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Take Note

Rebekah Steely Brooker, TYLA President

Click here to view this month's President's Opinion.

 

Texas Bar Private Insurance Exchange Special Enrollment Period
Now that the 2014 Open Enrollment Period (OEP) has ended, members will need to experience a qualifying life event to enroll in a qualified health insurance plan through the exchange. Below are some guidelines for how the Special Enrollment Period works:

Members must experience a qualifying life event in order to open up a Special Enrollment Period. What is a qualifying life event?
• Birth or adoption*
• Marriage or divorce*
• Move to a new coverage area
• Involuntary loss of coverage*
• Loss of subsidy eligibility
• Loss of Medicaid/CHIP eligibility
• Current plan closes*
• Gaining citizenship
• Leaving incarceration

Effective Date Rules
• Enroll between the 1st and 15th of the month: Effective 1st day of following month
• Enroll between the 16th and 31st of the month: Effective 1st day of the second following month

If none of the above qualifying events have occurred, there are still options that you may want to consider, such as a Short-Term Health Plan. The next open enrollment is scheduled to begin on Nov. 15, 2014, and stays open until Feb. 15, 2015. Click here or call (800) 282-8626 for more information about qualifying for a Special Enrollment Period or Short-Term Health Plans.

*Effective date is based on the date of event.

 

Legal Research
The State Bar of Texas is the first and only bar association to offer its members free access to both Fastcase and Casemaker, giving members unprecedented access to two nationwide legal research services. Firms of 11 lawyers or more will have free access to Fastcase’s extensive Texas Plan, while solo practitioners and firms of 10 lawyers or fewer will have access to Fastcase’s Premium plan. State Bar of Texas members have access to Fastcase’s intuitive legal research tools, training webinars and tutorials, mobile apps, and live customer support. The free member benefit has no restrictions on time or number of transactions and includes unlimited printing, unlimited reference assistance, and unlimited customer service. Casemaker’s expanded offerings include access to premium services at no cost for all members. These services were previously available only to paid subscribers. Casemaker has also added its new Subsequent History feature especially for Texas attorneys. At a glance, researchers can now determine writ and petition history. Casemaker’s new statute annotator feature is now available to Texas attorneys as well. At a click, researchers can quickly get an accurate picture of how the courts have cited, applied, interpreted, and construed each statute. Click here for more information.

 

TexasBar.com
The State Bar of Texas is excited to announce the launch of a new mobile site. Now, when you access TexasBar.com from your smart phone, you will instantly have access to the bar's most visited sites—Find a Lawyer, Contact Us, and the State Bar Calendar of Events. On the Find a Lawyer tab, you can find an attorney in the directory and call him or her from your mobile phone with just one click. The mobile-friendly site also features links to our blogs, Texas Bar Blog and Texas Bar Today.

The “Find a Lawyer” search function is the most visited part of TexasBar.com. Recently, the search function on the website and mobile site was improved to make finding the attorney you are looking for even faster. Make sure your profile information is up-to-date and your list of practice areas is current. Log onto your My Bar Page to update your profile and picture now.

 

Professional Liability Insurance
Two professional liability insurance providers have options specifically for State Bar of Texas members. Learn more about USI Affinity and the Texas Lawyers' Insurance Exchange and how they can help Texas lawyers.

 

Texas Bar Today
Texas Bar Today is an online media network designed to promote the news and commentary of Texas lawyers, law students, and legal professionals who maintain blogs or submit guest articles. The site, TexasBarToday.com, is updated weekdays with selected blog and video posts and Texas legal headlines, which are also promoted on the Texas Bar Today Twitter account.

Texas lawyers who want to include their blog or video on Texas Bar Today, or submit a guest article for posting, can send an email request to webmaster@texasbar.com. The State Bar of Texas has full editorial discretion regarding which blogs are linked, and all opinions and statements in blogs are those of their authors and not the State Bar. All attorney websites, including blogs, must comply with State Bar of Texas advertising guidelines.

 

State Bar Member Discount Program
Take advantage of discounts offered through the State Bar of Texas Member Discounts Program. Save money on clothing, cellular service, computers, televisions and other office supplies!  For more information please visit texasbar.com/discounts.  Visit often – the site is updated regularly with new deals!

 

The Texas Bar Journal wants to hear from you! 
Have you received an honor or recognition? Have you recently accepted a new position or moved? Keep the Texas legal community informed by submitting your news at texasbar.com/tbjsubmissions. Your news could appear in an issue of the Texas Bar Journal.

 

TYLA Local Leader Directory
Please email the TYLA office if there are any changes to your local affiliate's contact information.

If your affiliate has an upcoming event that you would like featured in eNews, please forward the information to Bree Trevino or contact eNews Chair Sally Pretorius.

Ten Minute Mentor
Ten Minute Mentor debuted in 2004 to share concise and practical advice that is always accessible online. Since then, it has proven its enduring appeal as one of TYLA's most successful projects. More than 50,000 people have visited the site, and we continue to average more than 2,000 segments viewed each month.



Support Pro Bono Legal Services and Let Everyone Know It!
TYLA needs your help to support and promote free legal services for indigent Texans by purchasing a specialty license plate. The license plate proudly states that you support "Justice for All" and costs only $35.00 per year, or $70.00 for a personalized plate.

$25.00 from the purchase of each plate will go to support legal services to the poor.  To buy your plate, simply fill out an application and send your check, payable to the Texas Department of Transportation, to:

Vehicle Titles and Registration Division (SPB)
Texas Department of Transportation
Austin, TX 78779-0001
To pay online click here.

 

TYLA Annual Report 2013-2014
Want to know how TYLA is serving its members and the community? Then be sure to read the Annual Report, which details the activities of TYLA during the 2013-2014 Bar year. Click here for a copy or call 800-204-2222, ext. 1529 and we'll send one.