Speakers Announced for NOCALL's Sunshine Week Event on March 23rd

Sacramento, CA, March 03, 2011 --(PR.com)-- Thomas W. Newton of the California Newspaper Publishers Association and Prof. John Cary Sims of Pacific McGeorge School of Law will be discussing open government during the Sacramento-Area “Sunshine Week” event at McGeorge School of Law on March 23, 2011, sponsored by Northern California library groups and the League of Women Voters of Sacramento County. Taking place after the national Sunshine Week, this local event will feature a panel discussion and will allow audience members to view the national Sunshine Week web-cast sponsored by the American Society of News Editors. The general public is invited to discuss open government issues with the panel and area librarians.

Thomas W. Newton is the general counsel and legislative advocate for the California Newspaper Publishers Association (CNPA). Mr. Newton regularly presents testimony before legislative committees and other state boards and commissions, and he oversees CNPA’s professional lobbyists on a number of issues, including those relating to the First Amendment and freedom of information. Mr. Newton is an editor of The Reporter’s Handbook on Media Law, and he has collaborated on various publications and articles, including Open and Public - A User’s Guide to the Ralph M. Brown Act (Editions I, II and III) and Summary: California Public Records Act. Mr. Newton is the two-time winner of the James Madison Freedom of Information Award and a recipient of the Bill Farr Freedom of Information Award.

John Cary Sims is professor of law at Pacific McGeorge School of Law, teaching courses on subjects that include Constitutional Law, National Security Law, and Professional Responsibility. His extensive scholarship and invited presentations reflect his expertise the principles furthered by the Sunshine Week initiative. Professor Sims graduated magna cum laude from Harvard Law School, where he served as a member of the Harvard Law Review Board of Editors. Before turning to teaching, he was an attorney for 10 years at the Public Citizen Litigation Group in Washington, D.C., handling a wide range of complex cases at all levels of the state and federal courts, including the Supreme Court of the United States. Professor Sims is a founding Co-Editor-in Chief of the Journal of National Security Law and Policy, a peer-reviewed law review devoted to issues relating to national defense.

The event is being sponsored by local library and open government advocacy groups: Northern California Association of Law Libraries (NOCALL), California Library Association (CLA), California Association of Library Trustees and Commissioners (CALTAC), Special Libraries Association Sierra-Nevada Region Chapter, and the League of Women Voters of Sacramento County.

Registration will be $20.00 / Students: $15.00. Registration includes a continental breakfast & boxed lunch. Register online at: http://units.sla.org/chapter/csrn/events.html Registration deadline is March 15, 2011.

When:
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
8:30-1:30
Where:
Pacific McGeorge School of Law
Classroom D
3285 Fifth Avenue
(NW corner of 5th Ave & 33rd St)
Sacramento, CA 95817
Parking is free.

Event Sponsors:
Northern California Association of Law Libraries: http://www.nocall.org/
California Library Association: http://www.cla.org/
California Association of Library Trustees and Commissioners: http://caltac.org/
SLA Sierra-Nevada Region Chapter: http://units.sla.org/chapter/csrn/
League of Women Voters of Sacramento County: http://www.lwvsacramento.org/

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