About the Criminal Law and Individual Rights Section

The Criminal Law and Individual Rights Section provides activities and information to lawyers whose work relates to the criminal justice system or civil and individual rights. The section sponsors educational and practice-building programs and publishes a newsletter featuring articles on recent legal developments and upcoming events. The section occasionally files amicus briefs and comments on pending or proposed legislation, court rule changes, and other matters of interest to section members.

The purposes of the section are

keep its members informed of developments in the law and public information on those subjects;
monitor developments in rules and legislation and comment on issues within its expertise and jurisdiction;
provide a forum for discussion of subjects pertaining to the fields of criminal law and civil rights;
fulfill the Bar’s commitment to public service and community outreach.

The section’s activities include:

sponsoring educational programs addressing issues of interest to membership, including brown-bag lunch programs, panel discussion and individual speakers addressing current developments in the law.
publishing a quarterly newsletter, which features articles on substantive developments in the law, reports on past Section programs, notices of upcoming programs, and other information of interest to attorneys.
organizing legal and nonlegal activities designed to benefit the local community by improving awareness of individuals’ legal rights and responsibilities concerning criminal law and civil rights.