A Note from NCADA President, Allen Smith
Weatherwise, February has been a less than ideal month – cold (as usual) and lots of precipitation. The good news is that we had some sun on weekends (particularly on February 20 and 21) and we are starting to see light at the end of this long tunnel known as the Covid-19 pandemic. Many of you participated in the Zoom presentation that Chief Justice Paul Newby on Thursday, February 18. Chief Justice Newby shared his reason for allowing the judicial districts to make decisions about when to re-open courts for in-person trials and hearings, and I hear some counties have started jury trials again.
If you have been a participant in a jury trial, we would love to hear from you. Did you have a difficult time getting enough jurors? Did the court push hard for you to use fewer than 12 jurors? How was the flow of the trial compared to before the pandemic?
Our Annual Meeting and Spring Program will be virtual again this year and is tentatively scheduled for June 10-12. We’re just not confident the world will be ready for big in person meetings by June. We’ll have more information and details soon!
But it is our hope that society will have somewhat returned to normalcy by September. So with that hope in mind, The NCADA is planning to return to live meetings this September for our Fall Seminar. It will be at the Omni Oceanfront Resort on Hilton Head Island from Sunday September 19 to Tuesday September 21. Yes, this is a little different than we’ve done it before, but we’re hopeful and looking forward to seeing everyone in person--I cannot wait! Details coming soon.
Speaking of the fall meeting, we would love to hear from members about topics they would like covered. There is no need to be bashful – please share your ideas!
I look forward to seeing some of you in a courthouse soon and more of you in HHI in September.
