CALSPro - California Association of Legal Support Professionals

What Time Works For You?

Posted December 27, 2018 in Membership

Are you an early bird who gets the worm? Or are you a late bird who doesn’t even like worms? In an article written by Jeff Haden, he points out that it doesn’t matter what time you wake up, it’s what you accomplish during your time that matters.

The world’s most successful people don’t actually start work at 4 a.m. They wake and work whenever the (heck) they decide.

Waking up at an arbitrary time won’t help you succeed. Making a thoughtful decision to wake up at the time that’s most productive for YOU is all that matters.

Apple CEO Tim Cook starts his morning routine — not just his morning, his morning routine — at 3:45. General Motors CEO Mary Barra gets to the office by 6 a.m. Best-selling author Dan Brown (The Da Vinci Code, etc.) gets up at 4 a.m., has a smoothie and a cup of bulletproof coffee, and then grinds away.

Clearly, waking up early works for them.

But not for everyone.

As Adam Grant says, “The world’s most successful people aren’t worried about what time others wake up. They wake and work on the schedule that works for them.”

What seems right for early birds may not be right for you, because what time you start your day has nothing to do with your level of success.

Success is all about what you accomplish — and, just as important, how you choose to accomplish it.

Early Birds

Most people who choose to get up early do so because they can take advantage of a few hours of solitude. Fewer interruptions. Fewer emails. Fewer phone calls. Starting work earlier than everyone else lets you be proactive, not reactive, and lets you set the agenda for the day instead of having one set for you.

Others choose to get up early so they make sure they get their workout in — and take advantage of the mood-boosting effect of exercise. (Research shows that as little as 20 minutes of moderate exercise boosts your mood for the next 12 hours.)

Or maybe they just get up early because The Wall Street Journal says that 4 a.m. may be the most productive time of the day.

Later Birds

If you decide to start your workday at, say, 9 a.m., you can still structure your day in the most productive way possible for you. Simply create a routine that allows you to hit the ground running the way you want to run.

Maybe that means locking yourself away for a couple of hours. Maybe that means working from home, and then heading to the office. Or maybe that means shifting your quiet hours to the evening. No one says you have to start work before everyone else — you can just as easily finish work after everyone else.

Maybe that means training everyone around you to understand that the first two hours are your hours.

While that might sound impossible, don’t forget that everything you do “trains” people to treat you a certain way. Let employees interrupt your meetings or phone calls whenever they like… and people will naturally do so. Drop what you’re doing every time someone calls… and people will naturally always expect your immediate attention. Return emails immediately… and people will naturally expect you to immediately respond.

How you act — and react — “trains” people to treat you the way they wish…  so, start “retraining” them so you can work the way you work best.

The Most Successful Birds

When you start working doesn’t matter. When you stop working doesn’t matter.

What matters is what you accomplish during the hours you work — and that means making an intentional decision about what time you get up and what time you start work.

Don’t get up at a certain time just because Tim Cook does. Don’t start work at a certain time just because Sallie Krawcheck does.

Figure out what works best for you.

Success has nothing to do with what time you start. Or what time you finish. Success is all about what you accomplish.

Make a conscious decision about what time to get up. Not a reflexive choice or a copy-cat choice but a thoughtful, smart, and logical decision — based on what will make you most successful.

Because that’s all that matters.

How To Sound Like A Pro At Your Next Public Speaking Engagement

Posted December 6, 2018 in Membership

If you are like me, the thought of speaking publicly is not your first idea of fun, or your second, or third, or 50^th! Standing in front of 10 people or 1,000 people, it doesn’t matter, the fear and anxiety are the same. In a recent article from Courtney Connley, she shares a tip to help you nail your next public speaking engagement and sound like a pro.

Public speaking can be frustrating, anxiety-producing, or, for some, downright terrifying.

Should you rehearse a ton, and risk sounding scripted? Should you speak off the cuff, and risk getting tongue-tied? There are tons of factors to consider — including the size and temperament of your intended audience — and it can be tough to know what tone to strike, especially in a situation where you suspect you’ll be nervous.

But bestselling management author and CNBC contributor Suzy Welch says that no matter the nature of your message or the size of the crowd, there’s one fool-proof tip that can help anyone deliver a great speech: Speak from the heart.

Ten years ago, Welch was gearing up to speak at a leadership conference in Toronto, Canada, as part of an international book tour. There were 5,000 people in the audience.

