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Local Arrangements Committee - See Suggested Calendar

  • Committee Charge
    • Plans and executes the local arrangements for the SEAALL annual meeting and institute in conjunction with the President and the Program Committee.
  • Composition
    • Members of Local Arrangements committee are selected by the Local Arrangements chair and are generally located in close geographic proximity to the meeting site.  If there is more than one participating law school, law firm, government institution, or other legal entity located near the meeting site, an effort should be made to include members from each institution on the committee.   
  • Responsibilities
    • Sets meeting date
    • Creates and monitors budget
    • Selects hotel and/or conference facility
    • Handles all registration issues
    • Arranges for social events and meals
    • Creates Annual Meeting website
    • Solicits exhibitors and sponsors

Planning Guidelines

  • Selecting Meeting Dates
    • Held on Thursday evening through Saturday noon near April 1.
    • Generally, no earlier than mid-March and no later than mid-April.
    • The Institute occurs on Thursday morning and/or afternoon.
    • Do not schedule over Easter or Passover weekend.
    • The Local Arrangements chair should consult with the President when choosing meeting dates.
    • Do not schedule at the same time as AALL Executive Board spring meeting.
  • Selecting and Reserving Hotel and/or Conference Facilities
    • Factors to consider when choosing a hotel
    • General quality and location of hotel.
    • Room rates.
    • Capacity for each room. 
      • Large banquet room for meals
      • Space for exhibits and refreshment breaks.
      • Sufficient rooms for 3 concurrent meetings – 40-100 capacity.
    • Available space for registration desk.
    • Exhibitor facilities, possibility of having coffee breaks near exhibits.
    • Meeting facilities and services available (reliable Internet access, lecterns, microphones, signage, water for speaker tables, tables, table skirts, electrical outlets).
    • Availability of shuttle between airport and hotel.
    • Prices and menus for meals or breaks.
    • Parking availability and rates.
    • Availability of site manager during the meeting.

Room Reservation Guidelines

  • Reserve more rooms than traditionally needed and release 2-3 weeks before the meeting depending upon the contract with the hotel.  Recommended:
    • Wednesday night - 40 rooms
    • Thursday & Friday nights - 100 rooms
    • Saturday night – 10-30 rooms, depending on whether optional excursions are planned for Saturday afternoon.
  • If contract is required by hotel, send to President for signature.
  • Be sure to reserve a complimentary hotel room for the AALL Board Member visitor and any other guest speakers.  Most hotels will offer one free room night per a certain number of room reservations actually picked up by conference attendees.

Budget

  • The Board will only approve contracts for hotels or other local arrangements after the Board has approved a budget for the meeting.
  • In consultation with the President, the committee determines the registration fee for the meeting and the Institute.
  • Sets the registration fee at a level sufficient to cover all expenses yet still make meeting affordable for all members.
  • Meeting income should equal or exceed meeting expenses.
  • Recent annual chapter meetings have attracted 120-180 paid registrations.
  • For planning purposes, essential meeting expenses include:
    • Registration expenses.
    • Printing of final program.
    • Badges, badge holders and ribbons.
    • Folders and/or tote bags.
    • Program related expenses.
    • Audiovisual needs, laptops, signage.
    • Expenses of non-SEAALL member speakers.
    • Meals/Social Events
      • Opening reception (Thursday).
      • Breakfast (Friday & Saturday), breakfast buffets are recommended.
      • Lunch (Friday), local cuisine is recommended.
      • Coffee breaks (Friday a.m., p.m., Saturday a.m.).
      • Optional Social event (Friday evening).
      • Institute breakfast and lunch (Thursday).
      • Transportation costs if an event is not within walking distance.
      • Bartender services.
      • Optional considerations: music, security guards, cleaning services, table or event decorations.
    • All of the above are good opportunities for sponsorships.
    • A good rule of thumb in constructing the initial budget is to track food costs per capita with registration revenue and to use a target number in the middle of the anticipated attendee range. If you end up with fewer registrations than anticipated, your food costs should go down at the same rate as your revenue. Try to use sponsors’ fixed revenue sums for fixed costs, such as room technology. Also, leave a cushion in the initial budget so that projected revenue exceeds projected costs by about $5k to account for the fact that the initial budget is based on projections and provide margin of error.

    Exhibitors

    • The Local Arrangements Committee is responsible for soliciting exhibitors. Obtain exhibitors list and contact information from prior year’s Local Arrangement Committee to provide a starting point for solicitation efforts.
    • Initial contact should be made in the summer or fall preceding the annual meeting.
    • Exhibit hours are generally 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday and 8 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. on Saturday morning.
    • The exhibit area should be available for set up on Thursday afternoon and should have the capability to be secured during the evening hours.
    • Exhibitors’ fees recently have been set at $600. Future conferences should consider raising this amount to $650-$700.
    • An exhibitor package includes one complimentary set of meal/event ticket, an exhibit table and access to an electrical outlet.
    • A confirmation letter should be sent to the vendor requesting payment of the exhibit fee; shipping instructions; a contact at the hotel/conference facility for additional requests; size of table or booth space available; exhibits schedule including set-up and dismantle times.
    • Exhibitors receive name badges on an alternate color paper and the same registration packet as other registrants.
    • Don’t forget to ask the Local Arrangements Committee for the upcoming meeting if a table in the Exhibit area is needed.
    • AALL sends a representative and will generally want a free table.
    • SEAALL’s Placement and Community Service Project Committees may also request display space.

