The Multnomah Bar Association (MBA) is a voluntary bar association located in Portland, Oregon. The organization is also sometimes referred to as the Multnomah County Bar Association. Although named after Multnomah County membership in the association is open to all lawyers in the State of Oregon. The present MBA was founded in 1906. There was an earlier group of attorneys, also called the Multnomah Bar Association, which appears to have dissolved some time in the early 1900s.
The Multnomah Bar Association now provides numerous services for both attorneys and members of the community involved in the justice system or needing legal assistance. Most of the association's work is done pro bono by volunteer attorneys.
Services to justice system
Most of the work of the association is done through volunteers on its committees.
The CLE committee plans, conducts, and evaluates numerous continuing legal education events for lawyers, by developing topics and recruiting speakers. The Court Liaison Committee works with the judiciary and court administrator regarding rules or procedural changes and assists the court in educating MBA members about court issues. The committee surveys MBA members court issues, and writes articles for publication in the association's newsletter about court topics and backgrounds of local judges and referees.
The Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Committee works toward diversity, inclusion and equality in the MBA and Multnomah County legal community and for mutual support between the MBA and diverse bar organizations. The committee administers the LSAT scholarship program and MBA Diversity Award Nomination & Selection Process. The Judicial Screening Committee confidentially reviews applications of pro tem and judicial appointment candidates and reports its recommendations as called for in the MBA's board-approved process. The committee's goal is to assist the governor in appointing highly qualified lawyers to be judges on the Multnomah County Circuit Court.
MBA makes available pro bono projects through which volunteer lawyers can provide services to the community. These include the Senior Law Project (SLP), which includes monthly legal clinics in senior centers in Multnomah County. Volunteer lawyers also provide free 30-minute phone consultations on any civil legal issue to seniors 60 or older. MBA also has programs for volunteer lawyers to assist seniors with guardianship, protection orders, and similar civil matters.
MBA also maintains pro bono programs for other areas of legal assistance, including consumer, family, immigration, and juvenile law, and protection from abuse.
Multnomah Bar Foundation
The association is linked to the Multnomah Bar Foundation (MBF), which provides support services to persons involved in the justice system. MBF was founded in 2005 and is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. MBF funds three programs: CourtConnect, CourtSupport, and Multnomah CourtCare.
Multnomah CourtCare makes available free, drop-in childcare for families with business at the Multnomah County Central Courthouse. CourtSupport provides the Multnomah Central Courthouse with a bilingual employee at the information desk to serve to the public by answering questions about the court, helping people with needed services or accommodations at the courthouse, and generally making improving the public's courthouse experience. CourtConnect arranges for lawyers and judges to visit community groups and present information about the court system and the rule of law.
History
Although formally organized in 1906, there are multiple earlier references to an association by the same name. The earlier association may have been established around 1899, or earlier. The Multnomah Bar Association is mentioned in 1891 in an obituary for pioneer Oregon lawyer Ferdinand O. McCown. In 1892, the first Multnomah Bar Association raised $500 to pay to have a portrait painted of Circuit Court Judge Eramus D. Shattuck, who served on the court from 1886 to 1898. He had also been Chief Justice of the Oregon Supreme Court from 1866 to 1867.
The first association was reported to have become involved in politics and consequently dissolved before 1906. The first association may have had some attorney disciplinary role in 1904, as a judge is reported to have rebuked an attorney for a disrespectful brief, and stated that he had considered referring the matter to the Multnomah County Bar Association.