New Lawyers in Practice – How-to Guides: The New Lawyers in Practice Committee has created a suite of “how-to” guides, free to NCBA members, to walk new attorneys through basic procedures in various types of law and to serve as a tool for experienced attorneys to brush up on practical skills. Check out the eight guides that the committee has so far and be on the lookout for more coming soon!
New attorneys! Congratulations on your recent swearing-in ceremony. Are you overwhelmed with all the responsibility gained from the transition from law student to licensed attorney? Let me share a brief (not so secret) secret for quickly expanding your network and preparing for years three to six of your career as a licensed attorney. Lean in. Ready?
Be active in the Young Lawyers Division.
That’s it! Join a committee within the Young Lawyers Division (YLD) and get to know other members of the organization well. This will provide you and the other committee members with an opportunity to get to know each other’s abilities as you work on projects and events together. You and the other members now have each other as a resource, whether that be for direct client referrals, questions about a practice area, or support as you enter various stages of your career.
Hi, I’m Erika, and I failed the July 2020 bar exam.
With results coming any day now, I felt compelled to share my story and a few pearls of wisdom. While the July pass rate usually means that more people are more likely to pass than not, there are always a few people who are not successful. If you are reading this and you have found yourself in that unfortunate group, this post is for you.
https://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.png00NCBA YLDhttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngNCBA YLD2021-09-13 15:45:362021-09-13 15:45:36So, You Failed the Bar Exam: A Few Tips on How to Succeed the Next Time Around
The NCBA Young Lawyers Division created the Law Student Representative program to empower law students to serve their schools and the NCBA through programming and networking. Law Student Representatives provide information to their colleagues about the NCBA and create opportunities for themselves and others to interface with the NCBA through events.
Below, meet the 2021-22 NCBA Law Student Representatives!
Anna Beck, University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill
Why are you involved in the NCBA?
I am involved in the NCBA because the NCBA events I attended as a 1L helped me think about my future career and allowed me to practice networking. I also wanted to encourage students at my school to engage with the NCBA because networking is key to success as an attorney, and you never know where a connection might lead!
What advice would you give to a 1L?
Give yourself grace – law school is a learning curve for everyone!
What is your area of practice interest?
Litigation
Why did you go to law school?
I went to law school so that I could use my passions of writing and storytelling to help others.
I joined the NCBA because I was looking to be able to build a community and build professional connections within the state, as I am an out-of-state student from Georgia and had minimal contacts otherwise. So far, I’ve gotten just that and more. My time with the NCBA has made starting law school during an isolating and unusual time feel a lot more normal.
What advice would you give to a 1L?
(1) work smarter, not just harder, (2) go to sleep, and (3) always remember that it’s not what you know, or even who you know, but it’s who knows you.
On Tuesday, August 3, 2021, the NCBA YLD accepted the ABA Award of Achievement in the “Single Project: Service to the Bar” category. This award continues the NCBA YLD’s winning streak in taking home an ABA Award of Achievement every year, and we are grateful for this honor.
The Lunch and Learn Series is the brainchild of our fearless Division Director, Sheila Spence, who crafted the project in response to requests from young lawyers about potential career paths in the legal profession. Sheila created four virtual panels held during the lunch hour on the following topics: sports and entertainment law, going in house, working in nonprofits, and working in BigLaw.
https://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.png00NCBA YLDhttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngNCBA YLD2021-08-09 12:20:022021-08-09 12:20:02NCBA YLD’s Lunch and Learn Series Wins ABA Award of Achievement
The last thing a lawyer may want to hear when they first pass the bar, or when they are between jobs, is to accept a temporary position. The uncertainty surrounding the length of employment, the lack of benefits, and the difference in pay structure are factors that may lead one to decline a temporary position. However, temporary positions have the potential to lead to greater opportunities.
Attorney Hugh Harris provided me with one of the best pieces of advice I have received as a young lawyer. He told me to consider a temporary offer as the chance to audition for the permanent role. At the time, I did not realize that this advice would soon directly impact my career. When my clerkship ended, I began searching for jobs in the middle of a pandemic. I was faced with a market hesitant to hire permanent, full-time employees but received several opportunities to accept temporary positions or “as needed” work. I was tempted to refuse temporary offers until I recalled the advice above. I accepted a temporary job placement, soaked in the opportunity to learn as much as possible and soon after, I received a permanent, full-time offer.
https://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.png00NCBA YLDhttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngNCBA YLD2021-06-03 14:24:532021-06-03 14:24:53The Benefits of a Temporary Position
The Law Week and Liberty Bell Committee hosted Law Day on Friday, May 7, 2021! It was a wonderful event with many legal professionals and students in attendance. The Committee is excited to announce the winners of each competition:
https://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.png00NCBA YLDhttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngNCBA YLD2021-05-26 12:58:192021-05-26 15:13:38Law Day 2021 – Advancing the Rule of Law Now
Law Student Outreach Committee – Grab a Coffee Program
The Law Student Outreach Committee is hosting a mini summer relaunch of the Grab a Coffee Program (“GaC”). The program will continue to be virtual until further notice. Volunteer attorneys are needed to meet with current law students at a time convenient for both parties. If you have signed up during a previous launch, you will need to sign-up again. This is a great opportunity to connect with a law student and pass on valuable insight you may have about succeeding in law school, passing the bar exam, or entering the practice of law. GaC is a one-time, 30-minute commitment, but it could have a lasting impact on a student! If you would like to volunteer, please fill out this form (law students can sign up here until May 21). Volunteers will be notified by email with more information once they are paired with a law student.
COVID-19 pandemic hits the United States. Breonna Taylor. U.S. unemployment jumps to the highest rate since the Great Depression. George Floyd. Black Lives Matter protests against racial injustices worldwide. West Coast wildfires. Ruth Bader Ginsberg dies. Chadwick Boseman dies at 43 due to colon cancer. Trump loses the presidential bid for a second term. Joe Biden is elected president of the United States. Kamala Harris is elected first Black, Indian vice president of the United States. Widespread, unproven allegations of voter fraud begin to question the validity of the election. Over 500,000 Americans die from COVID-19. Tent cities filled with homeless people surround our cities. The U.S. gives struggling Americans $600 in the midst of an economic crisis. Death penalty reinstated for federal crimes for the first time since 2003. One in five prisoners in the U.S. contract COVID-19. Insurrectionists storm the U.S. Capitol. Trump becomes the first U.S. President to be impeached twice. The list goes on . . .
It’s hard to believe that all of the above-listed events happened within a one-year span. It is as if one day we were all living our regular lives and then tragedy struck. Life as we knew it changed. We could no longer do mundane activities that we once took for granted. All of our past achievements and future aspirations became less important as we were grateful just to be alive. Read more
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