Rule VII-1 Committees

(a) Standing Committees. The Board shall define the powers, duties, functions, and scope of each standing committee in its Standing Policies. The President, subject to Board approval, shall appoint eligible Bar members to fill all vacancies or expired terms on standing committees and shall name and designate the chair of each committee. Committee members shall serve staggered, three year terms. Committee members may be reappointed for successive terms. The Board may appoint additional members to a committee, remove members from a committee for good cause, or dissolve a committee when it considers the work of a committee has been completed or when it considers that a committee is no longer necessary. Each committee may select such other officers as it considers advisable and may designate subcommittees from among its membership. Each committee shall meet at such times and places as may be designated by its chair. The Association’s standing committees are:

(1) the Continuing Legal Education Committee, a 15 member committee responsible for presenting legal education seminars to the membership, and includes one Judicial representation and two Young Lawyer representations serving staggered 2-year terms;

(2) the Ethics Committee, a committee responsible for the issuance of opinions providing guidance to Association members in complying with the Alaska Rules of Professional Conduct;

(3) the Historians Committee, a committee responsible for preserving the unique history of the Alaska Bar;

(4) The Law Related Education Committee, a committee responsible for presenting programs and producing publications to aid the public in understanding of the law and the legal system; the committee is divided into subcommittees in the communities of Anchorage, Fairbanks, Juneau, Kenai, Mat-Su and such other communities as the president sees fit to appoint;

(5) the Tutor Committee, a committee responsible for tutoring assistance to failing bar examinees;

(6) the Pro Bono Service Committee, a committee responsible for identifying and promoting activities which would facilitate the provision of pro bono services and encourage all attorneys to provide pro bono service; at least three of the members shall be from communities from outside of Anchorage, Juneau and Fairbanks;

(7) the Alaska Rules of Professional Conduct Committee, a committee responsible for reviewing suggested amendments to the ARPC and making recommendations for amendments to the Board of Governors;

(8) the Lawyers’ Assistance Committee whose members provide services to members of the Bar, their families or business associates when it appears a Bar member is suffering from substance abuse or from a mental or emotional disorder affecting his or her practice. The committee may also conduct interviews and provide recommendations for applicants for admission. Communications between Bar members and the Committee shall be kept confidential by the Committee, as set forth in Rule 8.3(c) of the Alaska Rules of Professional Conduct and Rule 26(i) of the Alaska Bar Rules; and,

(9) the Committee for Fair and Impartial Courts, a Committee responsible for recommendations to the Board for activities that the Bar can undertake to explain and promote the concept of judicial independence, and to undertake to educate the public about and promote the concept of judicial indepen- dence.

(10) the Scholarship committee, a committee responsible for implementation of the scholarship program. At least one member of the committee will be a member of the Board of Governors.

(b) Special Committees. The President may appoint special committees with limited purposes and of limited duration. The terms of membership on such committees shall be established by the President at the time the committees are appointed.

(c) Committee Actions Endorsed. No action, report, or recommendation of any standing or special committee is binding upon the Association unless first approved by the Board.