    Sponsorships

    • The Local Arrangements Committee solicits corporate sponsorships to underwrite the costs of meals, social functions, attendee bags or other giveaways. The President may assist if that seems more appropriate in any given year.
    • Vendors who sponsor events must also pay the exhibitor fees if they choose to exhibit
    • Contributors receive complimentary meal/function tickets at the following levels :
      • For a contribution of $500 - one set of tickets
      • For $501 - $1000 - two sets of tickets
      • For $1,001 - $2,000 - three sets of tickets
      • For $2,001 and more - four sets of tickets
    • Acknowledge sponsorships in writing by letter, in the final program, in the Southeastern Law Librarian newsletter, orally at the business meeting, and with the placement of signs at the sponsored meal or event.







    • Meeting Publicity
      • Maintain a booth during the preceding Annual Meeting with brochures, drawings, etc.
        Prepare articles for Southeastern Law Librarian newsletter discussing location’s history, culture, tourist attractions and special events.
      • Consider submitting announcements to other regional chapter listservs within the Southeastern region such as VALL, ALLA, NOALL, SFALL, LLSDC, LLAA, etc.

      Annual Meeting Website

      The Local Arrangements committee creates a website that must remain public at least one year after the Annual Meeting date.  Within one year of the Annual Meeting date, the Chapter Website Coordinator(s) will create a pdf version of the Annual Meeting program materials to be archived on the SEAALL website.

      The Annual Meeting website should include:

      • Educational program for both the Institute and the meeting from Program Committee.
      • Hotel registration.
      • Directions to the meeting site (driving, air and train transportation) including directions from airport/train station to hotel and average cost of cab fare.
      • Meeting schedule including Executive Board meeting.
      • Law library tours.
      • Opening reception description.
      • Friday social event and description (optional).
      • Deadlines for receipt of registrations and hotel reservations.
      • Meeting Registration form including
        • Membership status, for example member, non-member, exhibitor, and first-time attendee.
        • Vegetarian, vegan and/or kosher meal preference.
        • ADA accommodations request.
        • SEAALL Federal ID number.

      Meeting Registration

      • The Local Arrangements committee collects registration fees from the attendees and prepares badges. Include separate meal and Opening Reception ticket purchase options on Registration page of the meeting website.
      • In recent years, SEAALL has used a persistent RegOnline account for automated registration. This allows current Local Arrangements members to see data from past meetings. Contact last year’s Local Arrangements Chair for the account sign-in information.
      • Use different colored paper, stickers and/or ribbons for members, non-members, exhibitors, first time attendees.

      Registration Packet Contents

      • Final program.
      • Lists of Local Arrangements Committee and Program Committee members.
      • Meeting schedule with room locations added.
      • Map of meeting room layout.
      • Exhibitor list.
      • Contributor thanks.
      • Placement activities information.
      • List of registrants.
      • Restaurant guide.
      • Local map(s), city visitor guide or similar literature.
      • Dont' forget to save a complete packet for Archivist

    • Registration Desk
      • Suggested registration desk hours:
        • 30 minutes prior to start of annual institute.
        • 4-5 hours before Opening Reception.
        • 1-2 hours on Friday morning.
      • Staff desk with two persons, especially Thursday afternoon.
      • Keep file of completed registration forms or print out of registration information at registration desk to resolve any conflicts.
      • Maintain a supply of blank registration forms for walk-in registrations.
      • Bring any extra meal/event tickets that might be available.

      Meals and Special Events

      • Maintain counts of registrants choosing vegetarian options.
      • Include additional veg options for speakers & exhibitors.
      • ‘Extra’ meal tickets priced at the actual cost of the meal may be sold to accompanying guests
      • Include microphone at head table during breakfast and lunch meals.

      Opening Reception

      • Food, drink and the opportunity for professional networking are more important factors than setting and entertainment.
      • Alcohol is available through use of a cash bar.
      • If fund-raising has been successful, consider serving only beer and wine under corporate sponsorship.
      • Alternatively, may offer a ticket for one free drink.
      • Estimate 10% of total attendance (registrants, speakers, vendor reps) will be no-shows.

      Friday evening event

      • This is an optional event if the budget allows.
      • Traditionally, it is an opportunity for the host area to choose entertainment or surroundings that are special to the area.
      • If planning an event away from the hotel, consider the impact on transportation costs and scheduling.
      • Estimate 10% of total attendance (registrants, speakers, vendor reps) will be no shows.
      • This event has typically been heavily subsidized by a contributor.

    • Library Tours

      • If desired, schedule on Thursday after the Institute and prior to the opening reception or Saturday following the educational programs.

      SEAALL Executive Board and Committee Meetings

      Scheduling and Space Considerations

      • Consults the President regarding scheduling Executive Board Meeting
      • Consults with Placement Committee chair regarding planned activities and space needs.
      • The meeting schedule (length of program sessions, refreshment breaks, meals, etc.) should be negotiated with the Programming Committee.
      • Volunteers should be recruited to monitor each meeting room to address such issues as a need for additional chairs, audio visual or equipment problems, climate control in the room.

      Programming

      • Programming for the annual chapter meeting and annual educational institute is the responsibility of the Program Committee.
      • Local Arrangements may be asked to suggest possible local speakers.
      • The Program Committee provides programming content and speaker bio descriptions.
      • The Program Committee collects and coordinates speaker a/v needs in conjunction with equipment available via the Local Arrangements Committee.
      • In general, speakers should supply their own computer.
      • Sources of a/v equipment and support may include local law libraries.


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