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Incoming ABA President Dennis W. Archer Announces New Working Group to Examine Legal Needs of U.S. Service Members
Incoming ABA President Dennis W. Archer Announces New Working Group to Examine Legal Needs of U.S. Service Members
Published 08-12-03
Submitted by American Bar Association
The new working group will function under the auspices of the ABA Standing Committee on Legal Assistance to Military Personnel, building upon and expanding the committee's substantial success and efforts in Operation Enduring LAMP, which mobilizes volunteer civilian lawyers to augment the work of military legal assistance officers in providing free legal help to reservists.
"The shape and face of the U.S. armed services is in great transition, with the role of the citizen-soldier gaining increasing prominence and importance, and with the nation's role in international peace-keeping efforts expanding," said Archer, who will become president of the Association at the close of the 2003 ABA Annual Meeting, Aug. 12.
"Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld is working to transform how the Defense Department and the armed services organize, train and equip for the 21st century so that they may be better capable of meeting the changing threats that now face us. The ABA looks forward to contributing to Secretary Rumsfeld's reforms by focusing on the legal impact of these transformations on the lives of our service members."
Archer noted that the role of the National Guard and reservists has been expanded greatly, with volunteers being called on to serve greater lengths of time fulfilling their military duties. The increased presence of the U.S. military in international peace-keeping and nation-building efforts has meant that all service members face long-term deployment to distant countries. Both circumstances create new legal challenges to the men and women of the armed forces, in preparing for and returning from their tours of duty.
"The Working Group on Protecting the Rights of Uniformed Service members will take the lead in analyzing and recommending what new legal protections will be needed to ease the burden on our men and women in uniform as they are deployed around the globe to protect our freedoms," said Archer.
Archer explained that extended periods away from home can bring unique legal challenges to service members. Soldiers and sailors have faced losing their children when an ex-spouse challenges their custody, a result of being unable to attend a custody hearing because of their military service. Reservists return from active duty to find their businesses near bankruptcy, lifesavings gone and credit records tainted. In other instances, in the wake of rapid deployment, service members have needed to terminate leases or real property agreements when they are called on to abruptly change their residency.
The working group will address these and other legal issues, with particular attention paid to the broad areas of consumer law and family law that can present special concerns to military personnel. The working group will first focus on four central policy initiatives: The Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act/consumer law/family law; child support, child custody and visitation rights; the Uniform Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act/employment law; and the military's Expanded Legal Assistance Program. Other areas that the working group will examine are in-state tuition assistance to service members and their families, and loan forgiveness or loan repayment assistance.
In addition to reviewing several main policy areas, the working group will identify states with existing laws protecting service members that can serve as models for others, and will produce a report proposing model rules and procedures for submission to the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws.
"With the creation of the working group, the ABA is taking the lead to ensure that all uniformed service members and their families are protected from unequal treatment, discrimination and economic disadvantage," said Archer. "The working group will also go a long way toward mitigating the inconsistency among state and federal benefit programs, so that members of the armed services may avail themselves of the full extend of the rights and protections that flow from their service to our nation.”
Archer will invite representatives from a number of ABA entities to participate in the working group, including: the ABA Sections of Family Law; Real Property, Probate and Trust Law; Labor and Employment Law; Taxation; Government and Public Sector Lawyers; State and Local Government Law and Public Contract Law and the Military Lawyers Committee of the General Practice, Solo and Small Firm Section.
The ABA has a long record of addressing the legal needs of military personnel and has adopted policies on access to counsel in the military, delivery of legal services in the military, the Judge Advocate Career Program, legal assistance for active duty military personnel, Military Lawyers and Reserve or Guard Attorneys, as well as numerous ones pertaining to the Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act.
The ABA LAMP Committee provides assistance to military lawyers and civilian lawyers charged with providing civil legal services to an estimated nine million military personnel and their dependents. The committee also serves as a clearinghouse for the armed forces on issues and developments in the law relating to the delivery of legal assistance. LAMP also acts as a liaison between the ABA and the Department of Defense, and its military services.
The American Bar Association is the largest voluntary professional membership association in the world. With more than 410,000 members, the ABA provides law school accreditation, continuing legal education, information about the law, programs to assist lawyers and judges in their work, and initiatives to improve the legal system for the public.
