Wisconsin Association for Justice

From Wiscopedia

1 Mission
2 Issues
3 In the News
4 Contact Information

[edit] Mission

The Mission of the Wisconsin Association for Justice is to promote a fair and effective justice system - one that ensures justice for all, not just a privileged few. The Association supports the work of attorneys to ensure any person harmed due to work place injury or injured by the misconduct or negligence of others can have a fair day in court, even when taking on the most powerful interests.

The Association strives to achieve and maintain the highest standards of professional ethics and competency while educating and training in the art of advocacy. The Association and its members are dedicated to benefiting communities across Wisconsin through local events and charitable giving.

The roots of the Wisconsin Association for Justice date back to 1946 when a group of dedicated trial attorneys created the National Association of Claimants' Compensation Attorneys (NACCA) to combat new threats facing trial attorneys across the country. In 1957 several trial attorneys formed a state chapter of the organization known as NACCA of Wisconsin. N. Paley Phillips of Milwaukee was installed as the first president.

As the organization evolved and grew it was decided that the name should be changed to the Wisconsin Academy of Trial Lawyers (WATL) in the early 1970s. In late 2007 WATL members voted to again change the name to the Wisconsin Association for Justice (WAJ) in order to better reflect the mission of the organization and its members.

WAJ is the largest voluntary statewide bar organization in Wisconsin. The organization's principal objectives are to promote continuing legal education for the betterment of the trial bar profession; and to preserve Wisconsin's civil justice system by working with the state legislature and other governmental bodies, as an advocate for the legal rights of all Wisconsin citizens.