We manage two membership organizations from one office, the (mandatory) Sixteenth Judicial District Bar and the (voluntary) Durham County Bar Association.
Are you here to earn On-demand CLE?
Prospective CLE participants do not need to "join" either entity named above, in order to pay for and earn CLE credit with us, but you will need to complete the "Join" form (HERE) so that we can add you to our web site, give you access to the CLE portal, and then report your credit hours to the NC State Bar. CLE participants will pay $50 per hour as needed for CLE; since the annual membership is $125 it may make more sense to simply join the DCBA for the purpose of earning the 12 hours at no additional charge.
About the Sixteenth Judicial District
The State of North Carolina is divided into Judicial Districts. A licensed attorney must belong to a district Bar in order to maintain good standing as an active attorney in North Carolina. You may belong to only one district Bar, either in the location of your residence or the location of your employment, but not both. You can obtain more details about the requirement to be a member of, and pay dues to, a judicial district Bar by checking the North Carolina General Statutes (NCGS §84-18) and/or by checking with the North Carolina State Bar (NCSB) at www.ncbar.gov.
What do JDB’s do, other then collect dues?
The mandatory Bar has various responsibilities and functions derived from North Carolina statutes. The members of the Sixteenth Judicial District Bar elect two councilors to the NC State Bar Council.
In addition, the members of the Sixteenth, not the general public, elect the candidates from whom the Public Defender for the District is appointed. The members also submit nominations for judicial appointments when a new district court judgeship is created or a vacancy occurs.
Also, formal grievances that are not handled by the NCSB are referred to the Grievance Committee of the Sixteenth Judicial District Bar. Finally, the Sixteenth hosts social events throughout the year which are open to all members of the Sixteenth at no charge beyond mandatory dues payment.
Dues are $75 per year, and the fiscal year runs July 1 - June 30.
What is the DCBA?
The Durham County Bar Association was founded in 1925 and became a recognized IRS 501(c) 6 nonprofit in 1982. It is the voluntary Bar for attorneys in the area. Any licensed attorney in good standing can join the DCBA, including those who are not assigned to the Sixteenth Judicial District Bar. There are a number of attorneys assigned to other districts elect to participate in Durham’s voluntary Bar. They do so in part because the DCBA hosts events during the year which provide 12 hours per year of the statute-mandated CLE that every licensed attorney must obtain.
In addition, the DCBA provides luncheons and social events that are only for its members.
Dues are $125 and are paid without regard to a member’s mandatory district assignment. Those who intend to pay Sixteenth JDB dues may do so on the same check or web payment because the Sixteenth JDB and DCBA share a common fiscal year and billing process. Members who do not pay at the beginning of the fiscal year should pay DCBA dues as soon as they decide to start attending events, which extend from September to May.
Other Ancillary Organizations
Durham has several excellent smaller organizations which may capture the attention of attorneys from a variety of backgrounds and with several different practice specialties. These include: The Young Lawyers Division of the DCBA, The George H. White Bar, Durham Orange Women Attorneys, the Durham Defense Bar, and the Parent Representation Bar. Other pages on this web site contain more information about these groups.
We look forward to getting to know you!