Atlanta January 8, 2004
The Honorable Supreme Court met pursuant to adjournment.

The following order was passed:
It is ordered that Rule 1-304 of the Rules for the Organization and Government of the State Bar of Georgia be amended to read as follows:

Rule 1-304. Election of Members of Board of Governors.

The State Bar of Georgia shall, in its bylaws, establish the term of office and the method of election of the members of the Board of Governors representing judicial circuits and nonresident members. Such method of election shall ensure that:

(a) the election will be by secret written or secure electronic ballot;

(b) each active member of the State Bar of Georgia, in conjunction with a specified number of other active members, will have the right, upon compliance with reasonable conditions, to nominate a candidate from his judicial circuit (or candidates in circuits electing more than one member of the Board of Governors in such election) whose name will be placed on the ballot for his circuit;

(c) each active member of the State Bar of Georgia residing outside of the State, in conjunction with a specified number of other active nonresident members, will have the right, upon compliance with reasonable conditions, to nominate a candidate from the active members of the State Bar of Georgia residing outside of the State;

(d) any nominating petition shall bear or be accompanied by a statement signed by the nominee indicating his willingness to serve if elected;

(e) a ballot for his judicial circuit will be mailed to each active resident member and a ballot will be mailed to each active nonresident member in the case of election of nonresident board member, having printed thereon the names of all qualified nominees for such circuit or nonresident post and space for a write-in vote in ample time for the member to cast the ballot before the time fixed for the election. In lieu of a written ballot, a secure electronic ballot, which meets the requirements above, may be provided to members;

(f) each nominee shall be entitled to have at least one observer present at the counting of the written ballots from his judicial circuit; and,

(g) any change in the geographical limits of a judicial circuit or circuits shall automatically terminate the terms of all members elected to the Board of Governors, accordingly in such manners as the bylaws may provide. In the event the geographical limits of a circuit are changed after the notices of election have been distributed to the members of the State Bar of Georgia, then and in that event, the terms of the members of the Board of Governors from such circuits will remain as they were before the change in geographical limits until the election of the Board of Governors to be held the following year.