The Supreme Court of South Carolina
RE: Lawyer Mentoring Second Pilot Program
ORDER
By Order dated December 2, 2008, the Court adopted the Lawyer Mentoring Second Pilot Program, which was recommended by the Chief Justice’s Commission on the Profession. Originally, the Program was to be administered by the South Carolina Bar. However, we order that the program be administered by the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization, as set forth in the attachment to this Order.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
s/Jean H. Toal C.J. s/John H. Waller, Jr. J. s/Costa M. Pleicones J. s/Donald W. Beatty J. s/John W. Kittredge J. |
Columbia, South Carolina
July 23, 2009
LAWYER MENTORING SECOND PILOT PROGRAM
1. DURATION OF PROGRAM.
The second pilot program will run from March 2009 until December 31, 2011 and include all qualifying lawyers admitted to the Bar between March 1, 2009, and January 1, 2011. The Program shall be administered by the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization.
2. MANDATORY PARTICIPATION.
The second pilot program is mandatory for all qualifying lawyers. Unless participation is delayed under Section 3 below, all lawyers must complete the mentoring program within the first full calendar year after admission to the South Carolina Bar.
3. QUALIFYING LAWYER DEFINED.
A qualifying lawyer is any lawyer admitted to the South Carolina Bar during the prescribed period if that lawyer (1) is a resident of the State of South Carolina or practices law in an office located in South Carolina on more than a temporary basis; and (2) has not previously practiced law actively in another jurisdiction for more than two years.
Special Circumstances:
a) A qualifying lawyer who is employed as a non-permanent, full-time clerk to a state or federal judge during the first year of admission to the South Carolina Bar may elect to participate in the mentoring program after the completion of his or her clerkship.
b) A qualifying lawyer who is not engaged in the representation of clients nor any other form of the active practice of law may request a waiver of this requirement by certifying that he or she is not engaged in the active practice of law in South Carolina and does not intend to do so for a period of at least two years. If that lawyer later begins to actively practice law in South Carolina, he or she must then notify the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization and participate in the mentoring program for one year after beginning to actively practice law. [This last sentence will not apply to lawyers who begin to actively practice law in South Carolina after January 1, 2011, unless the mentoring program is made permanent.]
c) A qualifying lawyer who begins the mentoring program, but, prior to the completion of the program, moves his or her residency out of the state and no longer practices regularly in the state, is not required to complete the mentoring program. The new lawyer must provide notice to the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization of his or her move from the state as the basis for not completing the program. The new lawyer’s license to practice law shall not be affected by the failure to complete the program in this circumstance. If that lawyer subsequently returns to South Carolina prior to having been engaged in the active practice of law as a member of another bar for at least two years, however, the new lawyer may be required to complete the mentoring program within the first full calendar year after returning to the state. [This last sentence will not apply to lawyers who return to the state after January 1, 2011, unless the mentoring program is made permanent.]
4. PURPOSE OF PROGRAM.
The purpose of the mentoring program is to provide assistance to the new lawyer in the following respects:
a) The mentor should assist the new lawyer in developing an understanding of how law is practiced in a manner consistent with the duties, responsibilities, and expectations that accompany membership in the legal profession. The mentor should provide guidance or introduce the new lawyers to others who can provide guidance as to proper law practice management, including the handling of funds, even if the new lawyer is not currently in a setting that requires the use of those practices. Guidance should be given not only as to a lawyer’s ethical duties, but also as to the development of a higher sense of professionalism based upon internalized principles of appropriate behavior consistent with the ideals of the profession.
b) The mentor should assist the new lawyer in developing specific professional skills and habits necessary to gain and maintain competency in the law throughout one’s career and should assist the new lawyer in developing a network of other persons from whom the new lawyer may seek personal or professional advice or counsel when appropriate or necessary throughout their career. While a strong mentoring relationship (particularly if the mentor and new lawyer are in the same firm or office) may also include specific advice to or training of a new lawyer regarding substantive aspects of the law, such substantive legal training should not be required of a mentor in this program.
c) The mentor should assist the new lawyer in identifying and developing specific professional skills and habits necessary to create and maintain professional relationships based upon mutual respect between the lawyer and client; the lawyer and other parties and their counsel; the lawyer and the court, including its staff; the lawyer and others working in his or her office, including both lawyers and staff; and the lawyer and the public. The mentor should assist the new lawyer in understanding the appropriate boundaries between advocacy and overzealous or uncivil behavior and in developing appropriate methods of responding to inappropriate behavior by others.
d) The mentor should introduce the new lawyer to others in the lawyer’s local or regional legal community and encourage the new lawyer to become an active part of that community.
