State of the Inn from President Joe Michaels

June 30, 2022

Dear Doyle Inn members and colleagues,

Today is the last day of the 2021–2022 Inn year and my last day as Inn President. What a year it has been! Each and every one of us should be proud with how we persevered, (re-)engaged with each other, came back to our community, and grew as people, as professionals, and as an Inn. Back in September, I identified this year’s themes as “collegiality and diversity.” As the past months unfolded, these themes proved more apt than anybody could have anticipated.

We have accomplished much over this Inn year, consistently championing those themes. Over the course of the year, we:

– Returned to in-person programming for the first time in over a year and a half, gathering together in the fall for socializing, dinner, and presentations. We navigated this return with intentionality, holding paramount both member safety and the Inn’s principles of professionalism, civility, excellence, and community building.
– Showed resilience and adaptability in the face of challenges. During the Omicron surge, we resumed Zoom meetings for two months, narrowly tailoring our temporary retreat to virtual programming until it was appropriate to return in person for the remainder of the year.
– Will, in just a few short weeks, gather together for our first in-person summer social in over two years.
– Came together as a community in response to December’s Marshall Fire, including donating what would have been the costs of our January meeting to Marshall Fire recovery efforts.
– Held ten different CLE programs over the course of the year, including our monthly practical skills in litigation mentoring programs, our
February virtual presentation on climate change, and our joint-Inn DEI CLE on recognizing and combating implicit bias in the courtroom.
– Negotiated with the University Club to avoid price increases mid-year, despite ongoing supply chain challenges and inflation.
– Sadly bid adieu to longtime Inn and Executive Council member Randy Bramer, who has taken leave of Colorado for less-elevated pastures on the east coast. Randy has spearheaded our monthly CLE programs on litigation skills for over a decade, impacting an incalculable number of lawyers in developing and honing their legal skills. We plan to continue this programming going forward, so stay tuned for how that will develop! And if you’re interested in helping run or teach a program, please reach out to an Executive Committee member.

From a membership and financial standpoint, the Inn remains healthy. Despite the pandemic, our member numbers remain strong and our dues paid. We are fortunate to have such a wide of array of judicial leaders—thanks to each of you for your engagement!—and an invested student group (including one who co-presented at our November meeting). In between, we enjoy robust contributions from our masters, barristers, and associate barristers. Every one of us deserves recognition for our involvement.

Finally, we turned our attention to DEI. This included updating our diversity statement (now posted on our website – www.doyleinn.com), acting with intentionality around DEI principles, and presenting DEI programming. This work, of course, is just a start. The conversation is ongoing, and we will build on this foundation.

Every day, it’s my goal to “leave it better than we found it.” Given all the above and all that’s to come, I believe together we’ve done just that—made the Inn just a bit better with every passing day. Tomorrow, Jamie Cotter takes over as President. She has exciting things in store, and I can’t wait to support her. The Inn will be in excellent hands.

It has been an honor and a privilege to serve as your President over this past year. Thank you for placing your trust in me, in your Executive Committee,
and in your pupilage group leaders. I look forward to seeing you at the summer social, next fall, and in between!

Sincerely,

 

Doyle Inn Updates Diversity Policy

The Doyle Inn’s Executive Committee updated its diversity policy and reaffirms the Inn’s commitment to diversity, equality, equity, and inclusion:

The William E. Doyle Inn of Court is committed to diversity, equality, equity, and inclusion (DEI). These core values reflect the standards of our Inn and promote the practice of law with dignity, respect, and professionalism. We aim to uphold and practice these values in all aspects of our Inn, including programming, leadership, selection, and retention. When we bring together people of different races, ages, genders, ethnicities, cultures, religions, physical abilities, and sexual orientations and identifications, we all thrive—as individuals, as lawyers, as an organization, and as a profession. The Doyle Inn is therefore committed to creating and maintaining a culture that promotes and supports DEI not only throughout our organization, but in our profession as a whole.