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A History of the BCBA
 The
earliest records of the Baltimore County Bar Association commence
with typed minutes of a May 21, 1920, meeting, some sixty-nine
years after the formation of Baltimore County as a unit of
government. The official separation of Baltimore County from
Baltimore City had occurred on July 4, 1851. After the separation,
however, it took three separate elections to have Towson declared
the seat of County government and to provide for local government.
The County Courthouse was started in 1854. Originally, it
was to have cost $30,000, but not surprisingly, there was
a cost overrun, and an additional $20,000 had to be raised
to complete the structure.The first session of court in Baltimore
County occurred in January, 1857. There have been three separate
additions to the structure since that time, with the final
addition occurring in 1958. A new courthouse was constructed
and put in use across a plaza from the original structure
in 1974.
 Courtroom
5 in the Old Courthouse is still used for trials as well as
for ceremonies and for Bar Association meetings. It has been
fully restored and contains portraits of past jurists and
members of the Bar since the founding of the County. The portraits
were commissioned by the Bar Association starting in the mid-1920's
and include some of the most prominent members of the bench
and bar in the State. The courtroom itself so accurately reflects
the public image of an old-style courtroom that it has been
used in movies and in county promotional videos.
The County Seat was not the only contentious
issue during the early days of the bar. The Civil War truly
split the bar membership. Richard Grason won a contested seat
for the bench in 1864, but after a challenge and a hearing
before the Maryland Committee on Elections was denied his
seat for sympathizing with, if not directly supporting, the
confederacy. The Constitution of the State subsequently was
amended to exempt confederate sympathizers, of whom there
were many even in the state legislature, from the "enemy"
provision, and Mr. Grason later received the position he had
so avidly sought.
 Although
the association does not begin its records until the third
decade of the 20th century, there is some evidence that there
was cohesion among the members of the bar and of a Bar Association.
Newly married members of the bar were given substantial wedding
presents of silver service subscribed to by the "Baltimore
County Bar", and there were various social gatherings.
The promotion of social relationships, however, was not the
sole reason for the inception of the Association. It is clear
that the "trade aspects" of the practice were a
major concern.
The first minutes of the Bar reflect a
dinner meeting with twenty-two members in attendance. After
the election of officers the "schedule of fees"
was amended to provide for the fixed fees to be charged by
attorneys for releases in equity. Also, a resolution was passed
stating: "RESOLVED that no member of this Association
shall be subject to censure if he shall, as Attorney for a
corporation, charge the fees prescribed by the constitution,
rules or by-laws of such corporation." The next entries
for the Association reflect a meeting a year later with only
13 members present. There were, however, 27 dues paying members
at the rate of $1 per year. The schedule of fees again was
discussed as was the question of laymen practicing law.
 In
addition to the fee and business discussions and discussions
of a social nature a third reason for the Bar Association
also became clear. According to the first recorded minutes
the members recommended the appointment of a judge to the
United States Circuit Court. Politics was clearly part of
the reason for providing a united organization. Certainly,
this was to be expected as several members of the bar held
prominent political office. The members of the Association
wanted their impact to be felt on judicial appointments, and
the minutes over the years show strong organizational interest
in nominees and appointments for state and federal positions.
Discussions of fee schedules are prominent
over the next forty years of Association minutes. In 1967
the Association published a handbook of minimum fee schedules.
It was estimated that the average attorney would have 1300
billable hours a year including five and a half workdays a
week. Overhead was estimated to average about 1/3 of gross
revenue. As a result of these projections it was determined
that the minimum hourly rate for office consultation was to
be $25. Based on an overhead of 40% the net income of the
average attorney was estimated at $19,500. Federal matters
were deemed worthy of higher fees.
 While
the fees quoted just thirty years ago raise a smile, so to
do the charges for the lavish dinners held by the Bar Association
throughout the first half of the century. The most sumptuous
six course dinner with cigars and entertainment was less than
$5 even for guests. Speakers at the meetings were some of
the most prestigious public officials in the United States
including numerous Senators and Congressmen. Spiro (Ted) Agnew,
however, was the only "President-in -Waiting" to
address the Association, an occasion remembered by many members
of the Association more for the practical jokes played on
the former member of the Association and his secret service
staff than for his remarks.
The 1960's saw the opening of membership
of the Association to women and minorities. Even after women
were admitted, however, they were requested not to attend
the annual dinner meeting, and the character of the association
as an exclusive club limited to a favored few continued. Membership
was limited to 100 members even though the number of attorneys
practicing in the county had greatly increased. Threats to
form a rival association were perhaps motivation in removing
the limitation on the number of attorneys allowed to join
and in opening up the membership to attorneys practicing generally
in the County.
 In
recent years as the needs of the membership have changed so
to has the Association. While the annual banquet continues
to attract many members of the Association, its legal education
programs attract the highest participation. In 1976 the Association
acquired its present office in the County Courts Building
and with the office came a new sophistication and a realization
that the Association had to reach out to the membership in
the areas of legal education and support and to the community
with lawyer referral programs.
To support the programs the Association
had to broaden its base of support. Although old Charter provisions
limiting membership to only 100 members had been discarded,
in 1981 the Association only numbered 450 members. An amendment
to the Constitution was adopted permitting attorneys living
in the County but practicing elsewhere to join in addition
to those already practicing in the County. As a result of
this action the members of the Association now number 1367.
 This
expanded membership enables the Association to present a broad
range of services to the members, not the least of which is
the award-winning monthly journal, The Advocate. Committees
include areas of particular interest such as family law, state
and local laws, and alternate dispute resolution. Committees
also have been formed to aid attorneys in single member and
small firms and to aid the Association in furthering the public
image of attorneys.
The Association remains committed to reaching
out to practitioners to aid in the skilled presentation of
legal services that has become the hallmark of a Baltimore
County Bar member.
- John B. Gontrum
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