5. STRUCTURE OF PROGRAM.
Mentoring shall be made available through either individual or group mentoring. Unless a different mentoring plan is approved under Section 6, each qualifying new lawyer is required to complete the mentoring tasks set forth in a standard mentoring plan prepared by the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization and approved by the Court. The standard plan may include a recommended schedule for completing the tasks, but that actual order and timing of completion of the tasks shall be within the discretion of the participants, provided that the full plan is completed as required in Section 2 above. In addition to completing the specific required tasks, it should be expected that, in an individual mentoring arrangement, the mentor and new lawyer will consult throughout the calendar year as either may deem necessary or appropriate.
The mentor and new lawyer may choose the method of communication that best suits their needs. However, if a mentor and new lawyer do not otherwise have regular in-person contact, they should schedule at least some periodic in-person discussions throughout the mentoring period. Each person should be cognizant of demands on the other’s schedule and attempt to find a mutually acceptable time for these meetings. If there is a recurrent failure by either party to make time available for this purpose, or if other difficulties arise which cannot be resolved by the parties and which threaten the timely and effective completion of the mentoring program, the parties to the relationship (or either of them) should advise the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization of the situation and request the assistance of that office in resolving the matter.
a) Individual Mentoring.
Most new lawyers will have an individual mentor approved by the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization. Preference should be given to the appointment of a mentor selected by the new lawyer, who may be, but is not required to be, a lawyer working in the same firm or office as the new lawyer.
If a new lawyer does not select a qualified mentor, then one of the following options will apply:
1) if the new lawyer is employed and another lawyer in the same firm or office could serve as a mentor, the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization shall contact the firm or office and seek the voluntary agreement of a qualified lawyer in the firm or office to serve as the new lawyer’s mentor;
2) if the new lawyer wishes to have an individual mentor and either no mentor is obtained under option (1) or the new lawyer is not employed in a firm or office able to supply a mentor, then the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization shall seek to recruit a qualified individual mentor from among the members of the South Carolina Bar. In this event, a reasonable effort should be made to designate a mentor from the same or a nearby geographic area with experience in a practice setting similar to that of the new lawyer; or
3) the new lawyer shall be assigned to participate in group mentoring.
b) Group Mentoring.
The Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization will develop a program of group mentoring for those new lawyers not assigned an individual mentor. A group mentoring program should have some element of live contact with members of the mentoring group, but it may be a combination of live contact and electronic or other forms of distance mentoring as may be deemed sufficient by the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization. The preferred ratio of new lawyers to mentors in a group mentoring program shall be no greater than 3 to 1.
6. CERTIFICATION OF INTERNAL PROGRAMS.
A law firm or office (including, but not limited to, governmental agencies, corporate legal departments, state and local prosecutors, and public defenders) which has an internal mentoring program in place that it believes achieves all of the purposes of this program may apply to the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization to have its mentoring plan certified as compliant with the mentoring obligation under the pilot program. The application for certification should include a detailed description of the internal program and a detailed showing of how each of the purposes of this program will be achieved under the internal program. If a program is certified, completion of that program by a qualifying new lawyer should be deemed to satisfy the mentoring requirement. The new lawyer and the lawyer responsible for the certified program should be required to file a statement for each new lawyer verifying that the new lawyer has completed all requirements of the program. Once certified, a program should remain certified throughout the duration of the pilot program unless it is materially altered.
7. GENERAL QUALIFICATIONS OF MENTORS
Mentors must be active members of the South Carolina Bar, or persons who have taken retired or inactive status within the preceding two years. Mentors must have at least five [5] years experience in the active practice of law. It is preferable that mentors have experience with the court system, although it is understood that not all mentors will have litigation experience. A lawyer without such litigation experience may nevertheless be an appropriate mentor if that lawyer has otherwise developed an understanding of appropriate behavior in a lawyer’s relationship with the court.
Mentors should display, through their own conduct, an understanding of and commitment to ethical responsibilities and the prevailing expectations with regard to a lawyer’s appropriate professional behavior. A mentor must have a good reputation for professional behavior and must have not been publicly reprimanded in any jurisdiction within the past 10 years or suspended or disbarred from the practice of law at any time.
