Albuquerque Bar Association

About Albuquerque Bar Association

On March 20, 1954 a meeting was held to organize an Albuquerque Bar Association (ABA), and by April 24th, by-laws were adopted and a Board of Directors was chosen. Although many solutions to problems posed by the Albuquerque legal system have been historically discussed, the most significant milestone, perhaps, was in 1956 when the Board of Directors considered the concept of a Lawyer's Reference Service. After much debate between the different Board of Directors throughout the years, this concept was finally tested in 1986, when President Thomas S. Watrous implemented a trial Lawyer Referral Service using volunteer attorneys. In 1989, President John Myer began coordinating with the State Bar of New Mexico to create what is now known as our Lawyer Referral Service.