State Bar of Texas Podcast - Legal Talk Network

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The Intricacies of AI Policy and Governance (State Bar of Texas Annual Meeting 2024) Jun 24, 2024

Show notes

Lawyers have been getting into ethical hot water over both the use and misuse of AI, failing in their duties of competence, diligence, and more, so where do we go from here? Rocky Dhir talks with Justice John Browning and Judge Roy Ferguson to learn the latest guidance on AI issues and to remind lawyers of their ethical obligations. They discuss AI’s revolutionary impacts in the legal profession and what to expect as it continues to evolve.

Justice John G. Browning has been a litigator in Texas and Oklahoma for over 35 years, including as a partner in several national law firms.

Judge Roy Ferguson (2013-present) presides over a five-county court of general jurisdiction covering roughly 20,000 square miles and over 20% of the U.S.-Mexico border.

Smokeball Bill: The Free Perk for Texas Lawyers Jun 20, 2024

Show notes

Who says the best things in life aren’t free?! The State Bar of Texas partnered up with Smokeball to offer a free trust accounting and billing software platform called Smokeball Bill. If you’re a Texas lawyer, this perk is available to you at no additional charge because of your state bar membership. Tune into this episode to learn more about what it does and how to access it.

What Texas Attorneys Need to Know About Vacation Letters, Artificial Intelligence, Mental Health & This Year’s Annual Meeting Jun 06, 2024

Show notes

The State Bar of Texas Annual Meeting is just around the corner, happening June 20-21 in Dallas! With this meeting comes a change of leadership for the Bar, but great progress has been made in the past year under current president Cindy Tisdale’s guidance. Rocky Dhir talks with Cindy about her year as president, discussing her dedication to lawyer mental health initiatives (including a new member benefit with BetterHelp), the Bar’s Taskforce for Responsible AI in the Law (TRAIL), and progress made toward improving the process for lawyer vacation letters in Texas.

Later, Rocky shifts gears to talk with Trey Apffel about what to expect from Annual Meeting 2024’s diverse programming schedule and networking opportunities. Learn more about events, speakers, registration, and more on the State Bar of Texas website.

Cindy Tisdale is President of the State Bar of Texas and an attorney in Granbury, Texas, where she dedicates her practice to family law.

E.A. “Trey” Apffel III is Executive Director of the State Bar of Texas.

Texas’ Mental Health Court Programs May 02, 2024

Show notes

Should our criminal courts exist to punish or reform those who have broken the law? Every case is unique, but in those involving mental health, a rehabilitative approach may bebeneficial. Rocky Dhir talks with Judge Brent Carr about his long years of service in the Tarrant County Mental Health Court, which had the overarching goal of improving outcomes for people with mental illness impacted by Texas’ justice system. They discuss the efforts of the Texas Judicial Commission on Mental Health, the Specialty Courts Advisory Counsel, and the programs that address mental health issues in many areas of the law, including cases involving sex trafficking, drug offenders, family law matters, veterans, and more.

State Bar of Texas 2024-25 President-elect Candidate Forum Apr 11, 2024

Show notes

The State Bar of Texas Board of Directors approved the nominations of Denise Scofield, of Houston, and Santos Vargas, of San Antonio, as president-elect candidates at its meeting on September 30, 2023. Texas lawyers will vote for the president-elect and district directors from April 1 to April 30. The winner will serve as president-elect from June 2024 to June 2025 and as president from June 2025 to June 2026. For more information, go to texasbar.com/elections.

[The content for this episode was recorded as a live webcast video on March 26, 2024, at the Texas Law Center in Austin, TX.]

Rules Vote 2024: 12 Proposed Changes to the Texas Disciplinary Rules Mar 12, 2024

Show notes

Since its inception in 2017, the Committee on Disciplinary Rules and Referenda has been charged with the examination of Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct and Rules of Disciplinary Procedure to determine rule adequacy and necessary changes. After extensive evaluation of existing rules, the committee proposed 12 new rules between 2021 and 2023 which Texas attorneys will now have the opportunity to vote on from April 1-30, 2024.