“I’d been on the road for eight weeks,” Welch tells CNBC Make It. “I missed my husband and my kids. I was exhausted. I should have gone home.” The book she was promoting was all about creating a life with balance, but admittedly, Welch says, “my own life had gotten away from me.”

“As I walked out on the stage, I looked at the audience and thought, ‘I just can’t do this. I’ve got nothing left.’ I heard myself asking for a chair, and when it arrived, I sat down in the middle of the stage.”

Rather than delivering her carefully-crafted speech, Welch says she “just started to speak from my heart.” She told the crowd, “I was supposed to talk to you today about work-life balance, but here’s the truth: I’ve kind of lost mine.”

Welch delivered the key parts of her prepared speech, but says her words were “fortified with more authenticity, pain and humor than usual.”

To her surprise, she says, it was her most successful speech ever.

“I learned a valuable lesson that day,” she says. “A speaking persona, no matter how impressive, builds a wall between you and your audience. My advice: If you have one, kiss it goodbye.”

Instead, Welch says, you should “compose every speech as if you are presenting your ideas to friends.”

“Assume intimacy,” she emphasizes. “Assume trust. And then talk that way.”

This advice is not, Welch warns, license to “wing your next public speaking engagement.” Your presentation “still needs great content, data and stories.” But keep in mind that “people don’t respond to slides or concepts or polished delivery — they respond to people. They respond to real people.”

“Whether you’re speaking to an audience of 5,000 or five, take down the wall and open a door,” Welch says. “The audience will walk right in.”

And The Recipient Is….

Posted December 4, 2018 in Membership

Each year the Bert Rosenthal Committee meets and makes nominations for recipients of the Bert Rosenthal Memorial Award. The industry’s most prestigious award is presented to an individual who, through the years, has given the utmost of service and dedication in promoting our industry.

We are proud to announce the 2018 recipient of the Bert Rosenthal Memorial Award is Chad Barger!

Chad was born in the Central Valley of California and raised on a fine mix of God, patriotism and country music. Shortly after high school, Chad took a job with a private investigator at a local law firm. For two years, Chad learned the ropes of private investigations, process serving and the court system, while attending Bakersfield College and studying Criminal Justice. Shortly after college, Chad accepted a job with a Bakersfield attorney service as their branch manager. After bringing that company to new heights, Chad realized he had a knack for the legal support profession and opened Attorney’s Certified Service in Bakersfield with his grandfather, Charles, in 1994. A year after opening his business, Chad was struggling to make ends meet. Friends told him that the Kern County Sheriff’s Department was hiring, so he threw his hat in the ring and applied. In 1995, Chad was hired by the department and worked in a variety of assignments including the county jail, local patrol, Sheriff’s Emergency Response Team (SERT) and lastly, at the Sheriff’s Academy teaching restraint techniques, cell extraction and stun gun procedures.

Chad became a member of CAPPS/CALSPro in 1994. He has served on the Board of Directors since 2007, and has served as a two term President, Vice President, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Continuing Education Vice Chair, Area Governor, Website Committee Chair, Conference Committee and is currently serving as the Legislative Committee Chairman. Chad credits his success to the people he surrounds himself with. Like-minded, goal-oriented individuals that challenge the status quo and aren’t afraid to speak what’s on their mind.

Even with an extremely busy life, Chad has always put God and his family first. His wife Belinda and three children, Caleb, Jacob and Hannah are his real treasures. He enjoys spending time anywhere with his family, but especially at their family cabin at Bass Lake or at the family condo in Avila Beach. He also enjoys hunting and fishing but especially enjoys fly fishing with his boys and close friends in very remote places of California, Alaska and Montana.

Chad has had great success as a leader within CALSPro with his ability to relate to members and inspire them to help push the profession forward. He cherishes the relationships he’s made and the new business opportunities his involvement in this association has brought him.

A big congratulations Chad Barger, the 2018 recipient of the Bert Rosenthal Memorial Award! Thank you for your endless dedication to the association. We appreciate all that you have done and continue to do for CALSPro.

Members Are Welcome To Attend CALSPro Board Meeting

Posted November 27, 2018 in Membership

CALSPro has scheduled a Board of Director’s Meeting for this Saturday December 1^st in San Jose. There will be a Legislative Committee meeting from 9:30 a.m. to 11:15 a.m., and the Board will meet from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Members are welcome to attend. If anyone desires hotel accommodations, please book directly with the hotel; the current online rate begins at $136.00.

