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Bar News - September 5, 2003 Meet the Board of Governors
Firm/Organization: Melendy & Lee, P.A., Conway. Practice area: Mostly family law, some civil litigation. Past/Present Bar activities: Vice president of Carroll County Bar, president of Carroll County Bar, participant in Lawyer in Every School program, Mock Trial judge. Major challenges facing the Bar: The mistrust that the general public has for lawyers; deunification. Favorite spot in NH: The Carter Moriah Trail from the turnoff to Imp campsite up to Carter Dome. What is your pet peeve about practicing law? Colleagues who are not collegial. What was the best summer job you ever had? I worked as a fact checker/reviewer for "Let’s Go USA" while in college and traveled the southeastern United States writing restaurant, hotel and attraction reviews (i.e. I got paid to go to Disney and Sea World). What was the best advice your mother ever gave you? "If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all." This is not advice that you can always follow to the letter while actually in the courtroom litigating, but works for almost all other interactions. See, also, "You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar." What would you be doing if you weren’t a lawyer? I would write fiction. What do you do when you’re not being a lawyer? I am in my ninth month of pregnancy with twins as I write this, so right now I sleep when I am not a lawyer (and sometimes while I am a lawyer). When not pregnant or catering to newborns, I read; listen to bluegrass; try to find time for activities with my husband, daughter and dogs; dream about writing a novel; and make lists. Why do you participate in Bar affairs? Because I should. Favorite magazine? The Sunday New York Times magazine. Book? "Sometimes a Great Notion" by Ken Kesey. Movie? "The Godfather." Meal? Lobster, corn on the cob, Portu guese bread and salad. Tell us one interesting thing about yourself. When I was 21, I walked across New Hampshire on the Appalachian Trail. Editor’s note: During Anne Barber’s maternity leave, Charles Greenhalgh will represent Carroll County on the NHBA Board of Governors.
Firm/Organization: Gottesman & Hollis, P.A., Nashua. Practice area: Water Law, Business and Business Litigation and Criminal Law. Past/Present Bar activities: Legal Services Committee member, 1997-1998; Ethics Committee member, 1999-2003; Merrimack County governor, NHBA Board of Governors, 1999; Hillsborough-South governor, Board of Governors, 2002-present. Major challenges facing the Bar: The loss of influence in the legislative process, locally and on a national basis, is the major challenge currently facing our profession. The current efforts by the state Legislature to impose its authority upon the traditional jurisdiction of the judicial branch through the deunification bill (HB 175), and the efforts to amend the state constitution through CACR 5 to give the Legislature more authority in the way courts conduct trials are the most immediate threats to the NH Bar Association. Perhaps more importantly, these legislative actions are challenges to the separation of powers within our state government. The legal profession has long been a good political target. The profession in general has not effectively responded to the political ideology that encourages attacks, rang ing from blaming lawyers for the health care crisis, poor medical care and the general ills of the insurance industry to, on a grander level, the state of the economy. We have also not been effective in responding to a negative popular image of lawyers. The profession was once a force within our society because of our involvement with the various branches of government and their various functions, including the legislative and judicial processes. While we remain engaged and involved in the judicial process, we have slowly withdrawn from the legislative front. It is time we once again become familiar with local legislators and make sure they are familiar with us. We must be active in supporting responsible candidates and legislators, including those within our profession who have the time and ability to run for public office. None of these suggestions should negate the profession’s ongoing duty to police itself, to require the ethical and professional practice of law of all its membership or to adapt to the changing society in which we live. What I am suggesting is that, trained to look objectively at situations, we need to be participants and wield influence sufficient to make ourselves heard. Favorite spot in NH: The White Mountains. What is your pet peeve about practicing law? Attorneys who confuse advocacy with unprofessional nastiness. What was the best summer job you ever had? Scraping barnacles. What was the best advice your mother ever gave you? "Red skies at night mean a good day will follow." What would you be if you weren’t a lawyer? A marine biologist or a writer. What do you do when you’re not being a lawyer? Play with my wife and daughter, sail, fish, swim, hike and generally do things outdoors. Why do you participate in Bar affairs? It’s Jim Gleason’s and my father’s fault. Favorite book? "Cider House Rules." Movie? "Bull Durham" or "Shrek." Meal? Cheeseburgers. Tell us one interesting thing about yourself. I completed Outward Bound’s Florida Keys program and lived in France for three months in high school, both of which were incredibly eye-opening experiences.
Firm/Organization: Tober Law Offices, P.A., Portsmouth. Practice area: Civil litigation, domestic relations, professional negligence. Past/Present Bar activities: President, NHBA (1988-89); president, NHTLA (1977); ATLA Board of Governors, (1980-86); ABA House of Delegates (1994-present); ABA Standing Committee on Federal Judiciary (2001-present). Major challenges facing the Bar: The most daunting challenges facing the organized bar are not political, they are the assaults from (1) a rapidly changing technology, and (2) an economy-driven definition of professional success. The former has redefined how and when we provide services (fast and now), which has essentially taken away from lawyers their thoughtful, deliberative process. At the same time, the latter has created, for many, an overarching pressure that focuses only on doing well, at the expense of also doing good. Favorite spot in NH: Downtown Portsmouth, and imagining what it was like when my grandfather settled here some 90 years ago. What is your pet peeve about practicing law? That the profession, as a whole, has such a negative public image. Most people will tell you that they truly like their own lawyers, and many consider them friends. In addition, no profession provides more pro bono public service than ours; we even have an ethics rule (6.1) that encourages it. Yet, on the best of days, we often look like nothing more than a necessary evil. Go figure. What was the best summer job you ever had? Sorting mail and loading trucks for the U.S. Postal Service in South Boston. If you are missing mail from 1965, it might have been my fault. What was the best advice your mother ever gave you? She’s a Jewish mother. It’s all a blur. What would you be doing if you weren’t a lawyer? Teaching American history at Syracuse University. I almost stayed to do just that. What do you do when you’re not being a lawyer? I like to spend time with family and friends, when they’ll have me. Why do you participate in Bar affairs? No one ever told me it was an option not to. Favorite magazine? Wine Spectator. Book? Anything by Dave Barry or Bill Bryson. Movie? "The Graduate." Meal? Anything at The White Barn Inn, Kennebunkport, Me. Tell us one interesting thing about yourself. In 1994, my family and I traveled cross-country (and tried to blend in) for three weeks in a rented bright purple Lincoln Towncar. Despite almost being killed when the car started to go off a cliff in Custer State Park in South Dakota, it was the best experience of a lifetime.
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