Mentors should be able to assist the newer lawyer in developing a style of lawyering that is compatible both with professional expectations and with the personality of the newer lawyer.
8. APPOINTMENT OF MENTORS; EDUCATION AND SUPPORT OF MENTORS
A lawyer may serve as a mentor for purposes of this program only if first approved by the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization. The prospective mentor must submit an application to the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization in an approved form certifying that the lawyer meets the experience requirements for a mentor and has not been publicly reprimanded within 10 years, suspended, or disbarred from the practice of law.
Upon determining that a mentor applicant meets the threshold qualifications, the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization may conduct such further investigation of a prospective mentor’s qualifications and reputation for professional behavior as it may deem appropriate. The Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization has authority to appoint qualified lawyers as mentors or, in its discretion, to decline to appoint an applicant to serve as a mentor under this program.
An appointment shall qualify a lawyer to serve as a mentor in this program for five years, unless earlier removed as a mentor. A lawyer may be appointed to multiple consecutive terms as a qualified mentor. If at any time a lawyer appointed as a mentor is publicly reprimanded, suspended, or disbarred in any jurisdiction, the lawyer shall be removed immediately as an approved mentor. If the lawyer is serving as a mentor at the time that his or her name is removed from the list of approved mentors, the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization shall immediately appoint a new mentor for the lawyer being mentored.
A lawyer appointed as a mentor is not required to attend a training session, but will be provided access to materials gathered or prepared by the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization that will assist the mentor in carrying out his or her responsibilities. The Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization will provide at least annually a voluntary mentor orientation program that will qualify for ethics MCLE credit. Mentors are encouraged to contact other mentors to discuss issues, the most effective approaches to be used in working with new lawyers, the most effective means of resolving problems that are encountered in the relationship, or other concerns that arise during the mentoring relationship.
9. MIGRATION OF A MENTOR OR A NEW LAWYER
From time to time, either a mentor or a new lawyer may change jobs during the mentoring year. It is expected that, whenever possible, the mentoring relationship, once established, will be maintained despite such a move. When maintenance of the relationship is not possible because one of the parties to the relationship has moved to a distant location or because of other extraordinary circumstances, the mentor or new lawyer should notify the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization, and that office may assign a substitute mentor or take such other measures as are appropriate.
10. ADDRESSING SITUATIONS IN WHICH MENTOR IS IN POSITION OF AUTHORITY REGARDING THE NEW LAWYER
If a mentor participates in or has responsibility for any performance evaluations of the new lawyer being mentored, the mentor and new lawyer should set forth clearly at the outset of the relationship how information learned by the mentor during the mentoring relationship might be used in that evaluation process. If the role of the mentor as a supervisor or evaluator may conflict with the new lawyer’s need for advice in some situations, the mentor should assist the new lawyer in making contacts with other lawyers who could provide advice in those situations.
11. CERTIFICATION OF PARTICIPATION; SANCTION FOR FAILURE TO COMPLETE
At the end of the first full calendar year after a new member is admitted to the Bar, if the new lawyer has completed all requirements of the mentoring program, he or she must file with the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization a document signed by the mentor certifying such completion. If the new lawyer has not completed all requirements of the mentoring program by that time or is otherwise unable to obtain a certificate from the mentor, the new lawyer shall report the specific reasons that a certificate has not been filed. The Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization may, without requiring court approval, grant such additional time as is appropriate to file the certificate, or may recommend to the Court that other appropriate action be ordered.
Failure to complete all elements of the proposed mentoring plan during the pilot program will not result in sanction of the participants, provided that the explanatory certificate set forth above is completed and filed in a timely manner.
12. ADVICE REGARDING SPECIFIC LEGAL ISSUES
In fulfilling his or her responsibilities as a mentor, a mentor may provide general advice and guidance to the new lawyer on how to resolve substantive or procedural legal issues. However, it is not the purpose of the mentoring program to provide specific legal advice to the new lawyer or to provide the new lawyer with co-counsel in a legal matter.
When a mentor is associated with the same law firm or office as the new lawyer, the mentoring relationship does not preclude the mentor from assisting the new lawyer in resolving a specific substantive or procedural legal issue. The extent to which such advice or supervision occurs should be determined by the policies of the law firm or office.