Location:

Hyatt Place Hotel
282 S. Almaden Blvd
San Jose, CA 95133

Individual Member Listing Links Available Now

Posted November 15, 2018 in Membership

You asked, and our CAMS team provided. CALSPro is proud to announce that your individual member listing link is available now. As a member of CALSPro you can now display your member listing proudly in your email signature.

Click Here to access your listing now.

Working Smarter, Not Harder

Posted November 13, 2018 in Membership

Research has found that the old adage Work Smarter, Not Harder holds some truth to it. The most important key to a productive work week is to disconnect from work during the weekends. In an article written by Dr. Travis Bradberry, he explains how smart people work less and get way more done.

Some people have an uncanny ability to get things done. They keep their nights and weekends sacred and still get more done than people who work 10 or 20 hours more per week than they do.

A study from Stanford shows that they are on to something.

The study found that productivity per hour declines sharply when the workweek exceeds 50 hours, and productivity drops off so much after 55 hours that there’s no point in working any more. That’s right, people who work as much as 70 hours (or more) per week actually get the same amount done as people who work 55 hours.

“Time is what we want most, but what we use worst.” -William Penn

Smart people know the importance of shifting gears on the weekend to relaxing and rejuvenating activities. They use their weekends to create a better week ahead.

This is easier said than done, so here’s some help. The following are some things that you can do to find balance on the weekend and come into work at 110% on Monday morning.

Disconnect

Disconnecting is the most important weekend strategy, because if you can’t find a way to remove yourself electronically from your work Friday evening through Monday morning, then you’ve never really left work. Making yourself available to your work 24/7 exposes you to a constant barrage of stressors that prevent you from refocusing and recharging. If taking the entire weekend off handling work e-mails and calls isn’t realistic, try designating specific times on Saturday and Sunday for checking e-mails and responding to voicemails. For example, check your messages on Saturday afternoon while your kids are getting a haircut and on Sunday evenings after dinner. Scheduling short blocks of time will alleviate stress without sacrificing availability.

Minimize chores

Chores have a funny habit of completely taking over your weekends. When this happens, you lose the opportunity to relax and reflect. What’s worse is that a lot of chores feel like work, and if you spend all weekend doing them, you just put in a seven-day workweek. To keep this from happening, you need to schedule your chores like you would anything else during the week, and if you don’t complete them during the allotted time, you move on and finish them the following weekend.

Exercise

No time to exercise during the week? You have 48 hours every weekend to make it happen. Getting your body moving for as little as 10 minutes releases GABA, a soothing neurotransmitter that reduces stress. Exercise is also a great way to come up with new ideas. Innovators and other successful people know that being outdoors often sparks creativity. I know that a lot of my best ideas come to me while I’m surfing. While you’re out in the ocean, the combination of invigorating activity and beautiful scenery creates the perfect environment for an influx of creativity. Whether you’re running, cycling, or gardening, exercise leads to endorphin-fueled introspection. The key is to find a physical activity that does this for you and then to make it an important part of your weekend routine.

Reflect

Weekly reflection is a powerful tool for improvement. Use the weekend to contemplate the larger forces that are shaping your industry, your organization, and your job. Without the distractions of Monday to Friday busy work, you should be able to see things in a whole new light. Use this insight to alter your approach to the coming week, improving the efficiency and efficacy of your work.

Pursue a passion

You might be surprised what happens when you pursue something you’re passionate about on weekends. Indulging your passions is a great way to escape stress and to open your mind to new ways of thinking. Things like playing music, reading, writing, painting, or even playing catch with your kids can help stimulate different modes of thought that can reap huge dividends over the coming week.

Spend quality time with family

Spending quality time with your family on the weekend is essential if you want to recharge and relax. Weekdays are so hectic that the entire week can fly by with little quality family time. Don’t let this bleed into your weekends. Take your kids to the park, take your spouse to his or her favorite restaurant, and go visit your parents. You’ll be glad you did.

Schedule micro-adventures

Buy tickets to a concert or play, or get reservations for that cool new hotel that just opened downtown. Instead of running on a treadmill, plan a hike. Try something you haven’t done before or perhaps something you haven’t done in a long time. Studies show that anticipating something good to come is a significant part of what makes the activity pleasurable. Knowing that you have something interesting planned for Saturday will not only be fun come Saturday, but it will significantly improve your mood throughout the week.

