American Lawyers Alliance
Keeping the Spirit of Democracy Alive Across the Nation!
Welcome to American Lawyers AllianceAn American Bar Association Related Organization
The American Lawyers Alliance supports Law Related Education in our schools and communities. ALA is about making sure that all Americans know the value of freedom and liberty under the U.S. Constitution. It’s about sharing ideas and cooperative efforts so that we can make a difference in your community.
2024 ALA Midyear Meeting
Louisville, Kentucky
January 31 - February 2, 2024
National High School Mock Trial Competition
Coming Soon to Wilmington, Delaware!
MAY 2-5, 2024 Wilmington, Delaware
Never been to Wilmington, Delaware – Now is your Chance!
The 2024 National High School Mock Trial Competition will be held in Wilmington, Delaware May 2-5, 2024. The American Lawyers Alliance Board approved our sponsorship for a second year. The $2500 donation allows us the opportunity to present our programs to the teachers and coaches of the 46 teams, including teams from Guam, South Korea, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and the State Champion Teams from across the U.S. Our Teacher of the Year, Jurgemeyer Scholarship and ALA brochures will be given to attendees. A wrist band with the ALA QR code for the scholarship website will be given to the students.
The excitement surrounding the competition is palpable. There are approximately 500 bright, energetic and fun high school students competing in this contest. ALA is invited to speak to the several hundred coaches and teachers who attend the competition, to tell them about our TOY and Jurgemeyer Scholarship contest. The Awards Gala is comparable to the excitement surrounding any big game championship.
The ALA logo will be on all sponsor signs for the competition, an advertisement on both the competition website and awards program and on NHSMTC website and DELREC’S (Delaware Law Related Education Center) website and tickets to the Judge’s Reception.
Volunteer Opportunities at the Event:
(a) Attorneys who are members of the bar are needed to function as Scoring Judges.
(b) Attorneys with previous Mock Trial experience are invited to participate as Presiding Judges.
(c) Non-lawyer volunteers (ALA members) needed to help as courtroom liaisons.
The main hotel for the competition is Westin Wilmington. A block of rooms has been reserved for those attending the competition at a rate of $189 per night.
How Do I Get There?
Flights into Philadelphia are best, then an Uber to downtown Wilmington.
Interesting Sights to See in Wilmington and surrounding area include:
- Nemours Estate – www.nemoursestate.org.
- Explore the elegance of a 7-room Mansion, a Chauffeur’s Garage with vintage automobiles, and a200 acres of French-inspired formal gardens, grounds and woodlands.
- The N.C. Wyeth House & Studio – Chadds Ford Township, Pennsylvania
- Longwood Gardens – one of the world’s great gardens – www.longwoodgardens.org..(12 12 miles from Wilmington
- Winterthur Museum – the most significant collection of American decorative arts in the world. Winterthur.org 77 miles from Wilmington
A Celebration of Life - Rita Thompson, ALA President 2020 - 2021
Past ALA President from 2020 - 2021 and 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award winner, Rita Thompson of San Antonio, Texas passed away on Sunday, February 18, 2024. She was an active and integral part of ALA, as well as the Texas Lawyers Auxiliary and the San Antonio Bar Auxiliary. Click below to read about her achievements.
A Celebration of Life - Pauline Krieger, ALA President 2001 - 2002
Past ALA President from 2001 - 2002 and 2020 Lifetime Achievement Award winner, Pauline Krieger of Rochester, MN passed away on Friday, February 2, 2024. She was an active and intragal part of ALA. Click below to read about her achievments.
A Celebration of Life - Elouise Williams, ALA President 2000 - 2001
Past ALA President from 2000 - 2001, Elouise Williams of Birmingham, Alabama passed away on August 25, 2023. She was 95 years old. Many current ALA members remember her fondly. Click below to read all the loving tributes.
Cameron Reckard
2023 Catherine G. Jurgemeyer Scholarship Recipient
Congratulations to Cameron Reckard from Sheridan, Wyoming, our 2023 $10,000 Catherine G. Jurgemeyer Memorial Scholarship Winner! Cameron graduated from Sheridan High School with a 4.94 GPA, an ACT Score of 36 and will be attending Harvard University this fall. His academic achievements, combined with his amazing law-related and extra-curricular activities, plus his inspirational essay complete the picture of our perfect scholarship recipient.
2023 - Teachers of the Year
May 18 - 20, 2023
Little Rock Arkansas
We are very excited to announce our newest American Lawyers Alliance adventure!
The 2023 National High School Mock Trial Championship took place in Little Rock, Arkansas from May 18 - 20, 2023, and ALA was one of the sponsors of this in-person event! Part of this sponsorship is a donation of $2,500 to the competition which will give us the opportunity to to speak to teachers and coaches about our ALA Teacher of the Year contest and promote our $10,000 Jurgemeyer Scholarship to high school seniors, as well as distribute our ALA marketing materials. Here are some pictures of our team with boots on the ground!
