I. Mission Statement
The Thompson G. Marsh Inn of Court is a professional
association of attorneys devoted to supporting excellence,
civility, professionalism and ethics in the practice of law.
The Marsh Inn is patterned after, and enjoys kinship with, the
English Inns of Court. The English Inns and the Marsh Inn,
while different from each other in detail, share professional
ideals, standards, and a pride in advocacy, and attempt to engender
these concepts as part of our common legal heritage.
The members of the Marsh Inn meet for dinner and a
presentation once per month from September through May, and once in
the summer for a social event. The monthly dinner
presentation may be on a subject related to legal practice, with
special focus on improving legal skills; promoting civility,
professionalism and ethical behavior in the practice of law;
sharing insights into the judicial process; and exploring the role
of attorneys in society.
The Marsh Inn is subdivided into small Groups. Each
Group comprises members from varying levels of practice, headed by
a Group leader, pursuant to the Marsh Inn's Guidelines.
Responsibility for the monthly presentation and the summer social
event rotates through each Group as provided in the Guidelines and
determined by the Marsh Inn's Executive Committee. After each
presentation, all Inn members are welcomed to offer criticisms and
discuss the presentation.
The Marsh Inn supports the larger American Inns of Court
movement, and operates within the framework of that national
organization. The Inn also supports and cooperates with other
Colorado Inns of Court to achieve their common goals.
II. Officers and Procedures for Selection of
Officers
The officers of the organization are
President, President-elect, Treasurer, Program Chairperson and
Secretary. Presidents and Presidents-elect can serve only one
term, which shall run from July 1 until June 30. There will
be a nominating Committee appointed by February 15. It will
be composed of the President, the Past President, and two members
at large to be selected by the President. The committee will
solicit nominations at the March meeting and will present a slate
of candidates for election at the April meeting by the
membership.
A. President -
The President shall be responsible for calling and running meetings
of the Executive Committee and the monthly dinner meetings.
The President is responsible for overseeing managing the budget,
and shall have reasonable access to all financial records of the
Inn. The President shall receive copies of all banks
statements, and shall be a co-signer on all disbursements of
greater than $200, except for routine monthly payments for dinner
meetings and payments of dues to National. The President may
appoint members of the Inn as committee chairpersons, who shall not
thereby become members of the Executive Committee except for the
Program Chairperson.
B.
President-elect - The President-elect shall assist the President as
directed, and shall familiarize him- or herself with the financial
and administrative affairs of the Inn, and be prepared to assume
leadership at the beginning of his or her term. The
President-elect may co-sign checks requiring dual signatures, if
the President or Treasurer is unavailable.
C. Treasurer -
The Treasurer shall draft an annual budget for presentation to the
Executive Committee, issue dues notices, collect dues, maintain
bank accounts and financial records, pay bills, ensure that all
payments are in accordance with the budget or are otherwise
authorized by the Executive Committee, and prepare financial
statements. The Treasurer has discretion to enter into
installment payment arrangements for good cause shown. In
addition, the Treasurer is authorized, with the consent of the
President, to waive or reduce the dues of individual members for
good cause shown. The identity of members who have requested
or received dues waivers or reductions shall be kept confidential
among the President, Treasurer and Assistant Treasurer, except that
perceived abuses of this authority may be brought to the attention
of the Executive Committee.
D. Program
Chairperson - The Program Chairperson leads the program committee,
which is composed primarily of representatives from each
Group. The Program Chairperson shall conduct regular meetings
of the program committee. In addition, the Program
Chairperson shall consult with the Groups as necessary while they
develop the details of their programs.
E. Secretary -
The Secretary shall keep minutes of the meetings of the Executive
Committee, and shall serve as the Inn's historian.
III. Composition and Meetings of the Executive
Committee
The Marsh Inn Executive Committee includes the current
year's officers, the immediate past president and three members at
large.
The Executive Committee shall meet at least three times
each term. There shall be at least one meeting in the spring
of each year, led by the President-elect, to plan the budget and
schedule for programs in the following year.
Within the Executive Committee, there shall be a
Membership Committee, which includes the President, Secretary,
and the three members at large. All applicants for
membership to the Inn, including student applicants, must
receive majority approval from the Membership Committee in order to
become a member.
IV. Membership Composition and Dues
A. Masters of the Bench - Persons with at
least 15 years of practice and all judges. Dues for Masters
of the Bench are $400.
B. Barristers - Persons with 6 to 15 years
of practice. Dues for Barristers are $375.
C. Counselor - Persons with 3 to 5 years of
practice. Dues for Counselors are $325.
D. Associate - Persons with 0 to 2 years of
practice. Dues for Associates are $300.
E. Pupil - Third year law students.
Dues for Pupils are $50
A member in good standing is an active member of the Marsh
Inn, the dues of whom are current to the Marsh Inn.
Those members who fail to pay their dues on time will be given
progressive warnings leading to expulsion from the Inn.
V. Attendance Expectations
All members are expected to attend at least five of the
eight monthly meetings. Further, full attendance means
staying until the meeting is concluded.
VI. Groups
The Groups shall consist of a cross-section of the
membership categories in the Inn. The Executive Committee
will select the group leaders and determine the composition of the
groups to ensure balance. The leader of each Group will be a
judge unless there is a shortage of available judges.
However, judge-leaders are encouraged to use the talents and
resources of their respective group members to plan and administer
the activities of the Group. Each Group should meet on a
regular basis in addition to the dinner meeting of the
Inn.
VII. Types of Events
A. Monthly
meetings except during December and the summer months. The
schedule for the monthly meetings is:
5:45
p.m.
cocktails/social time
6:30
p.m.
dinner
7:30
p.m.
program
8:30
p.m.
adjourn
B. Summer
Social - a social or community service event, with no program,
intended to include the families of members.
C. Joint
meetings with other Inns as scheduled.
D. Colorado
reception for all Inn members, as scheduled.
All meetings are at the University Club, which is located
at 1775 Sherman Street in Downtown Denver unless otherwise noted on
calendar.