If you have not renewed your ACBA membership for the 2025-26 bar year, you still have time.

The bar year officially started on July 1, and the ACBA has granted a grace period for members to renew, which ended a couple weeks ago. However, the ACBA is extending that grace period to 11:59 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 31. Don’t wait, or you’ll miss out on all that ACBA membership has to offer, including access to Committees, Divisions, and Sections, discounts on CLE, networking opportunities, the opportunity to attend the Bench-Bar Conference and more.

For a snapshot of the benefits of becoming an ACBA member, click below. 

All members are invited to a non-CLE seminar on the Court of Common Pleas Civil Division’s new Case Management System on Wednesday, Nov. 19 at 3 p.m. The Civil Division will now take an active role in managing cases by conducting case management conferences and issuing case management orders near the time of filing. The program will provide the background for these changes and introduce what can be expected.

The Oct. 17 edition of Pittsburgh Legal Journal Opinions is available online. The Pittsburgh Legal Journal publishes timely, precedent-setting, full-text opinions from various divisions of the Court of Common Pleas. Opinions that appeared in past editions are available in a searchable database here; members must be logged in to the ACBA website to access this database.

When is the last time you got a quote on your LPL insurance? The discount members can get on getting LPL through the ACBA Insurance Program – powered by USI – is often greater than the cost of ACBA membership. For more, visit www.ACBA.org/Insurance.

The ACBA is exploring the idea of forming a “Legacy Lawyers Committee” and will hold a townhall meeting on the topic on Tuesday, Oct. 28 from 12-1 p.m. on Zoom. The Legacy Lawyers Committee would be a committee for veteran, experienced lawyers who bring significant value to the ACBA, the profession and the community. The townhall meeting will cover the importance of preserving institutional knowledge; how experienced lawyers offer mentorship and guidance; professional engagement opportunities post-retirement; pro bono and community service opportunities; and more.

The ACBA Knowledge Center is the premier resource library for legal professionals. Explore this library of content and resources from the ACBA, as well as experts and providers across the legal industry. These resources include timely, actionable research from the ACBA as well as third-party resources that are designed to be helpful to your organization. Please note that the ACBA does not endorse third-party content.

In addition to the hard copy edition that is sent to members through the mail, the Oct. 17 edition of the Lawyers Journal — the ACBA’s flagship publication featuring substantive legal articles and stories of interest to the legal community — is available digitally on the ACBA website and at the button below.

One of the most significant days of the year in the Pittsburgh Legal Community is Monday.

The ACBA’s annual 50/60 Year Practitioners Awards Ceremony – which is when the ACBA pauses to honor those who pioneered the way in the profession – will be held on Oct. 27 at Hotel Monaco beginning at 5 p.m.. During the event, the ACBA will honor those pioneering members of the Pittsburgh Legal Community who have achieved the milestone of practicing law for 50 or 60 years. The full list of 2025 honorees as well as registration information is available at the button below.

With Election Day approaching, the ACBA Judicial Excellence Committee (PAC) is asking you to help keep qualified judges on the bench.

While many members of the community may not fully understand the importance of retention elections, attorneys typically do understand the vital importance of keeping qualified judges on the bench. That’s why ACBA members are being asked to “Get out the Vote” and encourage your contacts to VOTE YES in this election.

The ACBA has launched a web page – www.ACBA.org/VoteYes – containing resources for members to use in spreading the word. On this page are templates for social media posts, emails, text messages, hand cards and more.

The Fount team at JustAnswer LLC has spent over 12 years building “Pearl,” an intelligent chat system that handles millions of legal conversations every year.  Fount is now bringing this proven technology directly to law firms. By embedding Pearl on your firm’s website, you can automatically engage visitors, qualify leads, and streamline intake, all without moving a muscle.

For a limited time, members of the Allegheny County Bar Association can receive Pearl completely free as part of our early-access program. It’s an effortless way to capture more leads, improve client experience, and show that your firm is embracing innovation in the legal space.