THE 2002 NHBA Annual Meeting, held at the Sheraton Harborside in Portsmouth, proved to be an outstanding success, drawing healthy attendance for all of its programs and positive reviews.

This was the first summer meeting in many years to be held in southern NH at a site accessible and affordable to more members. The Portsmouth venue offered greater flexibility - allowing members to either stay overnight or attend as "day-trippers" taking part in selected events.

In addition to those Bar members taking advantage of the opportunity to earn last-minute CLE credits, there were also a lot of new faces in attendance at this year's Annual Meeting - members who typically would not or could not have made the trip to The Balsams for the event.

This year's all-day CLEs were well attended, with the Appellate Practice program attended by 80 registrants and the Trials of the Century CLE drawing 116. Also successful was a Saturday morning Ethics CLE with 43 registrants.

The Annual Meeting Banquet on Friday night was a sellout with more than 250 guests for a program that included recognition of judicial retirees and new appointees, honorary Bar members and the recipients of the NHBA President's awards, and the installation of 2002-2003 NHBA President Marty Van Oot.

The meeting also featured a golf tournament at the Pease Country Club, a Portsmouth Harbor cruise, and an open house at the McLane firm's new offices in Portsmouth, which also featured recognition of President's Award recipient Bruce Felmly. Members also sampled the nightlife, restaurants and general ambiance of Portsmouth and the Seacoast.

"We were very pleased with the reactions of members to the Portsmouth meeting," said Denice DeStefano, assistant executive director of the NHBA, who has overseen annual meeting arrangements for the past few years. "This year's meeting offered flexibility and diversity, and we appreciate members' patience as we worked our way through the logistics of a new location."

The Bar is not abandoning the resort-based Annual Meeting format, however. Under the Bar's new meeting design, which also reduced the January Midwinter Meeting to a single day, the Annual Meeting location will alternate between centrally located venues in NH and The Balsams Grand Resort & Hotel (or another resort-type location). The 2003 Annual Meeting returns to The Balsams June 26-29, 2003. The following summer, the Bar will unveil another different and exciting Annual Meeting location.

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