By Richard A. D'Errico 

The Albany Business Review

The New York Bar Association's membership set another record in 2009, growing by 1.5 percent, to 77,000.

The Albany-based association said 2009 marked its sixth straight year of growth. The previous record was set last year, when membership rose above 76,000.

NYSBA President Michael Getnick of Getnick Livingston Atkinson & Priore LLP in Utica said the increase is the result of recruitment of non-U.S. attorneys practicing in the state - members come from 108 countries - and new resources for members.

"People in this day and age are not going to pay unless they think it's worth it to them," said Claire Gutekunst, chair of the association's membership committee and a member of the Proskauer Rose LLP law firm.

Membership is free for one year to newly admitted lawyers and then ranges from $50 to $250 for in-state attorneys, depending on how long they've been members.

Gutekunst said the association has been developing programs to help lawyers run their practices more efficiently. "We are trying to really address the nuts and bolts for our members," she said. "From how to manage your law practice to how to find a job.... These new initiatives are trying to address what our members need right now."

The NYSBA is the largest voluntary bar association in the country. About a quarter of its members are from out of state.

Gutekunst said there are a total of 157,778 registered in-state attorneys practicing in New York, another 16,701 registered foreign-based attorneys and 79,331 registered from out-of-state.