When a mentor is not associated with the same firm or office as the new lawyer, the mentor should instruct the new lawyer at the outset of the relationship about the duty of the new lawyer not to share with the mentor confidential information about any representation. If a new lawyer needs advice about a particular situation, the mentor may discuss with the new lawyer the general area of law at issue, without reference to the facts of a specific matter, and may direct the new lawyer to resources that may assist the new lawyer in finding the necessary information. By virtue of acting as a mentor, the mentor does not undertake to represent the client of the new lawyer or assume any responsibility for the quality or timeliness of the work on a matter being handled by the new lawyer. The lawyer being mentored remains solely responsible for the client’s matter. If a mentor does consult with the new lawyer about a specific legal matter, however, both the mentor and the new lawyer must keep in mind that the same professional duties apply as would apply whenever two lawyers not in the same firm consult about a matter.
When appropriate, the mentor should assist the new lawyer in obtaining specific legal advice as may be necessary or appropriate with regard to the establishment or management of a law office.
13. SATISFACTION OF MCLE REQUIREMENTS
During any year in which a lawyer completes a full year as a mentor for one or more new lawyers, the mentor shall be deemed to have completed 4 hours of CLE credit, including two hours of ethics CLE. The mentor should not receive additional CLE credit for mentoring more than one lawyer in the same year.
ATTACHMENT A
(PDF Version)
UNIFORM MENTORING PLAN
OBJECTIVE A
To establish a clear understanding as to the expectations of both the mentor and the new lawyer.
ACTION STEPS
The two should meet in person as soon as possible to discuss their expectations as to how often they should communicate, how they will attempt to achieve the nine objectives of this plan including any appropriate revisions to these action steps, and what each hopes to gain from the relationship. They should discuss the extent to which communications will be kept confidential. If the mentor serves in a supervisory role over the new lawyer, they should discuss openly any limitations that might place on their discussions, and the mentor should make clear the extent to which information learned in the mentoring relationship might be considered in the mentor’s supervisory capacity. The mentor should also assist and encourage the new lawyer in identifying other persons who may serve as additional informal career and personal mentors. This is especially important if supervisory duties or other factors may limit the mentoring relationship.
OBJECTIVE B
To introduce the new lawyer to other members of the legal profession and to other participants in the legal system.
ACTION STEPS
If the new lawyer works in a different office than the mentor, the mentor should introduce the new lawyer to other lawyers and staff at the mentor’s office. If they work in the same office, the mentor should either provide introductions or ensure that they have already occurred.
Throughout the year, the mentor should introduce the new lawyer to other lawyers in the community, especially those with whom the new lawyer is most likely also to have professional contact. At least some of these introductions should be made in a lawyer’s office or in a similar environment that permits significant interaction between the new lawyer and the lawyer to whom he or she is introduced. In addition, the mentor and the new lawyer should attend a meeting together of a local bar association or similar lawyer’s organization and discuss opportunities to participate in the work of local, state, or national bar organizations.
The mentor should escort the new lawyer on a tour of the local courts and, to the extent practicable, introduce the new lawyer to judges and court personnel.
If the new lawyer is likely to undertake any criminal defense representation, the mentor should escort or arrange for another lawyer to escort the new lawyer to the local jail and explain procedures for jail visits. The mentor should also introduce the new lawyer to local prosecutors and staff in the prosecutor’s office. If the new lawyer is a prosecutor, the mentor should arrange for the new lawyer also to meet the local public defender and staff in the public defender’s office.
The mentor should acquaint the new lawyer with the court appointment process, with pro bono expectations, and with various legal services organizations that provide services to indigent persons.
OBJECTIVE C
To ensure that the new lawyer has a thorough understanding of generally accepted professional values and standards of behavior, as well as an understanding of the need to regularly educate oneself throughout a professional career.
ACTION STEPS
The mentor and new lawyer should review together the Lawyer’s Oath and the South Carolina Bar Standards of Professionalism and discuss how a lawyer should deal with any the practical challenges the lawyer may encounter in upholding the requirements and expectations of those documents. They should discuss the lawyer’s role in the legal system and the lawyer’s responsibilities to the client and to persons or institutions other than the client. If the new lawyer is a prosecutor, they should discuss the unique role and responsibilities of the prosecutor and appropriate interaction with victims. If the new lawyer is in-house counsel for a company or staff counsel for an agency, they should discuss the identity of the client and the duties owed to the entity.
