Executive Director’s Page
Your Dues at Work
What do State Bar of Texas members get in exchange for their dues?
That’s one of the questions we get most often here in Austin. There
are many benefits of membership. In addition to the big one—the ability
to practice law in a self-regulated profession with an independent
grievance system—you also get everything from insurance options through
the Texas Bar Private Insurance Exchange to confidential help with
substance abuse, mental health, and overall wellness issues through the
Texas Lawyers’ Assistance Program. But the one I want to highlight here
is our unique legal research benefit.
The State Bar of Texas is the first and only bar association to offer
its members free access to both Casemaker and Fastcase. This is an
estimated combined value of $2,000 a year, a benefit that far exceeds
your annual dues.1
As State Bar president in June 2014, I was proud to help launch the
Fastcase benefit to complement our Casemaker benefit and have enjoyed
hearing feedback from members about how the services enhance their
practices.
Both offer full-text access to caselaw and statutes, combined with
powerful research tools. The services are similar in scope but different
in look and feel, so they meet members’ needs in different ways.
Both services are also regularly adding new features and improvements.
For detailed updates and links to upcoming how-to webinars, go to texasbar.com/legalresearch.
You can find more member benefits and services at texasbar.com/benefits.
We are always looking to expand our benefits program and welcome your
suggestions.
I’ll close with a word about your dues. The State Bar of Texas has not
raised dues since 1991, and there are no current plans to increase them.
Counting the $65 legal services fee imposed by the state, the total cost
to practice law in Texas for an attorney paying the maximum $235 dues
level is $300 a year.
If you practiced in another state whose legal profession is set up
similar to Texas’, where a unified bar performs regulatory functions,
chances are you would pay more than you do now. The total cost to
practice law is higher in 20 of the 25 other such jurisdictions that
responded to the American Bar Association Division for Bar Services’
2017 benchmarks survey. Of the five such jurisdictions that report lower
total costs, none is cheaper than $250 a year, according to the
survey.
In Texas, it’s true that an expanding membership base has boosted dues
revenue in recent years, but that growth has also meant that the State
Bar is providing services to more people. Our current and former board
members, officers, and executive leadership deserve credit for keeping
our dues reasonable and preventing the need for an increase for nearly
27 years and counting. But I would not want us to rest on our
laurels.
In one of my first meetings with State Bar staff after taking this job
in December, I said we should never be comfortable where we are or
complacent in what we do. In my short time here, I have seen how much
our staff is committed to that concept of continuous improvement.
We are working hard for you to build a better State Bar of Texas. If you
have ideas on things we could do more effectively, please let me
know.
Sincerely,
Trey Apffel
Executive Director, State Bar of Texas
Editor-in-Chief, Texas Bar Journal
(512) 427-1500
@ApffelT on Twitter
Have a question for Trey? Email it to trey.apffel@texasbar.com and he may answer it in a future column.
