June 1, 2021
The Alexandria Bar Association Named 2021 Bar Association of the Year
The Virginia State Bar Conference of Local and Specialty Bar Associations has named The Alexandria Bar Association the Bar Association of the Year.
The Alexandria Bar Association, founded in 1928, organizes outreach efforts and strives to promote the relationships between its 309 members and their community.
The association’s annually elected leadership includes: Tamika Jones of Jones Practice, PLLC, president; Rebecca Wade of Wade Grimes Friedman Meinken & Leischner, president-elect; Mary Horner of Legal Services of Northern Virginia, secretary; and Colleen Haddow of Redmon Peyton & Braswell LLP, treasurer.
President Jones nominated The Alexandria Bar Association by highlighting the bar’s transition to virtual on-demand CLE programs and its Mentorship Program, which is now in its 25th year. Additionally, in 2019, the association established the Lawyer Well-Being Committee to promote all aspects of lawyer well-being. The program helps lawyers achieve measured progress in the six dimensions of well-being identified by the National Task Force on Lawyer Well-Being: emotional, occupational, intellectual, spiritual, social, and physical.
In the community, bar members organize a free Senior Law Day, an annual June event between the association and Senior Services of Alexandria to educate the community on elder law and introduce services within the City of Alexandria. And in 2021, members participated in “Equal Justice Talks” with Alexandria City High School government students, teachers, and speakers from the greater legal community.
The Foundation of The Alexandria Bar Association is the charitable arm of the association, providing scholarships through fundraising to Alexandria high school students. It also provides grants to local organizations that primarily serve residents of the City of Alexandria for projects that provide services to indigent individuals, or that improve the legal system, access to the legal system, and the administration of justice.
The Alexandria Bar Association also has a lawyer referral service that provides referrals for clients who want to schedule a half-hour consultation with an attorney who is a member of the service. LRS also offers a reduced fee for clients with limited income through their Modest Means Program.
The association has worked to push forward an adaption to telework and online services to meet the needs of its members. In just the last year, the association introduced a mobile app, implemented online elections, payments, surveys, event registration, and contributions.
The CLSBA will present the 2021 Bar Association of the Year Award at the Virginia State Bar Annual Meeting on June 17.
