South Carolina Supreme Court, SC Bar celebrate mentoring day
April 26, 2022
The Supreme Court of South Carolina and the South Carolina Bar honored volunteer mentors who give back to new lawyers as part of the Lawyer Mentoring Program’s first Rule 425 Day celebration.
The event was held April 25 at the SC Bar Conference Center and included a service project where participants answered questions on the online legal clinic SC Free Legal Answers followed by a continuing education program for mentors and their mentees.
“With much of the mentoring work occurring by video and phone in the past couple years, we wanted to bring our outstanding mentors and their mentees together to share best practices and simply say thank you to our volunteers for their dedication to guiding the next generation of lawyers,” said D. Nichole Davis, program administrator for the Lawyer Mentoring Program. “Our profession is stronger because of the committed mentors who give their time and share wisdom and experience with young lawyers each year.”
Established by Rule 425 of the S.C. Appellate Court Rules, the South Carolina Supreme Court Lawyer Mentoring Program is administered by the SC Bar. It connects new lawyers, who have recently been admitted to the practice of law, with experienced lawyers for a year-long mentorship. All new lawyers must register with the mentoring program within 30 days of their admission to the South Carolina Bar. Mentors must have at least five years of experience in the active practice of law. The mentor and the new lawyer are encouraged to work together to identify and help the new lawyer achieve professional goals.
“The transition from law school to the practice of law can be daunting. Our mentoring program was designed to ease that transition, as caring and experienced lawyers have volunteered their time to serve as mentors,” said S.C. Supreme Court Justice John W. Kittredge, who serves as chair of the Chief Justice’s Commission on the Profession. “Enduring relationships, indeed, friendships, often develop between the mentors and the mentees. To our more seasoned members of the Bar, if you have not signed up to serve as a mentor, your Supreme Court encourages you to do so. It can be so gratifying to be an integral part of a young lawyer’s successful entry into our profession.”
Learn more at www.scbar.org/mentoring/.
