A Message from President Peter Dreyer

September 30, 2025

My fellow trial lawyers,

It is an honor and a privilege to begin my term as President of the Connecticut Trial Lawyers Association. CTLA is more than a professional home. It is a community bound by purpose, united by service, and defined by the belief that courts must be open, the law must be fair, and every person deserves a real chance to be heard.

I begin with gratitude. I congratulate our Immediate Past President, Alinor Sterling, for outstanding leadership over the past year. Under Alinor's guidance — and with the invaluable assistance of our Legislative Team at Gaffney, Bennett & Associates, including Jay Malcynsky and Jeffrey "Zeke" Zyjeski — CTLA achieved significant legislative results that protect our clients and strengthen civil justice in Connecticut.

I also welcome our incoming officers: President-Elect Cindy Robinson, Vice President Patrick Kennedy, Treasurer Brian Flood, Secretary Karolina Dowd, and Parliamentarian Garrett Moore Jr. I am grateful as well for our exceptional staff, who make everything we do possible: Chief Executive Officer Joan Maloney, CLE Director Katie Marino, and Membership Services Coordinator Liz Nolan.

As I look ahead, I return to the values that brought many of us to CTLA in the first place: we learn together, we show up for one another, and we stand up for the rule of law. Those values will anchor my presidency through three priorities.

First, membership growth and engagement. Our strength is our membership. This year we will broaden the tent and deepen participation. I ask every member to bring a colleague to a CTLA program, invite a friend to join a committee, and reconnect with a peer you have not seen in a while. We will continue our exceptional CLE offerings, expand opportunities for practice-specific collaboration, and carry forward CTLA traditions that showcase who we are and why our work matters.

Second, mentorship and training. No trial lawyer should have to stand alone. We will invest in the next generation through practical skills training, case strategy roundtables, and member-to-member support. If you are a seasoned lawyer, please volunteer to mentor, teach a session, or open your playbook on a thorny issue. If you are earlier in your practice, please raise your hand, ask for guidance, and take the microphone. When we sharpen one another's skills, our clients benefit, and our profession thrives.

Third, defending the rule of law. The rule of law is not an abstraction. It is the lived experience of clients who trust courts to be open, juries to be fair, and wrongdoers to be accountable. We will continue to oppose efforts that erode access to justice, diminish the independence of the judiciary, or restrict the common-law rights of injured people. CTLA will engage respectfully, factually, and with resolve — because strengthening confidence in our courts strengthens our communities.

I invite you to lean in. Attend a program you have never tried. Join a committee aligned with your practice. Share a brief, an expert, or a strategy with a colleague who needs a sounding board. Call me or any officer when you see a challenge or an opportunity for CTLA to lead. Our association is at its best when members drive the agenda and we move forward together.

Thank you for your trust and for all that you do for CTLA. Together, we advance justice.

Peter Dreyer
President
Connecticut Trial Lawyers Association