Contact:  Kenneth A. Brown - 800-282-6556 or 614-487-4426

Columbus, OH (July 7, 2009) – Attorney Gust Goutras of North Canton has been elected to serve a three-year term as District 14 representative on the Board of Governors of the Ohio State Bar Association (OSBA).  District 14 includes 718 attorneys who reside or practice in Carroll, Stark and Tuscarawas counties.  

Goutras, chief deputy and magistrate for the Stark County Probate Court, was elected to his new post by area lawyers at an OSBA district meeting several months ago.  He succeeds retiring District 14 representative John C. Childers of Carrollton.

The 21-member Board of Governors meets monthly to manage the association's business affairs, set policy, review pending legislation and conduct other business on behalf of the 25,000 Ohio lawyers who are OSBA members.

Goutras earned his bachelor’s degree from Kent State University in 1973 and his law degree from University of Akron School of Law in 1985.  He has served as a member of the Probate Practice Planning Committee of the Ohio Judicial College, and as a member of the Probate Forms and Superintendence Rules Subcommittee of the Ohio Association of Probate Judges. He is also a past president of the Stark County Bar Association, a past trustee of the Rotary Club of Canton, and an officer of the William McKinley Masonic Lodge. 

Goutras and his wife, Lora, will celebrate 39 years of marriage this summer. Lora is also an attorney and is a sole practitioner in Canton.  They live in Jackson Township and enjoy traveling.  

The Ohio State Bar Association, founded in 1880, is a voluntary association representing approximately 25,000 members of the bench and bar of Ohio as well as nearly 4,000 legal assistants and law students.  Through its activities and the activities of its related organizations, the OSBA serves both its members and the public by promoting the highest standards in the practice of law and the administration of justice.

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