2023 Midyear Meeting Highlights
February 1 - 3, 2023
The Roosevelt Hotel
New Orleans, LA
What a fabulous Midyear Meeting at the magnificent Roosevelt Hotel in New Orleans! The food was amazing - from The Court of Two Sisters, to Tableau to the Gumbo Shop to Luke's, we all had to let out our waistbands a bit when we got home. We celebrated our award winners - Rita Thompson, our Lifetime Achievement Winner, Kathy Poetting (via zoom), our Outstanding Volunteer of the Year, and our amazing Auxiliaries. We got to meet the charming and entertaining Coach Parker of the Rampart Community Center, our book drive recipient and hear about all the good work he and the Center do. And finally, we are getting fired up about our new volunteer project - to assist at the 2023 National High School Mock Trial Championship in Little Rock this May!
See the details about all our New Orleans adventures below!
- Congratulations to Our Award Winners
- Lifetime Achievement Winner - Rita Thompson
- Outstanding Individual Volunteer of the Year - Kathy Poetting
- Our Amazing Auxiliaries
- Exciting New Business!
- We are very excited to announce our newest American Lawyers Alliance adventure - to be a sponsor and volunteer at the 2023 National High School Mock Trial Championship in Little Rock, Arkansas from May 18 - 20, 2023!
- Part of this sponsorship is a donation of $2,500 to the competition which will give us the opportunity to to speak to teachers and coaches about our ALA Teacher of the Year contest and promote our $10,000 Jurgemeyer Scholarship to high school seniors, as well as distribute our ALA marketing materials.
- They need volunteers! Our members would act as courtroom liaisons escorting teams to courtrooms. They also need our attorney husbands (or our attorney members) to volunteer as presiding or scoring judges (retired attorneys welcome).
- Click here to download the Schedule of Events
- Hotel reservations are now open! There are two hotels that have special room rates:
- Little Rock Marriott - $161 per night - Click here to book.
- Little Rock Doubletree - $139 per night - Click here to book.
If you decide you would like to volunteer (and we hope you do), please click here to sign up. Fill in the information and put in American Lawyers Alliance for the organization. You will receive a confirmation email of your registration.
- Airport Information
Little Rock is serviced by the Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport (LIT), minutes from downtown Little Rock. The airport is served by Delta, American, United, Southwest, Allegiant, and Frontier. Nonstop flights are available from Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Orlando, Miami, Orlando, St. Louis, and Washington D.C.
Both the Marriott and the DoubleTree offer shuttles to and from the airport. If you desire a shuttle, contact the hotels front desk and make a request. Local taxi, Uber, and Lyft are available. Rental car options are available as well. Parking decks are available within walking distance of both hotels.
Don't wait to book - rooms will fill up quickly!
- Book Donation!
This year's worthy New Orleans organization - North Rampart Community Center, is an amazing organization located on the border between the French Quarter ("Vieux Carre") and the community of Treme in the historic section of old New Orleans. The center was established in 1909 by the Women’s Society of Christian Services, Board of Missions, Methodist Church, as part of a nationwide movement to establish community centers in high poverty areas around the country. Also providing Christian education to the children of an expanding immigrant population within New Orleans. The mission expanded to primarily address the material, educational, and spiritual needs of the women and children.
Justice Stephen Breyer’s thoughts on civic education and advice to ABA’s youngest members.
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer spoke remotely to ABA President Judy Perry Martinez during the General Assembly of the 2020 ABA Annual Meeting. The following is an excerpt from that conversation:
“Martinez closed her conversation with Breyer by asking the justice to share a few pieces of advice with the ABA’s youngest members as well as with its more senior attorneys.
Breyer encouraged law students to learn about the government and said he wished civics was restored as a required course. To those who are graduating, he said he couldn’t tell them how to live their lives, but he hoped a few things for them.
“I can hope you’ll find someone to love,” he said. “I can hope you’ll have a job that is rewarding, and I can hope you will participate. Participate in public life. And there are a million ways to participate.
“You can join a local library association. You can try to be a school board member. You can vote. You can learn about the issues going on. You can talk to others.”
To the senior members, Breyer said, like he tells himself, “you just keep going.”
Enjoy Our 60th Anniversary Past President's Slideshow!
ALA by the Numbers
$150,000 +
5,000
12
62
Help ALA Celebrate 0ver 60 Years!
Did you know that your membership in the American Lawyers Alliance allows us to...
- Bestow a Judicial Civic Award annually to recognize and honor a judge for their work in promoting civic education in their community and state.
Click here to read more about our Judicial Civic Award.
- Recognize and honor and rewards Outstanding High School, Middle School and Elementary School Teachers who have made significant contributions in the area of law-related education. Click here to read more about our "Teachers of the Year Awards."
- Gather and distribute hundreds of books from our members to distribute to worthwhile organizations. Click here to read more about our Book Project.
- Honor and reward our local and state auxiliaries who sponsor programs that promote law-related education, good citizenship, and/or an appreciation the United States legal system. Click here to read about our Auxiliary Support Rewards.
- Provide law-related educational materials, videos, downloads, and links for teachers to use.
Click here to read about our Law-Related Educational Materials.
- Annual Dues are only $25.00!