The mentor should offer examples of practice situations that may place stress on a lawyer’s relationship with other lawyers or with other parties and should discuss with the new lawyer ways to deal with those situations in a professional and civil manner. They should discuss client expectations, how to communicate with and involve a client effectively in a matter, and other steps that a lawyer should take to gain a client’s trust and confidence in a manner consistent with the lawyer’s professional obligations. They should discuss customs, unwritten rules, and other expectations of etiquette and behavior among lawyers and judges in the community.
The mentor should discuss with the new lawyer the importance of continuing education throughout a lawyer’s career and provide the new lawyer with advice as to how best to remain informed of the latest developments in the lawyer’s practice areas.
OBJECTIVE D
To ensure that the new lawyer is fully aware of a lawyer’s ethical obligations and how to identify and deal with any ethical issues that may arise.
ACTION STEPS
The mentor and new lawyer should discuss the importance of developing a relationship with at least one other lawyer with whom possible ethical issues can be appropriately discussed. The mentor should assist the new lawyer in identifying other resources to resolve complicated ethical issues, including, when applicable, the process for consulting a law firm’s ethics committee or the Bar’s ethics advisory committee. They should discuss also how and when to address situations in which the new lawyer believes that another lawyer has committed an ethical violation or in which the new lawyer believes that he or she has been instructed to engage in unethical behavior.
OBJECTIVE E
To ensure that the new lawyer is fully aware of the proper practices for avoiding mishandling of other’s assets, conflicts of interest, neglect of a matter and other common ethical and civil liability problems.
ACTION STEPS
The mentor should discuss with the new lawyer the most common reasons for which an ethics grievance or civil malpractice complaint is filed, especially the mishandling of funds, conflicts of interest, and negligence, and how to recognize and avoid common problems.
The mentor should discuss or arrange for another lawyer to discuss with the new lawyer all applicable rules regarding trust account management and emphasize the importance of keeping accurate records of property of others held by the lawyer. The discussion should include detailed advice as to when funds generally may be disbursed and a discussion of IOLTA accounts. Because of the possibility that the new lawyer could change jobs, this conversation should take place even if the new lawyer currently has no such responsibility for the funds of others. If the new lawyer works in a different office than the mentor, the mentor should advise the new lawyer to create appropriate trust accounts or to ensure that such accounts exist. If they work in the same office, the mentor should ensure that the new lawyer understands how the firm’s trust accounts operate.
The mentor should discuss with the new lawyer practical situations in which unanticipated conflicts may occur and should emphasize the importance of identifying fully all possible interested persons or entities. If the new lawyer works in a different office than the mentor, the mentor should advise the new lawyer to ensure that his or her office has an appropriate system to identify potential conflicts of interest. If they work in the same office, the mentor should ensure that the new lawyer understands how the firm’s conflict identification system operates.
The mentor and new lawyer should discuss time management skills and techniques as well as the desirable features of a calendaring or tickler system. They also should discuss timekeeping methods that provide accurate records of time spent on a client’s matter.
They should discuss a lawyer’s duties to supervise non-lawyer staff and discuss what activities a non-lawyer staff member or employee may engage in without undertaking the unauthorized practice of law.
They should discuss when and how it is appropriate to contact judges, especially to avoid impermissible contacts. They also should discuss the lawyer’s duty of confidentiality and common pitfalls regarding protection of the attorney-client privilege.
If the new lawyer is a prosecutor, the mentor should discuss the appropriate considerations in making charging decisions.
OBJECTIVE F
To help the new lawyer create and implement a successful career plan.
ACTION STEPS
The mentor and the new lawyer should discuss the new lawyer’s long-term career objectives and how best to achieve them. If appropriate to the practice setting, also discuss the importance of developing a long-term business plan. If the new lawyer is uncertain as to his or her career goals, the mentor should help the new lawyer to identify those goals or guide the new lawyer to others who can provide that assistance.
They should discuss the most effective approaches for handling office politics so as to avoid harm to one’s career. They should discuss how to deal most effectively with inappropriate or discriminatory behavior when it is encountered and how to develop appropriate support systems of persons with whom the lawyer can discuss problems when they arise. Toward this purpose, the mentor should assist the new lawyer in identifying other individuals who may provide additional informal mentoring support.
OBJECTIVE G
To assist the new lawyer in improving professional skills necessary for the effective practice of law.
