JAG CENTRAL

Opening a new front in the struggle against the military's ban on open homosexual service, the Oregon State Bar has voted (via the Oregonian) to ban advertisements by the National Guard in its monthly journal:

The Oregon State Bar board has voted to ban the Oregon National Guard from advertising in the bar magazine because of the military's controversial policy on homosexuals.

In an 11-3 vote Friday in Klamath Falls, the board turned against a recommendation from its advisory committee that would have allowed the Oregon State Bar Bulletin to resume accepting recruitment ads from the Guard.

The committee last month had urged the board to exempt the military from the bulletin's policy of prohibiting ads for employers that discriminate in hiring.
....
The bulletin had become a prime recruiting tool for the Guard, which sought judge advocates through ads published once or twice a year for the past five years at a cost of $30 each. Now, Caldwell said, the Guard will depend more on law schools and word of mouth to attract new judge advocates.

The Guard employs about 15 judge advocates, but recent deployments abroad have left half a dozen openings, Caldwell said. The judge advocates provide legal defense to soldiers and their families during trials and aid with other legal matters.

The bar's ban on military advertising also sends what Caldwell called a conflicting message. In recent years, dozens of Oregon lawyers have "leaned over backwards" to offer part-time pro bono assistance to the Guard, he said.

"But on the other hand, now they don't want to support people coming in internally," he said.

Categories: Don't+Ask+Don't+Tell, State+Bars