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The Austin Bar invites you to serve on one or more of our committees for the 2025-26 bar year! Serving on a committee is a great way to make connections in the legal community, develop new skills to apply to your practice, and make a lasting difference in people’s lives. You can join any of the following committees at no charge:
NEW – Membership: This committee focuses on attracting, engaging, and retaining new and current members. It also seeks to diversify our membership to increase the number of non-attorney members, such as law students and paralegals. The committee will explore methods to increase and diversify our membership by reviewing internal and external data, conducting member and non-member surveys, and organizing focus groups. The committee will also contain a subcommittee tasked with determining, among other things, how the Austin Bar can offer value to its members in the future and what the Bar Association will look like for future generations of attorneys.
Austin Adoption Day: This committee coordinates the annual Adoption Day (traditionally held on the first Thursday of November), including organizing and gathering the donations of books, food, balloons, and gift-basket items. Interested committee members may have the opportunity to handle a pro bono case.
Bench Bar Committee: This committee organizes and implements the Austin Bar’s Annual Bench Bar Conference held for Travis County lawyers and judges. Committee members create the full-day conference program, including developing a theme, identifying topics, and recruiting speakers.
CLE Committee: This committee organizes the Austin Bar’s monthly 4th Friday CLE programs, which are available for free to Austin Bar members and enables them to maintain their law license at no cost. These monthly CLEs are generally only an hour, featuring one topic and one speaker, and can be held over Zoom.
Communications: This committee creates and reviews content for Bar Code, Austin Lawyer, the Austin Bar website, and social media.
DEI Committee: This committee hosts discussions to increase understanding and lead to inner and external change, networking focused on bridging social capital, compiling resources for people seeking guidance, and identifying Austin Lawyer authors and topics highlighting Austin’s diversity and history. The committee will plan the annual Equity Summit. In addition, this committee oversees the Diversity Fellowship Program, which offers summer internships to minority law school students. Participants intern for the Travis County District judges and for a private law firm.
Fee Dispute: This committee mediates and/or arbitrates fee disputes submitted by clients, attorneys, the courts, and the District 9 Grievance Committee.
Fundraising/Golf Tournament Committee: This committee will focus on fundraising by holding social events for Austin Bar members and their families. These events will include a Fall Festival in conjunction with Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas and the Austin Bar’s Pro Bono Committee during Pro Bono Week; and the Austin Bar golf tournament spring fundraiser.
Gala: This committee plans and produces the Austin Bar’s biggest event, an annual gala, to raise money for the Austin Bar Foundation’s grant program.
Hilgers House Preservation: This committee performs duties to preserve Hilgers House, applies for preservation grants, researches the history of the house, and provides tours to the general public.
History & Traditions: This committee recruits and conducts oral history interviews with Austin attorneys and judges and past Austin Bar presidents to preserve the history of the Austin Bar, the Austin legal community, and significant legal events in the Austin area. This committee also organizes efforts to memorialize this history.
Law Related Education in Schools: This committee plans and implements various educational programs aimed at school-aged children and supports the Akins Early College High School legal program, which is the leading advocacy high school training program in the country. The Law Related Education Committee also organizes the Austin Bar’s participation in the State Bar’s annual Law Day essay, poster, and photography contests.
Lawyer Well Being: This committee aims to educate, support, and connect our legal community to achieve more balanced, mindful, and joyful lives and practices.
Mentorship: The Mentorship Committee is focused on providing informal mentorship opportunities among lawyers of all ages and practice areas. The committee plans and hosts the bar’s regular breakfasts/lunches with members of the judiciary, as well as facilitates a spot-mentoring program, where attorneys seeking guidance can submit a query through the Austin Bar website and get connected with another attorney who can provide input. The committee also organizes events wherein less experienced attorneys can form relationships with more experienced practitioners and members of the judiciary, And, the committee organizes CLE events to help promote mentorship and professional growth.
Pro Bono: This committee coordinates and plans Austin Bar pro bono programs and develops relationships with pro bono organizations, such as Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas, American Gateways, and the Texas Civil Rights Project.
Log into your Austin Bar account to add committees to your membership.