By Barry S. Tivin
The Queens County Bar Association is one of the oldest bar associations in the nation, dating back to June 30, 1876. It now has more than 2,000 members, most of whom live or practice in Queens County.I am proud to be the current president of the association, an organization here to serve the residents and communities of Queens in many ways. In this column, let me tell you about just three of our public service programs.One: Our Speakers Bureau, chaired by Guy R. Vitacco, has many qualified attorneys who are willing to speak before small and large groups in our communities. If you are interested in a speaker to talk before your civic, social, community, fraternal, political or religious group, or in your school, we are here to accommodate you. Of course, it is without cost.We have Speaker Bureau members qualified to discuss all areas of the law, such as wills and estates, family law matters, criminal law, jury duty, small claims court, etc. The person requesting a speaker selects the topic to be discussed. To arrange for a speaker, just call the association at 718-291-4500.Two: We offer scholarships to students who live in Queens County and attend a law school in the metropolitan area. For information, call us at 718-291-4500 or write to the association at 90-35 148th St., Jamaica, NY 11435.Three: We help Queens residents through our Lawyers Referral Service. If you need to discuss a matter with an attorney, our association will be glad to provide one. We have attorneys competent in all fields of the law, will and trusts, criminal law, family law, personal injury, medical malpractice, bankruptcy and nearly every other field you may need.Under our program, you pay only $25 for an initial consultation up to the first half hour. Thereafter, any additional fee is determined solely between you and the attorney. To use our referral service, kindly call us at 718-291-4500.If you have a legal question you want answered, send your inquiry to the bar association at the above address.Future columns in this newspaper will be written by members of our association and will deal with various aspects of the law and other programs the association offers to serve the community.Barry Tivin is president of the Queens County Bar Association. This is the first article in a series of informative columns that is arranged by the QCBA as a public service to assist our readers.