Rocky Dhir talks with committee members Lewis Kinard (Chair), Judge Phyllis Martinez Gonzalez, and Scott Brumley, and former member Claude Ducloux about the proposed rules to help Texas legal professionals gain a better understanding of the purpose and implications of the suggested changes. For more information, including links to background information on each rule proposal, go to texasbar.com/rulesvote.

Demystifying the Texas Data Privacy and Security Act Feb 01, 2024

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The Texas legislature recently enacted the Texas Data Privacy and Security Act, which goes into effect on July 1, 2024. Lawyers have an urgent need to understand this new legislation and its coming impacts on their practice and clients. Rocky Dhir talks with Shawn Tuma, a widely recognized expert in cybersecurity and data privacy law, to help Texas attorneys understand the elements of this act and best practices in security for compliance with new regulations.

Shawn Tuma is a partner at Spencer Fane LLP in Cyber Risk Management, Cyber Incident Response, and Cyber Security, Hacking and Data Breach Litigation.

AI and the Practice of Law: Insights for Attorneys and Paralegals Jan 11, 2024

Show notes

AI has been around for a very long time, but 2023 was its renaissance, with ChatGPT and other AI technologies suddenly speeding forward with exponential growth. Attorneys and paralegals should be focused on learning and adapting to this quickly evolving technology to ensure competence in a world where AI is taking greater precedence. Rocky Dhir talks with paralegal Megan Goor-Peters and attorney Joshua Weaver about responsible AI use and its current impacts in legal practice. They address common concerns and discuss the hopeful merging of human and AI elements for greater efficiency and success in the future of our justice system.

Megan Goor-Peters is a senior paralegal and property manager at Brender Law Firm in Fort Worth. Goor-Peters is the current State Bar of Texas Paralegal Division liaison to the Texas Bar College and a member of the State Bar Task Force for Responsible AI in The Law.

Joshua Weaver is Director of the Texas Opportunity & Justice Incubator (TOJI), a flagship program of the State Bar of Texas focused on supporting attorneys as they build sustainable solo practices serving low-income and modest-income communities.

Year in Review — Texas Real Estate Law Changes in 2023 Dec 28, 2023

Show notes

There were a number of real estate cases in 2023, but only a few were notable enough to be of importance to all practitioners in this area of the law. Rocky Dhir welcomes Roland Love to discuss his article highlighting prominent 2023 real estate decisions in the December edition of the Texas Bar Journal. Roland gives an overview of these cases and their implications, covering PNC Mortgage v. Howard, Lennar Homes of Texas Land and Construction, Ltd. v. Whitely, Mitchell v. MAP Resources, Inc., and the rather humorous Pecos County Appraisal District v. Iraan-Sheffield ISD.

Read Roland’s full article here: Real Estate Law Year in Review

Roland Love is the 2022 recipient of the State Bar of Texas Real Estate, Probate, and Trust Law Section Lifetime Achievement Award in Real Estate and the Texas Bar College Patrick A. Nester Award for Outstanding Achievement in CLE.

Mentors Make All the Difference Oct 31, 2023

Show notes

Mentorships can be very impactful in the lives of attorneys, leading to better lawyering and stronger law firms. As a profession, there is so much we can do to develop and encourage mentorships, and the October Texas Bar Journal examines this subject in detail. Rocky Dhir welcomes article authors Nikki Chargois-Allen, Denise Paul, and Regan Boyce to discuss their thoughts on mentor-mentee relationships and setting up mentoring programs for young lawyers.

For real-life perspectives from a mentor-mentee pair, check out Nikki and Denise’s article: In Their Own Words: How To Be a Good Mentor and A Good Mentee.

And, for more on ways to create mentoring programs, read Regan’s article: Set For Success: How To Set Up a Firm Mentoring Program for Young Attorneys

Nikki Chargois-Allen is a partner with the law firm of Davidson, Troilo, Ream & Garza in San Antonio.

Denise Paul is regional legal counsel to Jungheinrich, one of the world’s largest suppliers of industrial trucks.

Regan Boyce is a partner in Chamblee Ryan in Dallas.

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