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  • InsideTrack
  • May 14, 2010

    Inns of Court provides unique and rich opportunity for younger lawyers, solo practitioners

    Founded in the late 1970s by Chief Justice Warren Burger, there are now more than 350 Inns of Court throughout the country, including four active Inns in Madison, Green Bay, and Milwaukee. But don't let the somewhat stodgy English name fool you. The Inns are vibrant communities of lawyers and judges who gather to promote professionalism and mentor young lawyers.

    Deborah Spanic

    Inns of Court

    May 19, 2010 – One of the most successful legal mentoring organizations in the country is one you’ve probably not heard off – the Inns of Court.

    The American Inns of Court is an association of lawyers, judges, and other legal professionals from all backgrounds who share a passion for professional excellence. But what is unique about the Inns, compared to other professional organizations, is the camaraderie, education, and the true relationship-building that occurs at its regular meetings during the year.

    Founded in the late 1970s by Chief Justice Warren Burger and some of his colleagues with the purpose of promoting professionalism and ethics in mentoring for young lawyers, the American Inns took the model of the British Inns and made it fit the American legal profession.

    There are now more than 350 Inns throughout the country, including four active Inns in Wisconsin that were all founded in the early 1980s – The James E. Doyle American Inn of Court based in Madison; the Leander J. Foley Jr. Matrimonial American Inn of Court, with a focus on family law practice and based in Milwaukee; the Thomas E. Fairchild American Inn of Court based in Milwaukee; and the Hon. Robert J. Parins American Inn of Court based in Green Bay.

    But don’t let the somewhat stodgy English name fool you. The Inns are vibrant communities of primarily lawyers and judges, with members who have routinely been with the organization for five, 15 or even 30 years or more. The Wisconsin Inns generally meet monthly from the months of September – May for a cocktail hour, “breaking bread” over dinner, and a presentation that typically qualifies for CLE credit.

    “The sole mission of the organization is to provide mentoring to younger lawyers,” said David Carey, executive director of the American Inns of Court. “We foster excellence and professionalism, ethics, civility, and legal skills. It bridges the gap between law school and practice – they teach the law in law school, but there is no practical way to teach graduates how to be lawyers.” The Inns help with that.

    A friendly, collegial atmosphere

    “The Inn is a friendly, low-key organization,” said Craig Maxwell, membership director of the Parins Inn of Green Bay. “There is a lot of interaction between the more experienced attorneys and judges and the younger attorneys.”

    The Inns are different from other organizations because in most other situations, there isn’t really an opportunity to socialize with other lawyers on a regular, recurring basis.

    Tricia Nell, an attorney and member of the Parins Inn agrees. “I’ve learned more at the Inns than I’ve ever learned at any seminar,” Nell added. “The meetings always have at least one or two Brown County judges, so you have an opportunity to meet and get to know them on a more personal level than just seeing them in court.

    “It’s not at all competitive – it’s the one time you can be really honest with each other, and you’re not focused on out-doing each other,” Nell added. “At a lot of other functions, it feels like everyone has an ego or a chip on their shoulder.”

    A dynamic institution

    Robert Gegios, president of the Fairchild Inn in Milwaukee, notes that the Inns are a dynamic institution. “We have the protocol tracing back to the English Inns of Court, but have been able to develop our own approach to the Inn experience,” Gegios said. “It’s been important to keep it fresh for the younger and newer attorneys.”

    At a minimum, the Inns are a great value for the money. For a relatively minimal annual fee (ranging everywhere from free for law students to $300 or slightly more for senior lawyers), members get a minimum of seven to eight CLE credits per year plus a nice dinner at each meeting.

    But participation in the Inns is much more than a good dinner and CLE. “Younger and solo attorneys typically wouldn’t get the kind of exposure they get through participation in the Inns,” Gegios added. “We have assistant DAs as members, U.S. attorneys, judges from federal and state courts. It really rounds out the practice.”

    The programs are designed to encourage audience participation, and often the discussions spill over into the dinner table as well. “Everyone is encouraged to raise a hand and offer an opinion – we have very pleasant arguments back and forth in the audience,” Gegios added.

    “It can be difficult for lawyers to branch out outside the firm environment, especially in a world where technology keeps people in their offices,” Gegios said. “The Inns provides you with a way to sit down in a collegiate setting with people who would normally be your adversaries. It’s a unique experience.”

