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Portland is among a half dozen cities vying to host a meeting of the American Bar Association鈥檚 Young Lawyers Division in the fall of 2014. And it doesn鈥檛 hurt the Rose City鈥檚 chances that Barran Liebman鈥檚 Andrew Schpak will serve as the division鈥檚 chairman that year.

Potential host cities for the conference are being vetted by the division鈥檚 officers, which include Schpak (recently elected secretary-treasurer). As the final selection is being determined, Schpak is making a strong case for Portland. Traditionally, the chair for a particular conference year gets to choose the host city.

鈥淧ortland hosted one of the conferences in 2006, and I thought the city did a good job of attracting people from across the country. I wanted to see about potentially bringing it back,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e have good meeting spaces and hotels, and we have great young leaders who would be able to take an active role in helping organize the conference.鈥�

Schpak, who serves as the Multnomah Bar Association鈥檚 delegate to the ABA鈥檚 House of Delegates, estimates attendance for the division鈥檚 two annual, stand-alone conferences ranges from 250 attorneys to 400 attorneys.

鈥淭he conference is a neat mix because a lot of the people who attend are leaders of state and local bar associations across the country, so it鈥檚 a great pollination of ideas,鈥� he says. 鈥淵ou learn a lot of ways you can help serve the community and support young lawyers.鈥�

He says his interest in helping lead the ABA and the MBA blossomed when he was a 鈥渟tudent government nerd鈥� in college.

鈥淚 got involved with the MBA because I like committee work, and I had gone to law school in New York so it was a great way to meet other lawyers here,鈥� he says. 鈥淚鈥檝e stayed involved because I like the people and the profession.鈥�

Schpak notes that the ABA is the largest voluntary professional organizational in the world and provides a unified voice for lawyers across the U.S.

鈥淭here are a lot of new and stressful issues that are facing lawyers, whether it鈥檚 the student loan debt or the lack of jobs because of the economy. The ABA plays a pretty important role in providing ways for lawyers to support other lawyers,鈥� he says.

In addition to being elected secretary-treasurer of the American Bar Association鈥檚 Young Lawyers Division, Schpak received the ABA鈥檚 Star of the Year Award for his work as the Conferences, Programs, and Products Director, the Committee Director, and the District Representative for Oregon and Washington.