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By Peter H. Glade, Multnomah Bar Association President

Yes, it took up a fair amount of my time, and yes, I’m glad that my presidential term is coming to an end. I will miss the pomp and ceremony and all the trappings of power. I will look forward to the meetings of former presidents who gather to trade reminiscences of their glory year and to share the wistful sadness that comes from tasting the glory for a few brief moments, never to duplicate that triumph. But seriously, it has been a rewarding year, and I am grateful for having been given the opportunity to lead this great organization. I am proud that we have accomplished some important goals, but I wish we could have advanced a few more just a little further.

We started off identifying three important priorities for the 2006-07 year (these are, of course, in addition to the regular cycle of the MBA’s annual routine). The first, the defeat of Measure 40, was very gratifying, and I believe we all owe those who contributed time and money to that effort a great debt of gratitude. It was a clear victory, but it has been a little hard to match in the other two priority challenges we faced this last year.

We have made some progress on getting a new courthouse, but I would like to have seen more. The county commissioners have formally selected a location at the foot of the Hawthorne Bridge. There seems to be a new energy and optimism among the planners who will be responsible for the project, and the commissioners seem to be forming a consensus view toward getting the job done one day soon, at least in theory. I am told that the governing powers all recognize the potential disaster inherent in our current courthouse. And I am sure that these same powers worry that one of the many potential incidents that could threaten the public will happen before we get that new courthouse built. But I don’t have the impression that the public at large (i.e., the voters and taxpayers) appreciates the full dimension of the lasting, catastrophic and expensive disaster that would scar the community and state if just one of those calamities befalls the courthouse. Fire, earthquake, security breach. None is far-fetched. These are not fantasies. Smart people would plan for such challenges and be prepared to meet them. We have not, and it is hard to understand why.

Political calculations relating to the ability to fund design and construction of the courthouse will continue to mire the process down until a solid political constituency forms to back the effort to design, fund and build. The MBA has long championed this case, and many of its members have participated in study groups, commissions and committees formed to push the effort along. In the coming years, we need to pick up the pace. I have renewed hope that I may yet appear before a judge and jury in the new courthouse before I retire, but the legal profession will have to keep on supplying the leadership to slog through the political mire and get the job done.

The judicial branch also needs adequate funding. As I write this column, there has been little progress in obtaining the level of funding from the legislature requested by the chief justice, or even the cut back budget advanced by the governor. It looks like the legislature will not appropriate additional money for the department despite the growing economy. If I were to place a bet, I would say that after all the dust settles, there will be a little more money doled out by the legislature before the session ends. But even if the judicial branch is given more than that, we must step up the effort to inspire our legislators to recognize that the worn out, neglected and strained system of justice in which we have always taken such pride cannot continue to provide the necessary access and process to the community under these circumstances.

The fact that we still draw highly qualified candidates to open judicial positions has allowed some legislators to delude themselves into believing that the system is not broken and need not be fixed. The fact that our judges take their responsibility seriously enough to push their resources to the breaking point to provide minimal access to justice apparently reinforces the belief of some of our legislators that the system can run on less. The fact that qualified individuals continue to apply for the job seems to mean to those in charge of the budget that judicial compensation must be adequate. This vision lacks foresight beyond the next election. Click and Clack, the Tappet brothers, say that if you run your car engine too lean, you may save some gas, but eventually, the added heat will wear it out faster.

Many of the challenges remaining after I give up the levers of power will have a political element. The idea of getting involved in politics may cause some to shrink away, or to worry that by taking political stands, the MBA risks alienating or driving away part of its membership. These concerns miss the fact that the MBA’s mission mandates stewardship of the justice system, and that means getting involved in politics, local and statewide, we have an obligation to jump into that arena and lead.

My picture? I was thinking of the Marx Brothers’ A Day at the Races. Groucho, Chico and Harpo help save the Standish Sanitarium, which needs money to keep its doors open and avoid bankruptcy. They accomplish their goal by raising the money at the racetrack. I couldn’t come up with a non-offensive, allegorical reference to this film. (Would I be comparing our courthouse to a sanitarium? Who does Groucho, the veterinarian turned psychiatrist, represent? And what about the horse?) But I kept the picture there in hopes you’d read this far to see what it meant.

Have a great summer.

This column appeared in the June 2007 issue of Multnomah Lawyer, the monthly newsletter of the Multnomah Bar Association. Peter Glade was president of the association from 2006 to 2007. View this article on the MBA's Web site at http://www.mbabar.org/docs/newsletters/ml_jun2007.pdf