On May 26, 2022, the members of the Mecklenburg County Bar voted in favor of bifurcating our current organization into two separate organizations – a mandatory district bar that still reports to the NC State Bar and a voluntary bar association.
On January 26, 2023, the MCB Board of Directors voted to implement bifurcation on or after July 1, 2024.
What Does Bifurcation for the MCB mean?
Bifurcation means splitting the MCB into two separate entities – membership would be mandatory for the district bar, which would retain all statutorily driven functions, and voluntary for the newly established bar association, which would absorb all other current functions/programs of the MCB.
Why Not Go Purely Voluntary?
Per the North Carolina General Statutes, every active member of the North Carolina State Bar residing in North Carolina is automatically assigned to a district bar. As such, your membership with a judicial district bar is required by law. For this reason, we do not have the authority to go purely voluntary.
What are Some Advantages and Disadvantages of Bifurcation?
Bifurcation would allow us to lower dues significantly on the mandatory side and to create a tiered dues system on the voluntary side. Inherent in this upside of a bifurcated model is the downside of having two separate invoicing processes for individuals and firms to manage for those who choose to join voluntary side. However, a voluntary bar association can also provide increased offerings and member benefits that a mandatory bar cannot. Click here to view the programs we anticipate would go to the newly formed voluntary bar association.
Additionally, a voluntary bar could be a more robust, diverse and inclusive bar that is more reflective of the greater legal community. It could offer affiliate memberships to lawyers outside our judicial district as well as legal partners, including paralegals, legal assistants and law school students. This would also provide more opportunities for retired lawyers to stay active with the bar association.
These are all requests the MCB has received consistently over the years but has been unable to consider because of the limitations it has as a mandatory bar.
What Activities Would Be Moved to the Voluntary Side?
How Would Bifurcation Impact the MCB’s Finances?
Both income and expenses will be scaled down on the mandatory side commensurate with the shift in programming to the voluntary side. While we hope that most members of the 26th Judicial District Bar will join us on the voluntary side, we recognize that it will take time to build the voluntary side from the ground up and may be difficult to accurately predict income and expenses early on. As such, the MCB sought guidance from the North Carolina State Bar on the question of dividing MCB reserve funds between the mandatory side and a newly established voluntary side. After employing that guidance, a division of the reserves was proposed to the State Bar’s Finance & Audit Committee, Executive Committee, and the State Bar Council in January 2022. All three entities approved the proposal, which would result in a near 60/40 split in the MCB's existing reserves in favor of the voluntary side because the funds were largely (almost exclusively) attributable to non-dues revenues. To view the full proposal approved by the NC State Bar, please click here.
Why Now?
A number of factors went into our decision to explore bifurcation as an option for the MCB this year. Such factors include the increased legal challenges facing mandatory bars across the country, the decision to sell the Bar & Foundation Center, and the long-standing encouragement of the North Carolina State Bar to consider this option. In particular, the decision to sell the building provided the opportunity to consider restructuring in response to what members have told us about member services/needs while continuing to be the best stewards we can for Bar resources.
What Do Other District Bars Do?
Judicial district bars (hereinafter “district bars”) are subdivisions of the North Carolina State Bar. There are 45 district bars, one for each judicial district. For these purposes, judicial districts are generally coterminous with the prosecutorial districts established by the General Assembly. All district bars are required to perform the following functions: elect State Bar Councilors, elect district court vacancy nominees, elect public defender nominees, adopt bylaws, and follow NC State Bar procedures re: the collection of membership fees.
Beyond those required functions, district bars can decide to pursue additional functions/programs that are germane to the practice of law at their discretion. As an integrated bar, the MCB currently handles both the mandatory functions of a district bar as well as permissible activities, such as events and CLEs. The bifurcated model would mirror that of Wake County, which handles the mandatory functions as the 10th Judicial District and the voluntary functions as the Wake County Bar Association. This would leave Buncombe County as the only integrated bar in North Carolina, as the remaining district bars carry only those mandatory functions listed above. It is important to note that the bifurcated district bar model is unique to North Carolina as the only state in the country that requires membership to both the state bar and a judicial district bar. Most comparable metropolitan bars across the country exist solely as voluntary bar associations.
When Will the MCB Bifurcate?
The 2023-24 fiscal year is the recommended timeframe for planning the implementation, with the bifurcation effective July 1, 2024.
How Much Would Dues Cost?
While we won’t know the specific amount for dues until after the planning year ahead, dues on the mandatory side will be significantly reduced. The voluntary side is anticipated to have tiered dues at amounts that likewise have yet to be determined.
How Would the Foundation be Impacted?
The Foundation would operate as it does now, as a separate 501(c)(3) charitable organization. The mandatory side would continue to be an arm of a state agency, and the voluntary side would be a membership organization. The Foundation is distinct from these two entities because its primary function is soliciting charitable contributions for grantmaking purposes. The Foundation owns the Bar & Foundation Center and will remain in a similar landlord-tenant relationship with the bifurcated organizations when the building sells and a new home is identified. As the landowner, the proceeds from the sale of the building will belong to the Foundation.
Who Are the Decision-Makers?
You, our Bar members, are our decision-makers. After months of research and consideration, MCB staff and leadership made the decision to put the question of bifurcation up for a Bar-wide vote. Bifurcation was approved at the Annual Meeting on May 26, 2022. We anticipate the Board will appoint a cross-section of our membership to help navigate the next steps in this process.
If you have any questions not covered here, please contact us by submitting a form below.
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