect for formal statements of interest in taking committee leadership role.

Division Leadership

What are the Divisions within the Section?

The Section has three Divisions — the Procurement Division, the Membership, Diversity and Outreach Division and the Operations Division.

What does a Division Chair do?

The Division Chairs oversee the operations of the Committees in their Division. For example, they coordinate the scheduling of Committee Meetings, attend Committee meetings, ensure that Committees update their community pages, communicates with members through LinkedIn, the weekly Section e-news, and other notices for meetings, and submit timely reports on their activities, among other things.

How are Division Chairs appointed?

The Division Chairs are appointed by the Chair-Elect, similar to how Committee Chairs and Vice Chairs are appointed.  Division Chairs generally are experienced Section members who have served as a Committee Co-Chair, although serving in that role is not required.  Certain Officers are generally asked to fill some Division Chair roles, but others are available to members at large, who are encouraged to apply!

What can I do if I am interested in serving as a Division Chair?

There are no prerequisites to serve as a Division Chair other than being a member of the Section. As a practical matter, Division Chairs usually have served as Committee Chairs in the past. With that experience, they are equipped to assist Committees in their Division with running a strong and vibrant Committee. If you are interested in being a Division Chair, even if you have not been the Chair of a Committee, you should let the Section Chair-Elect know that you are interested.