RP in Retrospective

Earlier this year, the NYSLTA (the “Association”) formally ratified revisions to the Association’s Recommended Practices (the “RPs”) proposed to it by the Association’s standing Law Committee.  

These revisions were the culmination of a multi-year project meant to bring the RPs current.  Prior to this most recent revision, the RPs had not undergone a comprehensive review for many years, during which time the world had marched on.  Rather than merely supplementing the previous version of the RP, the purpose of this Law Committee’s efforts was to globally review the entire document, updating the RPs where appropriate, eliminating RPs that no longer held practical value, and adding contextual explanations for certain RPs where appropriate to make clear their intended use.

During the course of the review, edits, deletions, and additions were suggested, and these modifications were subsequently approved at Association meetings over the course of several months during the preceding year.  Perhaps among the most important changes made were: (i) the addition of an explanatory introduction clarifying the intended use of the RPs, (ii) the addition of a glossary (to be expanded upon in the future), (iii) increased use of references and contextual notes, and (iv) a comprehensive reorganization and re-classification of the RPs by topic.

While the modifications to the RPs itself are hoped to be valuable and provide a framework for future improvements, another major accomplishment achieved in this process was a crystallization of how future updates of the Association’s RPs can be approached and formally ratified in accordance with the Association’s charter documents. 

Click here for the revised Recommended Practices.

In addition to our sincere thanks to the membership of the Law Committee itself, we would like to particularly thank departing President Jean Partridge for making the final ratification of the revisions a key priority during her administration.  The successful conclusion of this effort would not have happened without her leadership in this area. 

We would like to recognize and extend our thanks to the entire Law Committee membership over the last three years, and in particular the earliest contributors to the effort, including Paul Bugoni, Peter Calvanese, Jennifer Hall,  Andrea Levine, Lance Pomerantz, Paul Reisman, Scott Spinner, and Antonio Vozza, Jr.

 

Submitted by:
Vincent Danzi, Chair
Catherine Castiglia Canino, Vice Chair