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Bar News - July 23, 2004 Notes From a Messy Desk Edited by Dan Wise Esq. — Not for Men Only? For many years now, the Bar Association has followed a gender-neutral policy, using terms such as "chair" instead of chairman or chairwoman, pluralizing or at random using "he" and "she" for generic second references. We have also avoided the use of "esquire" or "Esq."—a courtesy title with male origins. Interestingly, we have noticed in the past couple of years that more and more lawyers, especially younger ones—male and female, seem to be adding the "Esq." to their names. Several online dictionaries we consulted seem to dodge the gender issue in the definition but give away the male bias in their examples: From Merriam-Webster Online: "...used as a title of courtesy usually placed in its abbreviated form after the surname, John R. Smith, Esq." From legald.t.com: "n. a form of address showing that someone is an attorney, usually written, Albert Pettifog, Esquire, or simply Esq. Originally in England an Esquire was a rank just above "gentleman" and below "knight." It became a title for barristers, sheriffs and judges." The American Heritage Dictionary, however, was more gender-conscious: "Used as an honorific usually in its abbreviated form, especially after the name of an attorney or a consular officer: Jane Doe, Esq.; John Doe, Esq." We welcome your comments on this issue. But, for now, we will continue to avoid using the term. By the way, if you need an online dictionary, try: www.yourdictionary.com. It’s much more than a dictionary; it is a portal to hundreds of dictionaries by different publishers and covering different languages, including historical editions. And, if you are looking for some pointers on keeping your legal writing gender-bias-free, my choice is a practical Web site maintained by the British Columbia Law Institute: www.bcli.org/pages/projects/genderfree/genderfree.html. The guide is available in different formats (WordPerfect, MS Word and PDF) for downloading. Co-Parenting Scheduling Tool This tip comes by way of John Cameron, a Laconia family practitioner: A Web site called www.ourfamilywizard.com offers a nifty secure communications network and scheduling tool for parents with joint custody arrangements. The site offers software that is not just a scheduling tool for co-parenting, but maintains a record of parent-to-parent communications to help avoid or resolve conflicts. Improving Juror Turnout The American Legislative Exchange Council, a conservative think tank, is promoting a model "Jury Patriotism Act" for state legislatures to enact to enhance the participation of citizens on juries. According to a recent news release, Arizona, Colorado, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Utah and Vermont have adopted its model act in some form. Superior Court Chief Justice Robert Lynn, in response to receiving a copy of the Act from the Bar News, said New Hampshire does not currently have a problem obtaining jurors. He added that he was intrigued with the model legislation and would look into it further. Among the Act’s provisions:
Obtain text of the model act from www.alec.org. Some Favorite Sites Stanford University’s Copyright and Fair Use Center site - http://fairuse.stanford.edu/index.html. Everything you ever wanted to know about copyrights, fair use, web permissions, etc. Association of Legal Administrators - http://www.alanet.org/periodicals. Good stuff, and plenty of it is free to all. Check out the "ALA White Paper" series under Periodicals. Readable reports on how to train associates to be managers; the changing role of legal secretaries, etc.
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