Wake up at the same time

It’s tempting to sleep in on the weekend to catch up on your sleep. Though it feels good temporarily, having an inconsistent wake-up time disturbs your circadian rhythm. Your body cycles through an elaborate series of sleep phases in order for you to wake up rested and refreshed. One of these phases involves preparing your mind to be awake and alert, which is why people often wake up just before their alarm clock goes off (the brain is trained and ready). When you sleep past your regular wake-up time on the weekend, you end up feeling groggy and tired. This isn’t just disruptive to your day off, it also makes you less productive on Monday because your brain isn’t ready to wake up at your regular time. If you need to catch up on sleep, just go to bed earlier.

Designate mornings as me time

It can be difficult to get time to yourself on the weekends, especially if you have family. Finding a way to engage in an activity you’re passionate about first thing in the morning can pay massive dividends in happiness and cleanliness of mind. It’s also a great way to perfect your circadian rhythm by forcing yourself to wake up at the same time you do on weekdays. Your mind achieves peak performance two-to-four hours after you wake up, so get up early to do something physical, and then sit down and engage in something mental while your mind is at its peak.

Prepare for the upcoming week

The weekend is a great time to spend a few moments planning your upcoming week. As little as 30 minutes of planning can yield significant gains in productivity and reduced stress. The week feels a lot more manageable when you go into it with a plan because all you have to focus on is execution.

Bringing It All Together

What do you do to make your weekends great? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below, as I learn just as much from you as you do from me.

A Message From Our New President

Posted October 30, 2018 in Membership

By Robert Porambo

As I write this blog article, I think back over the last 50 years and reflect on the rich CALSPro history.  The 28 previous presidents, all of the officers, board members, committee chairs, advocates and administrators — all volunteering hundreds of hours to support and improve our industry.  As I said in my acceptance speech, our current board of directors has over 286 years of experience in the legal support industry. Think about the total combined years of experience of the great people that have volunteered over the past ½ century.  Astonishing knowledge and experience have shaped and developed our organization.

At our 50th conference, our historical committee, Andy Estin, Mike Kern and team did an extraordinary job of highlighting the past 50 years and presenting that information to our members. The program they put together was thoughtful, informative and insightful. I would like to see us give this program to all new members so that they can appreciate being part of a very special association. Please join me in thanking Andy, Mike and their entire team for the countless hours they spent compiling this program and for their “ruthian” efforts.

As we enter the second half-century of our organization, it is important to never forget why this association was formed and to work toward keeping it relevant and viable.  I am going to be a strong advocate for educating our newer members about the rich history of CALSPro, while honoring our founding and most senior members.   With the wealth of experience the current board contains, I want to encourage members to embrace their brothers in the industry and to reach out to the board if we can be of assistance to you in your business or the industry in general.

I look forward to serving the CALSPro membership and keeping CALSPro strong for another 50 years!

Mahalo!

Negative Feedback, The Catalyst For Improvement

Posted October 18, 2018 in Membership

Listening to your critics can help you learn valuable information about yourself, or your business.  When was the last time anyone checked your Yelp! Reviews?  Do you have a feedback section on your website for customers to contact you? If you take the time to see what your clients are experiencing it can and will help you improve your business if you work to improve the issues they raise. Negative feedback is the catalyst for improvement. Justin Bariso recently wrote about how Amazon has the ability to learn from criticism.

Amazon made a blockbuster move yesterday when it announced it is increasing its minimum wage to $15 per hour for all full-time, part-time, temporary, and seasonal employees across the U.S. (The increase should benefit over 350,000 workers this year alone.) Best of all, “Amazonians” won’t have to wait long for the salary bump: It goes into effect on November 1.

But it was the press release detailing Amazon’s big reveal that really drew my attention–because it included an interesting and insightful statement by Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos about why the company made the change:

“We listened to our critics, thought hard about what we wanted to do, and decided we want to lead.”

There’s a lot to be learned from that simple sentence. But I’d like to narrow in on just five words:

We listened to our critics.

Amazon has had no shortage of such critics, many of whom have chastised Bezos for what they consider unfair pay and treatment of entry-level workers. And while Bezos has long defended Amazon’s reputation as an employer, yesterday’s announcement revealed evidence of a remarkable and invaluable quality:

The ability to learn from negative feedback.

We’ve seen this before

This isn’t the first time we’ve seen Bezos’s ability to learn from criticism.

Back in 2015, the New York Times published a viral story portraying behemoth Amazon as a brutal employer that put innovation and company performance above the well-being of its people. On the same weekend the article was published, Bezos sent out a memo to Amazon employees. In it, he encouraged them to give the New York Times article “a careful read.”

