ReflexiÓnes Bright Spots of 2020 By David Evans, San Antonio Bar Association President
A
recurring meme on the internet featured the year 2020 asking no one in particular to hold its beer while it showed us all how things could always get worse. At the risk of daring 2021 to humble me even further, I visited with our ever-cheery Executive Director June Moynihan to focus this President’s Message on several positive SABA developments that we can expect in the coming year as we bid adieu to the dumpster fire that was 2020.
Lawyer Referral Service Intake Fully Automated The Lawyer Referral Service has seen tremendous growth and reach since its founding in 1966. Steady at the LRS helm for almost that entire time was Sylvia Hernandez, who retired in December with our tremendous thanks for a job so well and faithfully done. We now look forward to the leadership of Outreach Attorney Whitney Thomas, who will manage the LRS and the community resource portal that helps prospective clients find the right attorney for their legal issue. We will announce developments on that front as they occur, and we anticipate even more growth in the years to come for this wonderful program to which Sylvia devoted her professional life.
New Bar Offices – Designed With COVID Safety Protocols We look forward to moving into new office space across the street from the old courthouse in the old Federal Reserve building. While a firm move-in date is still a moving target, state of the art surfaces and UV light air purifier systems will keep visitors safe once we move in. When complete, the space will make the lives of lawyers practicing regularly at the courthouse easier and serve as a hub for the legal community and volunteer lawyers. We are thankful to past President Bobby Barrera for leading the effort to secure these new digs, and I look forward to joining President-Elect Dawn Finlayson with a ribbon cutting at some point in the coming year. [Light Padre Pio votive candle.]
6 San Antonio Lawyer | sabar.org
David Evans photo by Nathan Baerreis
Technology Keeps Bexar County Lawyers Moving Forward Virtual Jury Trials
You may have tuned in to the SABA Town Hall on December 8, when we visited with Judges Arteaga and Jiménez, along with San Antonio attorneys Ron Sprague, Kelly Kelly, Wesley Williams, and Tabor Dorsey about their respective experiences with the first virtual jury trials held in Bexar County. Whether or not virtual jury trials will continue to be held once the effects of the pandemic subside, it is exciting to see our judiciary and members of the bar come together to navigate these uncharted waters and share their experiences with all of us.
Bexar County to Launch New Case Management Tool
Bexar County entered into a five-year, $20-million agreement with Tyler Technologies, Inc. and has been onboarding the new Odyssey case management system since March 2020. This is the same system used by Harris County and is presently installed or onboarding in twenty of the largest counties in Texas. Odyssey is primarily back-office case management software for judges and clerks. The civil court module will launch in April 2021. According to Tyler Technologies, the new system will reduce the time needed to move a document to the court’s portal after submission to the clerk; streamline the hearing notification process; and and make information entered during a court proceeding immediately available at the clerk’s office. Counsel (not the public) will also have the ability to access electronic case files and documents.
