Family Law Taskforce Meeting – November 25, 2014

Minutes

In attendance – Some Kedia, Virginia Rosa, Eileen Nnoli, Amy Petkovsek, Matthew Stubenberg, Margaret Maupin, Paul Wyble, Inna Loring, Ashley Mariner (telephonically)

Call to order – 10:12 am

Discussion

-A. Petkovsek

  • Evaluations from the deposition training were very positive. The training fostered interactions among offices.
  • Trainings are no longer video recorded because LAB does not have the ability for storage and replay.
  • Amy is putting together an agenda of trainings for 2015. Amy is currently soliciting topics and preferences on timing.

-S. Kedia

  • One topic for a possible training is Family Law 101 – it will be easy to put together and will serve to attract attorneys from other organizations. We need a training on the basic steps of a custody and divorce case.
  • V. Rosa – there are two groups that would benefit from a Family Law 101 training – domestic violence legal service providers and immigration practitioners.
  • A. Petkovsek – LSC grant does not permit representation of undocumented aliens, but legal service providers like Ayuda can participate in LAB’s trainings so long as we do not give advice on immigration cases
  • We may want to split up trainings on custody and divorce – one afternoon each. Integration into the Trial Advocacy Institute may bebe possible.
  • A. Petkovsek - March 25, 2015 at the Ecker Center in Columbia, MD, LAB will host a Veterans Military training which will include a presentation on family law issues involving individuals serving in the military.
  • Another possible training – Marital Property Training. We already have materials from 2009 QDRO training and 2010 Marital Property Training. This topic may be part of the Family Law 101 training and include topics such as QDROs, dividing up pension accounts.
  • Possible topic – Protection Order Practice Training – Soma has an outline from the National Battered Women’s Justice Center to work off.
  • Possible topic – Evidence in Family Law Training – it may a discrete training or may be part of/overlap with Advanced Trial Skills training Amy is already planning for 2015.

-M. Stubenberg – New MDJustice website

  • Same logins and passwords should work.
  • Books will be transferred into Featured section.
  • Dates will not be imported automatically from SharePoint into MDJustice, must schedule separately.
  • Must update administrators of Family Law Taskforce.
  • One can add tags to posts, but cannot get notifications in HTML.
  • No rollout date yet for new website – within next six months, probably.
  • Contact Matt with suggestions.
  • Don’t post anything on new website you are not afraid to lose – post it on old MDJustice website until new site goes live, at which time content will be transferred there.
  • Contact Matt with any problems with Westlaw.

-A. Mariner – case question; discussion.

-I. Loring – case question; discussion.

-P. Wyble, MSW program student and intern at social work department. The goal of the department is to have social workers eventually established in all offices.

  • It may be useful to have a training on implementing social work strategies for family law practitioners.
  • M. Maupin – such a training may be marginally useful for smaller offices.

Adjourned – 11:54 pm