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Fellow GTLA Members,

Since beginning my one-year term as President of the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association at our Annual Convention in May, I have had the opportunity to meet with many of our organization’s members, leaders, allies and staff. These meetings have left me with an unmatched sense of optimism, and as we chart our course over the next 12 months, I can’t help but be encouraged by the direction in which GTLA is moving.

Many of you have reached out to express an interest in becoming more involved with our Association, and there are a number of important ways in which you can play an integral role in our future successes.

First, I would like to encourage each of you to get involved with a GTLA committee. In addition to the many successful committees that we have had for many years, we have further added two new ones this year: the Leadership Academy Committee and the Listserv Committee. When combined with our other committees, including Amicus Curiae, Communications, Community Outreach, Constitutional Challenge, Education, Legislative, Membership, Membership Eligibility, New Lawyers Division, Public Relations and Verdict Editorial Board, there is sure to be an opportunity to get involved for each and every GTLA member. Click here to view the current list of GTLA Committee Chairmen, and don’t hesitate to reach out to them!

Another way for our members to get involved – and one that may sound familiar to many of you – is to take advantage of the current legislative "off season" and create or grow your relationship with your respective State Representative and Senator. As attorneys, you are in a unique position to become an asset to your legislators, and whether you are assisting with the crafting of a bill, raising money for their reelection or simply offering a listening ear as a constituent, your efforts will foster a mutually-beneficial relationship that will last long into the future. Feel free to get in touch with our legislative team, and remember that your actions could very well be the difference-maker for GTLA at the Capitol.

The Georgia Trial Lawyers Association is made up of over 2,000 attorneys practicing in every corner of our state, and this year we will be emphasizing the growth of our organization across all of our state’s 159 counties, not just in Atlanta, as has been the perception for far-too-long. To that end, I hope that you will become or remain active in your local TLA chapter, or consider starting one if we don’t have an active presence in your area. Between holding monthly meetings, hosting the area’s legislators and coming to the Capitol for our Lawyer of the Day program as a group, our local TLAs have become an invaluable asset to our cause over the past few years. Click here for a list of our current TLA chapters, or contact Grassroots Director Micah Gravley to find out more about how you can become an active member of a local TLA.

Our organization can only be as successful as the efforts that its members are willing to contribute, and I hope that you will join me in advancing GTLA to new and exciting heights. This year is shaping up to be a great one for us – I hope you will join us in our efforts.

Buck Rogers
GTLA President