William C. Callaham to be Inaugurated as ABOTA's 50th President

DALLAS, Jan. 15 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --- The American Board of Trial
Advocates (ABOTA) will inaugurate William C. Callaham as its 50th president on
Jan. 26. This year marks the 50th anniversary for an organization whose
members seek to achieve a higher level of trial advocacy and to educate the
public about the vital importance of the Seventh Amendment right to trial by
jury.

For its 50th Anniversary celebration, ABOTA is returning to Los Angeles where
it started in 1958. A small group of lawyers formed the organization to thwart
attacks from California's then governor, who wanted to eliminate the jury
system. Since then, ABOTA has grown into a national organization of more than
6,300 members with 93 chapters. ABOTA's charitable arm -- the ABOTA Foundation
-- was formed in 1993 to continue ABOTA's mission through its professional
education program and by promoting the concept of trial by jury in the
nation's school systems.

Callaham, of the Sacramento, Calif., law firm of Dreyer, Babich, Buccola &
Callaham, was elected by the general membership of ABOTA. He took office Jan.
1 and will be sworn in by the Hon. Consuelo Callahan, appellate judge with the
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco.

"The challenges we face in the task of protecting and preserving our precious
right to trial by jury are increasing dramatically," Callaham said. "We have
all seen escalating attacks on the jury system and the judiciary. ABOTA has
had some satisfying success in defending unwarranted attacks on the
independence of our judicial officers, both nationally and at the local level.

"I am proud and humbled to serve our organization during its 50th year as we
continue to increase efforts to preserve the independence of our judiciary and
our Seventh Amendment jury trial rights."

Callaham said one of the attributes that makes ABOTA unique is the balance
between plaintiff and defense lawyers.

The other national officers to be sworn in are: President-elect John L.
Holcomb, of the Tampa, Fla., firm of Hill Ward Henderson; Vice President Craig
Lewis, of the Lewis Law Firm in Houston; Treasurer Michael P. Maguire, of the
Costa Mesa, Calif., firm of Michael P. Maguire and Associates; and Secretary
Michael T. Callahan, of the St. Petersburg, Fla., firm of Callahan and
Martinez LLC.

ABOTA and its members are dedicated to the preservation and promotion of the
civil jury trial right provided by the Seventh Amendment to the U.S.
Constitution. The Foundation of ABOTA is an affiliated charitable entity,
whose mission is to support the purposes of ABOTA through education and
research. ABOTA publishes Voir Dire magazine quarterly. The award-winning
publication features in-depth articles on current and historical issues
related to constitutional rights, in particular the Seventh Amendment right to
trial by jury.

SOURCE American Board of Trial Advocates

Brian Tyson of the American Board of Trial Advocates, +1-800-932-2682,
briant@abota.org