The American Bar Association will hold “ABA Day – Advocacy for Justice,” the legal profession's largest lobby days of the year on April 5 and 6. ABA members from across the country will join state and local bar leaders virtually to meet with members of Congress and advocate for access to justice and other issues important to the profession.
This will be the 25th year that the ABA’s Governmental Affairs Office (GAO) will conduct the event and the third consecutive year that ABA Day will be held virtually due to concerns over the ongoing COVID pandemic.
In 2020 and 2021, thousands of lawyers engaged with their congressional representatives through social media on issues such as student debt relief, judicial security and funding for legal services for low-income Americans. This year, under the leadership of ABA Day 2022 Chair Bill Bay, the association will urge Congress to provide more student loan debt relief; to pass the Effective Assistance of Counsel in the Digital Era Act, which guarantees prisoners’ Sixth Amendment rights by applying attorney-client privilege between them and their lawyers’ email communications; and to increase funding for the Legal Services Corporation, which helps fund civil legal aid offices nationwide.
Other advocacy that will be addressed during the event will be support for the Real Courts, Rule of Law Act of 2022 (H.R. 6577), which would establish an independent Article I court for immigration removal adjudications. Judicial security is another issue of concern to the ABA, which will urge Congress to remain focused on the need to protect federal judges from physical harm. The ABA will also continue to advocate for passage of the Daniel Anderl Judicial Security and Privacy Act, which would restrict the disclosure and publication of judges’ personally identifiable information and beef up law enforcement’s ability to assess and deter credible threats against judges and their families.
The ABA will also thank congressional leaders for reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), one of the pillars of the government’s response to domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence and stalking, and will urge lawmakers to fully fund VAWA programs to assure access to services for survivors.
ABA Day features an impressive array of guest speakers that includes Academy Award-winning actress and humanitarian Angelina Jolie, who will talk about her efforts to support VAWA. A keynote address will be presented by Sens. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Joni Ernst (R-IA). And sessions on student debt relief will feature Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) along with Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-PA). Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) will join a session on the Effective Assistance of Counsel in the Digital Era Act, and Reps. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) will be among the guests discussing funding for the Legal Services Corporation.
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