The Edward P. Gallogly American Inn of Court

      

About the Edward P. Gallogly

Family Law American Inn of Court

Founded in 1995, The Edward P. Gallogly Family Law Inn of Court has brought lawyers and judges handling family law cases together for collegial conversation and continuing legal education for over 25 years.

The Chapter is comprised of 80 plus members who are either Family Court judges, lawyers practicing in Family Court or students from Roger Williams University School of Law.

Meetings are held monthly at various restaurants or conference centers throughout Rhode Island and include Continuing Legal Education programs which qualify for Continuing Legal Education credits for attorney members.  The meetings also serve as an opportunity to keep the membership and the bench aware of issues as they arise and evolve in the ever-changing and challenging field of family law.

In keeping with a tradition started by founding members Judge Howard I. Lipsey and Magistrate Edward H. Newman, the Chapter sponsors an annual 'special seminar' open to both members and non-members including professionals from outside the legal field.   Affectionately referred to as the "Newman Seminar", this program is held each May and funds the Lipsey Scholarship, discussed below.

Past years' Newman Seminar programs include:

2017 Forensic Accounting with presentations made by Judge Silverstein of the Rhode Island Superior Court, and several esteemed forensic accountants

2018 The Intersection of Substance Abuse Issues and The Court with many established clinicians invited to attend and some to present, along with Judges of the Rhode Island Superior and Family Courts' Drug Courts.  The goal was to educate clinicians about the challenges the judiciary encounters with litigants who are dependent on illegal substances and to help inform attorneys about the clinical issues that underlie many substance abuse problems.

2019 Mediation and Family Court featured Attorney Paul Finn of Commonwealth Mediation and Conciliation, in Brockton, Massachusetts. Attorney Finn has been on the front line of settling some of the most controversial litigation in the New England region, including the Station Fire disaster, the Big Dig collapse and the Boston and Providence clergy abuse cases.  In addition to the membership and members of the Rhode Island Bar, invited guests included members of the Greater Boston Family Inn of Court.

2020 Remote Deposition College, by far the most challenging program the Inn has offered, was crafted in response to the COVID 19 pandemic.  The program provided an opportunity for attorneys to learn innovative methods to prepare and take depositions under the challenging circumstances of operating remotely.  Attorneys were able to work in small groups to further share and hone their skills to become comfortable conducting a virtual deposition.

2021 Dealing with Difficult Clients capitalized on the technological advances made during COVID 19 and we utilized remote technology to host guests from the Wall Street Journal, who covered the Varsity Blues Scandal, and attorneys from as far away as Atlanta and Chicago to explore dealing with difficult clients - those type of folks who cannot seem to take no for answer. 

Proceeds from the Newman Seminar fund the Chapter's scholarship account, which is used to award a member a scholarship to the National Trial Advocacy Association's Family Law Trial Advocacy program.  Judge Lipsey previously taught at the Trial Advocacy program for years, and when he passed away in 2020, the Inn chose the 2021 program to dedicate the scholarship in his name.

The Inn is also proud to sponsor the second-place scholarship in the Rhode Island Supreme Court's Annual Law Day Essay Contest conducted by the Rhode Island Bar Association, the Rhode Island Judiciary, and the Rhode Island Police Chief's Association.

If you are interested in membership, contact Dadriana Lepore, dlepore@coialepore.com, or Jennifer Griffith, Jennifer.Griffith@doa.ri.gov or any of the officers listed on this site.

2022 - 2023 Gallogly Inn of Court Meetings

Date Location Topic
February 3    
March 2    
April 13    
May TBD

 

 
June TBD