|
President’s Message |
|
Dear Members
Thank you for the honor of allowing me to serve as your next President of this illustrious Bar - the oldest, continuously run, county bar association in these United States. As I look back over the last decade or so, I cannot help but admire the works and good deeds of all of my predecessors. I know that I will have a difficult task in following in each of their footsteps.
Each one of our past presidents has worked hard to promote a certain commendable idea or philosophy during his or her term. For example, Marsha Kazarosian made a point of promoting and protecting the image and integrity of our profession. Robert Holloway tried to enhance the positive participation of our members with an emphasis on bench-bar relations.
We were so fortunate to have Anne Gugino Carrigan to lead us through our 200th Anniversary celebration, and she also emphasized the recruitment of new members. Most recently, Donald Bumiller made strides in increasing the benefits of membership, and he started new traditions with the creation of several social events for all of us to enjoy.
The success of any association can only be measured by the strength of each and every one of its members, and their respective loyalty to each other and the greater good. My goal will be to remind all of us how proud we should be to serve as attorneys, and to specifically remind each and every one of us how fortunate we are to live and practice here in Essex County. It is, after all, the best county in the Commonwealth!
Essex County is one of the largest county bar associations in this state. We owe that not only to our expansive geography, but also due to the loyalty and collegiality of our members. There is a reason why we are better here in Essex County. We treat each other with the same respect and value that we treasure and expect of ourselves.
For example, we do not, and should not, hesitate to agree to a reasonable continuance at the request of opposing counsel. We do not, and should not, assume that a fellow lawyer is being impolite if he or she doesn’t return a phone call, letter or email. Rather than assuming the worst, we are wise enough to realize that perhaps they simply didn’t get the message, or that perhaps their computer is down. We take the high road, and give our brothers and sisters-at-bar a second, third or fourth chance. We reach out to that lawyer with our graciousness, and sometimes that change in attitude just may change the tenor of a case. Suddenly, settlement becomes possible where it seemed simply unthinkable just a few days before. That’s how we do it here in Essex County!
We are proud to serve our community, and our practice and behavior is indeed markedly different than other attorneys in this state. I will hope to emphasize all of the positive aspects of our profession as well as the miracles we seem to accomplish every day for our clients. The services we provide are both invaluable and essential to a civilized society, and I think that too often we undervalue our own worth. We will only be able to succeed as a profession if we stick together in our common aspirations and goals, or otherwise we risk the chance of failing individually. So congratulations to all of you for being wise enough to practice here in Essex County, and I look forward to serving as your President. I hope that you will not hesitate to call if I may ever be of assistance to you.
Until next time, Wendy Olinsky |
