The PDA is Looking for New Board Members

In an effort to improve the organizational structure and communication with parental defense attorneys state-wide, the Parental Defense Alliance of Utah (PDA) has decided to open up additional board member positions.

The Parental Defense Alliance has divided the 8 judicial districts into 5 regions.  Each region is to be represented by a board member.  The regions are as follows:

Region Name	Judicial Districts	Current Board Member Representative
Northern	1 and 2	Carol Mortensen
Salt Lake	3	David Boyer
Central	4	Grant Dickinson
Southern	5 and 6	Open
Eastern	7 and 8	Open

DUTIES

As a representative of a region, each board member fulfills the following duties:

1.     Liaison with Members.  The PDA seeks to keep in contact with those attorneys who represent parents in Utah’s juvenile courts.  We recognize that there is occasionally some turnover, or individual attorneys encounter circumstances in which they would like some input.  A PDA board member will be the contact person for members within their region to help members find answers and resources for their cases.

2.     Liaison with Court Clerks.  Each PDA board member will also work to stay in contact with the Court Clerks in their judicial districts.  As problems and issues arise or new contract attorneys are hired, the board member can help the PDA stay abreast of changes within each judicial district.

3.     Lunch CLEs.  Each board member in encouraged to assist in the planning of at least one lunch CLE for their region per year.  The PDA Executive Director will provide all the resources and help of the PDA in setting up registration, accreditation and hosting of each event.  Board members should help find topics, recruit speakers and promote the events.

4.     Observe court.  Board members are encouraged to observe the court rooms of the judges in their region and provide feedback to the PDA on problems or ideas that can be shared with all parental defense attorneys.  Through observation, board members will be able to identify topics for trainings that can benefit all members around the state.

5.     Blog.  Board members should contribute a blog post on a topic of interest at least once a month.  Blog posts are not intended as law review articles, but short synopsis of topics and resources that are available on state and national levels.  Such topics can include:

·       Legal, legislative, case law updates

·       Best practices for parents attorneys

·       Available services in the community

·       Local and national news items in child welfare

·       Practice tips and tricks

BENEFITS

The following are the benefits provided to PDA board members.

1.     Free entry to all PDA events including CLE hours

2.     Up to five hours per month in compensation for time spent on PDA duties at $80 per hour

3.     Reimbursement for miles traveled on PDA business

4.     Rub shoulders with parental defense attorneys from around the state

5.     Help improve the practice of child welfare law in Utah

If you are interested in serving in one of the open board member positions please contact Kate Hansen at kate@parentaldefense.org.  Applications will be accepted until AUGUST 31, 2015.

FAQ

1.     Do I need to live in a region in order to be the board member representative for that region?  No.  But preference will be given to those who live in the region.

2.     How long do board members serve?  We anticipate that board members will serve from September 2015 to September 2016.  At that time we will either keep the current board or have everyone reapply.