Bezos then directed employees to report any incidents similar to those in the story. He even invited employees to reach out to him directly through email. “Even if it’s rare or isolated, our tolerance for any such lack of empathy needs to be zero,” wrote Bezos in an internal memo. A year later, the company announced significant changes.

In both this instance and Amazon’s recent wage increase, it appears Bezos used negative feedback as a catalyst–to reevaluate the situation at his company and to consider if changes were needed.

How criticism can help you grow

In my new book,  I compare the feedback you receive to a freshly mined diamond. Although such a rock is unattractive to the naked eye, its value becomes obvious after the detailed process of cutting and polishing.

Criticism is like that unpolished diamond: To the recipient, it’s ugly. You’re trying your best, and along comes someone to tell you what you’re doing wrong. In most cases, you’ll interpret that criticism as an attack–leading you to defend yourself or simply close your mind.

But here’s the thing: We’re not perfect. Our perspective is limited, and we all have blind spots. That’s why we need negative feedback if we’re going to grow.

Since most criticism is rooted in truth, it usually provides some insight you can use to improve. And even if the feedback is completely off base, it’s still valuable–because it helps you understand the perspective of others.

Much like a diamond cutter can take a raw, unpolished diamond and turn it into something beautiful, you can learn to extract the benefits of criticism and turn it into a learning experience.

So, what if you trained yourself to see criticism differently? Instead of viewing it as an attack, what if you saw it as a gift?

When you treat negative feedback as a learning opportunity, you can do the following:

• confirm the validity of your ideas and prepare yourself for similar criticism in the future;
• better craft your message in a way that reaches those with varying perspectives;
• better identify your target audience; and
• change and adapt when appropriate.

Of course, I’m not excusing thoughtless criticism. If you need to deliver negative feedback, it’s important to learn how to do so constructively.

But if you’re the recipient of criticism, you don’t have that luxury. Turn that feedback around by asking yourself:

• Putting my personal feelings aside, what can I learn from this person’s perspective?
• How can I use this feedback to help me improve?

It takes emotional intelligence to ask and answer those questions. But doing so can turn you from a know-it-all, to a learn-it-all.

Remember, it never feels good to be told we’re wrong. But it’s those who disagree with us–the ones who call us out, who point out our weaknesses and flaws–who help us grow. Those who challenge us truly make us better.

Is There A Right Time To Give Negative Feedback?

Posted October 16, 2018 in Membership

Like most people, I tend to react poorly to negative feedback. Call it a defense mechanism if you will. I work hard at everything I do, and when you know you’ve poured all of that hard work and effort into something, the last thing you want to hear is how you failed to hit the mark. After I calm down and digest the feedback, however, I do appreciate it. In the long run it will make me a better manager, a better employee, a better person. Leah Fessler wrote an interesting article recently about when to give negative feedback.

Oh, the joys of being criticized.

There’s nothing like being told you’re bad at something, especially when the dig comes from someone you respect. Some, including my former employer, harangue you into believing that every piece of feedback is a gift—no matter how badly it stings. These people are probably right. They also make me want to slam my head into a wall.

The truth, of course, is that without criticism we cannot improve. However, negative feedback can easily trigger defensiveness, which is a great way to stifle learning of any kind. Even pointing out a spelling error may piss someone off, if delivered in the wrong way, or at the wrong time.

As a manager, these sensitivities can make giving feedback intimidating. Per recent research, 44% of managers say they find it stressful and difficult to give negative feedback, and one-fifth avoid the practice entirely. Even more surprisingly, nearly 40% of leaders conceded to never giving positive reinforcement, either.

However, research from Northwestern University suggests there may be an optimal time to give negative feedback. This timing has to do with our capacity for self-regulation, which plummets when we’re worn out.

In their 2016 study “The strength to face the facts: Self-regulation defends against defensive information processing,” published in the journal Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, researchers at the University of Toronto set out to understand who might be more receptive to negative feedback.

“Specifically, we thought that people high in self-control (i.e., high in the capacity to override their impulses, either at a trait-based, individual level, or as a temporary state) and those high in self-improvement motivation would be more able to withstand the short-term pains of accepting negative feedback in order to yield the long-term rewards,” study author Rachel Ruttan, an organizational behavior professor at the university, told Quartz via email.

Through five studies, Ruttan and her colleagues explored the impact of self-regulatory capacities on defensive information processing—the tendency to deny, distort, or avoid diagnostic self-threatening information.

