WE, THE PEOPLE

      The We, The People (WTP) program statewide final competition occurred in mid-December at the Robert C. Byrd Federal Courthouse in Charleston. Pictured above are the winning students from Clay County High School, their teacher, Philip Dobbins, U. S. District Court Judge Joseph Robert Goodwin and Rebecca Tinder, the WTP State Coordinator.     

      This national program involves high school students making presentations and answering questions on constitutional issues. The judges for the program are lawyers, members of the judiciary and community leaders. The Bar Foundation has provided grants in the past, as well as actually administering the program here in our state.

      Clay County High School will represent West Virginia at the national competition in April in Washington, DC.

      Special thanks to the judges and lawyers who have supported this excellent law related endeavor for high school students over the years.

      Congratulations to Clay County High School!     

     On December 23, 2016, James C. “Jay” West, Jr. passed away in Bridgeport surrounded by his family.

Jay was well known and well respected throughout the state during his very successful 56 year career as a lawyer. After receiving his undergraduate and law degress fom West Virginia University, Jay served a clerkship with Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Herbert Boreman and then practiced law in Clarksburg for the rest of his life. He was a diehard sports fan for his WVU Mountaineers.

      He is survived by his loving wife of 63 years, Nina, his daughter, Claudia Bentley, and her husband, Norwood, and two grandsons Samuel and Berkeley. Claudia, Norwood and Berkeley are attorneys.

       Jay was a WV Bar Foundation Fellow and held many important positions, including President of the WV Bar Association and the WV Trial Lawyers Association, as well as Board member for the Salvation Army and the Burnside Foundation. He was elected as a member of the American College of Trial Lawyers and was heavily involved in Rotary International.

      In his memory, the family requested donations to the James C. West, Jr. Memorial Scholarship Fund at the WVU College of Law.

      All honor to his name.

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     The WV Bar Foundation Board of Directors wishes to express its sincere appreciation for the generous donations which have been made in the past couple weeks to the Bar Foundation and to its Justice Fund. All these tax deductible contributions will be utilized for Bar Foundation grants to worthwhile charitable organizations to improve the administration of justice here in West Viginia.

      The generous donors are:                  

               Judge Edwin Flowers-Morgantown
               Edward Knight-Beckley
Hank Lawrence-Bridgeport
James Wilson-Bridgeport

      Thank You!