Here is our WMACCA "Top 10" list of how to get the most from your membership:

1. Make sure your contact information is up-to-date, so that you receive our monthly program newsletter (the Corporate Counselor), our weekly e-newsletter, and e-vites to our CLE programs and networking events, as well as ACC mailings.  To check on the information that is in the database, please log in at http://www.acc.com, click on "My ACC" (at the top of the screen), and click on "My Contact Info" on the left side of the screen.  If you need to edit your information, you can do so from that screen.
   
   
2. Check the WMACCA web page regularly for programs, events, and chapter news.   If you do not subscribe to our e-newsletter service, you can access the e-newsletter from the graphic on our home page or the e-newsletter archive at http://news.acc.com/accwm/issues/.
   
   
3. Look to WMACCA first to meet your CLE needs.  WMACCA puts on more than 70 CLEs each year - courses that are designed to meet the specific practice needs of in-house counsel.  WMACCA has hosted many Senate-confirmed Presidential appointees and regulators for off-the-record discussions and lunches. We list all of our programs/events on our calendar at http://www.acc.com/chapters/wmacca/index.cfm?eventID=all  WMACCA is certified as an MCLE sponsor by the Virginia State Bar.  Several other Bars (including New York and California) have reciprocity with Virginia and recognize courses accredited by the Virginia Bar.  Others will grant credit for our programs after you go through a brief application process for the course. 
   
   
4. If possible, attend programs in-person to meet your in-house colleagues and develop a more robust professional network.  Many members have found that they have made contacts through WMACCA who have helped them with a new or difficult issue, or have provided valuable referrals. You can also get networking benefits (and do good deeds) by participating in WMACCA's "In-House... In the Community" initiative, which identifies opportunities to provide pro bono services and participate in community service projects.
    
   
5. If you can't attend a program in person, check to see whether the program is available by distance-learning, such as a web seminar or teleconference.  That way, you can still get the content.  And, if the timing of a program is not good for you, do not forget that our web seminars are archived on our web page - available at any time!  Just go to http://chapterwebcasts.acc.com/wmacca.php.  We thank Dickstein Shapiro LLP for its 2011 sponsorship of the WMACCA web streaming service.
   
   
6. Participate in one or more of our local committees that focus on specific in-house practice areas (our substantive specialty Forums for employment and labor; non-profits and associations; litigation; global issues; intellectual property and information technology; corporate and securities; and government contracting - go to http://www.acc.com/chapters/wmacca/forums.cfm for more details). Meetings of all forums are open to all WMACCA members, regardless of your area of specialty.
   
   
7. Use your annual WMACCA Membership Directory.  The Directory provides a wealth of information about ACC resources and services and WMACCA committees, projects and leaders.  We publish regular updates to the Directory (listing members whose information has changed and new members) that are available from our web page at http://www.acc.com/chapters/wmacca/On-the-Move.cfm.
   
   
8. Make the ACC web site your first stop when seeking resources that may help you in your practice.  There is a wealth of substantive information, forms, practice guides, and more available online.
   
   
9. Look to WMACCA to be the voice of the in-house bar in this region. WMACCA has been very active in working with the Bars in D.C., Virginia, and Maryland on issues such as attorney regulation and licensing. WMACCA also strives to enhance the visibility and recognition of in-house practice.  WMACCA works with the local media to provide content and input to stories about issues that affect in-house practitioners. The annual WMACCA Corporate Counsel Awards provided the finalists and winners for these prestigious honors with appropriate recognition of their contributions to the profession and to their organizations.
   
   
10. Have an idea - for a program, initiative, chapter activity?  Reach out to our chapter leaders.  We are always looking for ways to meet our members' needs and enhance our services.  Go to http://www.acc.com/chapters/wmacca/leaders.cfm for a list of our chapter leaders.