People who are both low in self-regulatory capacities—both as a personality trait, and temporary state—were significantly more likely to deny the validity and importance of negative feedback, and were less willing to seek self-improvement based on this knowledge. The opposite was true for people high in self-regulatory capacities. The researchers ruled out explanations for these results based on self-esteem and competence-based deficits.

Additional research cited in Ruttan’s study suggests that people’s capacity for self-regulation and self-control declines as the day progresses. This isn’t particularly surprising, said Ruttan: The more tired and worn down we get, the less patience we have, and the more testy we can become. This is why many psychologists and feedback experts suggest waiting a few hours, or a day, before critiquing a colleague if they’re upset about their performance, like a failed presentation.

“In the moment, feedback can be one of the most painful experiences,” Harvard Law School lecturer Sheela Heen, author of Thanks for the Feedback, told Quartz last year:

“This is partly because of these two core, human needs that start off at cross-purposes with each other: On one hand, we actually do want to learn and grow. That’s a big piece of happiness research, and it’s very satisfying. But we also want to be accepted and respected and loved just the way we are now. So when people want us to change it somehow, it suggests that how I am now is not great or not cool.”

For many of us, this dissonance gets worse as the day progresses, which led Ruttan to her proposal that the best time to give negative feedback is in the morning. Perhaps not first thing when your colleague walks into the office—best to let them settle in. But in the first half of the day, for sure:

“Given that we found that those low in self-control had a harder time accepting negative feedback, we connected these two findings to propose that people may also be less receptive to negative feedback as the day progresses,” said Ruttan.

While there’s no specific day of the week that’s best for negative feedback, managers would be smart to heed their employees’ personal lives, said Ruttan. If they have a tough meeting, or trouble at home on a given day, avoid giving negative feedback, as their capacity for self-regulation and motivation to learn from it will probably be low.

Beyond timing, one of the most effective ways to optimize learning from criticism is to combine it with positive feedback, said Ruttan:

“We like hearing that we’re doing well, and positive feedback has been found to increase positive affect and mood. And feeling good can serve as a resource enabling people to tackle negative feedback.”

A Glimpse Into Due Process

Posted October 11, 2018 in Membership

By Clifford C. Jacobs

Many of us have heard that the concept of due process originated from the Magna Carta or “Great Charter” issued on June 15th, 1215 in England. However, most of us have never actually read the text that outlined the basis for our current interpretation of due process. The history is quite interesting but would take volumes to properly present, so instead, I will limit this article to a few facts and then simply present the relevant clause that is credited with establishing the basic concept of due process, and its corresponding sections of our constitution. You can delve much deeper into the intriguing history if you are so inclined.

The Magna Carta was the first document ever that was forced upon a King of England by a group of his subjects (powerful Barons) in an attempt to protect their privileges while limiting the King’s powers. King John (a.k.a. John Lackland, December 1166 – October 1216) did, in fact, put his seal on the document (known as the “Articles of the Barons”) which was presented by these Baron’s on June 15, 1215, and in exchange, the Baron’s renewed their oaths of fealty (their pledge of allegiance to the King). On July 15, 1215, the royal Chancery created a formal document to record the agreement. This was the original Magna Carta, which became the law of the land. It stood in opposition to some of the King’s power, which until that time was the unchallenged mere will of the King. One of the clauses which reduced the power of the King was the security clause which allowed a group of 25 Barons to override the King at any time by use of force in a process known as “distraint”. Perhaps this was the first of many checks and balances that are a common occurrence in governments today. A detailed reading of the Magna Carta will unveil many concepts that have become doctrine in most democratic nations.

In the Magna Carta, King John promised that:

“No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions, or outlawed or exiled, or deprived of his standing in any other way, nor will we proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful judgment of his equals or by the law of the land.” It is easy to see how due process was established here.

A due process clause is contained in both the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the U. S. Constitution. Dealing with the administration of justice, the clauses safeguard us from unlawful denial of life, liberty or property; very similar to the protections called for by the Barons during King John’s reign. For comparison sake, I have included them here.

The Fifth Amendment

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

The Fourteenth Amendment (Section 1 of 5)

Section 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

Our Supreme Court’s interpretation provides four types of due process protections:

1. Procedural
2. Substantive
3. Prohibiting vague laws, and
4. As a means for the incorporation of the Bill of Rights.

I encourage each of you to explore due process further to garner an even deeper appreciation and understanding of this noble livelihood in which we partake.