    The Inn keeps you sharp

    “I’ve been involved with the Inns since I was a baby lawyer at Foley,” said Laura Brenner, litigation attorney at Rinehart Boerner Van Deuren in Milwaukee and a member of the Fairchild Inn in Milwaukee. “It was wonderful to get to know what the basics were, and as a seasoned attorney, it’s still great to hear what everyone else is doing.

    “The Inn keeps you sharp,” Brenner added, “and the food and wine is really good too.”

    In addition to the collegiality, attorneys have commented on the benefit of discussing the law and issues from several different perspectives.

    As a well-seasoned attorney who has been with the Fairchild Inn since its inception, attorney Laurence Hammond Jr. still finds time to participate even in his retirement.

    “When people get out of law school, if you ended up trying a case, you were really stumbling around and didn’t know what to expect,” Hammond said. “The Inns give young lawyers the chance to have a relationship with people who do this on a daily basis.”

    And the benefits for lawyers go beyond the mechanics of trial practice to something more intangible.

    “It teaches trial lawyers civility,” Hammond added. “It teaches the proper demeanor and courtesy between lawyers and judges that you so often don’t see practiced.”

    An Inn for family law practice

    While the other three Inns in Wisconsin are open to all areas of practice, the Foley Matrimonial Inn based in Milwaukee is focused on family law.

    “Perhaps more than with other areas of practice, it’s especially important in family law if the lawyers and judges know each other,” said Eric W. Zaeske, attorney and president of the Foley Inn. “Family law is a small bar, and it helps resolve family issues if the attorneys know each other and have a bit more of a trusting relationship with each other. It removes it more from the adversarial realm.”

    The Foley Inn provides not only the collegiality and relationship-building the other Inns provide, but also the ability to focus the CLE presentations on developing issues in the family law area. “Most all of our CLEs are advanced in the area of family law,” Zaeske added. “You will almost never see an intermediate or beginner-level topic.”

    That focused information is what keeps solo attorney Bettie Rodgers involved in the Foley Inn since the beginning.

    “This is in-depth networking,” Rodgers said, “where you really get to know your colleagues in the family law bar.” For solo attorneys especially, it’s a dynamic way to get to know the law and other attorneys. “You may be struggling with an issue, and that same issue may come up as a presentation or discussion or dinner. It can help you work through it.”

    Collegiality and helping attorneys the key

    “The Inns aren’t actually structured as a networking opportunity,” said Michael Covey, a solo practitioner and member of the Doyle Inn in Madison. “It’s much more collegial than that – if everyone was handing out business cards and trying to get work, I wouldn’t go.”

    In fact, the relationships built at the Inns continue outside of meetings. “There are at least four to five people I know well through the Inns that I wouldn’t hesitate to call at a moment’s notice,” Covey added.

    It’s also a great way to feel a part of a larger legal community, according to Lydia Thompson, attorney at the Department of Regulation and Licensing and a member of the Doyle Inn. “I feel honored to be a part of this group, and to get to meet the people from a wide variety of practice areas and know you can call them to ask questions if you need advice, is worth its weight in gold,” Thompson added.

    Even judges find great value in participation in the Inns. Dane County Circuit Court Judge Richard Niess, president of the Doyle Inn, finds that the connections he has gained through the Inns are critical.

    “As a judge, you quickly find out how isolating it can be,” Niess added. “You need to go out of your way to find opportunities to reconnect other than the courtroom because that is a very structured way of interacting.

    “With the Inn you can rub elbows, talk smart, and connect on a more humane and personal level,” he added.

    As a newer attorney, Barbara Olivas, a Madison-based insurance defense attorney at Coyne, Schultz, Becker & Bauer, S.C., finds the informal opportunity to mingle with experienced attorneys and judges invaluable to her practice.

    “It’s nice when you’re in front of a judge you may have met and had dinner with at one of the Inns meetings – it makes it a little less intimidating,” Olivas added.

    “I do recommend it and have recommended it, mostly for the opportunity to be exposed to other people than the lawyers you usually see in your area of the law, but also just going out and having fun with your colleagues.”

    By Deborah G. Spanic, legal writer


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