AAJ State Affairs works closely with state trial lawyer association partners to advance the right to trial by jury across the nation. State affairs coordinates our interactions with the state trial lawyers to ensure a close working relationship to achieve our mutual goals. Our experienced staff attorneys provide comprehensive analysis of issues affecting the plaintiff bar while tracking legislative trends across the country that affect trial lawyers' practices.
AAJ's Council of Presidents includes the Presidents, Presidents-Elect, and Immediate Past Presidents of every state and provincial trial lawyer association. The council works closely with AAJ’s State Affairs team to provide legislative, research, and grassroots support to the state TLAs and their members to help tackle anti-civil justice legislation.
Orientation Materials2019-2020 Council of Presidents Leadership
- President: Mike Arias | Arias Sanguinetti Wang Torrijos, LLP, Los Angeles, CA
- President-Elect: Jason Konvicka | Allen Allen Allen & Allen, PC, Richmond, VA
- Secretary: Leslie Kroeger | Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll, PLLC, Palm Beach Gardens, FL
What do the opioid epidemic, climate change, lead paint, and school vaping have in common? All are a “Public Nuisance” currently being litigated by our members on behalf of cities, counties, states, and individuals across the country. As these industries push for immunity from the harms they cause, AAJ State Affairs has been at the forefront in tracking and responding to these challenges as they arise.
AAJ State Affairs has tracked and helped state trial lawyer associations respond to over 100 bills filed in more than 40 states that would set the rules of the road for automated driving in the foreseeable future. As this emerging technology hits the road, AAJ State Affairs will remain at the forefront fighting for the right to hold manufacturers accountable for dangerous and negligent automated driving.
As shared electric standup scooters have been dropped on cities across the country, AAJ State Affairs was there to help inform the state trial lawyer organizations about the dangers of the scooters and the problematic contracting practices of the companies deploying them. State Affairs has continued to work with our partners to create a level playing field so that individuals harmed by dangerous or defective products have the right to hold wrongdoers accountable.
AAJ State Affairs has tracked a multi-year, comprehensive effort across the country by asbestos defendants and their insurers to strip litigants of their right to a speedy jury trial. We have developed a comprehensive response to this legislation to ensure that victims continue to have meaningful access to the courts to hold asbestos manufacturers accountable for the tremendous harms they have caused.
AAJ State Affairs has advised state trial lawyer organizations looking to make comprehensive improvements to the rights of sexual assault survivors to hold wrongdoers accountable. Whether this includes expanding the statute of limitations, addressing abusive nondisclosure policies or agreements, or circumventing the preemption issues around arbitration agreements, AAJ State Affairs is here to assist and provide guidance on how to address these issues.
AAJ is deeply invested in expanding insurance requirements across the country to ensure individuals who have been harmed through no fault of their own can be appropriately compensated for the harm done to them. AAJ State Affairs has worked closely with our state partners to develop resources to advance this joint mission in a comprehensive way.