ACTION STEPS
The mentor and new lawyer should discuss appropriate negotiation techniques, focusing on expectations of behavior during negotiations as well as the effectiveness of various approaches.
They also should discuss appropriate techniques for interviewing clients and witnesses to ensure that information is completely and productively obtained without prejudice to the rights of others.
They should discuss how to conduct an effective deposition, consistent with the purposes of the deposition. If a new lawyer participates in a deposition or court proceeding during the mentoring period, the mentor should either observe the new lawyer’s performance or discuss the experience with the new lawyer afterwards to the extent permitted by rules of confidentiality and without harm to any applicable attorney-client privilege.
OBJECTIVE H
If the new lawyer is in private practice, to assist the new lawyer in developing a productive and effective law practice.
ACTION STEPS
The mentor and new lawyer should discuss how a lawyer can ethically and professionally make others aware of the availability of his or her professional services.
They should discuss how to evaluate a matter and decide whether to undertake a representation, and, if appropriate to the practice setting, how to set and memorialize a fee and how to talk with the client about the fee for a matter.
They should discuss when and how to retain additional counsel to assist in a matter.
They should discuss how to terminate a representation.
OBJECTIVE I
To help the new lawyer enjoy a healthy personal life while fulfilling his or her professional obligations.
ACTION STEPS
The mentor should provide advice to the new lawyer about the appropriate balance between one’s personal and professional responsibilities. They should discuss the warning signs of substance abuse or depression and how to address those problems when they are manifested in oneself or in others. If the new lawyer has substantial educational loans or other debt, they should discuss practical ways to manage long-term debt.
ATTACHMENT B
(PDF Version)
SAMPLE LETTER TO LAWYER BEING MENTORED
[South Carolina Commission on the Profession Letterhead]
Dear _______________,
As a newly admitted member of the South Carolina Bar, you will participate in a pilot South Carolina Lawyer Mentoring Program. The goal of this new program is to assist your transition into the legal profession and to provide you with a stronger understanding of its accompanying ethical and professional obligations and expectations.
Enclosed are materials describing the program as implemented by the Supreme Court of South Carolina. You should review those materials immediately. If you work in a law firm or office with other lawyers who meet the qualifications to be a mentor as set forth in those materials, you may seek a mentor from among those qualified lawyers. You should discuss the program with potential mentors and attempt to secure their consent to serve as a mentor. They should be made aware that completion of their work as a mentor would qualify for four hours of MCLE credit in the year in which the mentoring is completed. You may also work in an office or firm with an internal mentoring program that has been certified as compliant with the mentoring program. You should ask your employer if that is the case.
If you prefer, you may select a qualified mentor who does not work with you or you may request that a mentor be appointed for you. In any event, you must return the enclosed form to the Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization within 30 days after your admission to the South Carolina Bar, indicating the name of a mentor who has consented to serve in that role or requesting appointment of a mentor.
Enclosed with this letter is a copy of the reporting form that you and your mentor will be required to submit at the end of your participation in the mentoring program. During the mentoring period, you will be expected to work with your mentor to achieve each of the objectives set forth in the Uniform Mentoring Plan or in your firm’s mentoring plan if it has been approved. If any activities are not completed, you will be asked to explain the omission of those elements. A purpose of the pilot program is to ascertain which activities are feasible and appropriate to require, and your explanations will be important in that determination.
Sincerely,
ATTACHMENT C
(PDF Version)
SOUTH CAROLINA LAWYERING MENTORING PROGRAM
DESIGNATION OF MENTOR/REQUEST FOR APPOINTMENT OF
MENTOR
For the Mentoring Period beginning _____________, 20__ and ending
____________________, 20__.
Full Name of Newly Admitted
Lawyer to be Mentored: _______________________________________________
South Carolina Bar Number: _______________
Check the appropriate response:
| _________ | I have selected a mentor, who has agreed to serve in that capacity during the mentoring period. The name and address of my proposed mentor is |
Name: __________________________________
Mailing
Address: __________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
| _________ | I have not obtained a mentor and ask that one be appointed for me or that I be assigned to a group mentoring team. |
Does your employer have an internal mentoring program that has been approved as satisfying the requirements of the S.C. Lawyer Mentoring Program?___Yes ___No
| Signature: _________________________________ |
Submit Completed Form within 30 days after admission to the South Carolina Bar to:
Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization
Post Office Box 2138
Columbia, South Carolina 29202
ATTACHMENT D
(PDF Version)
SAMPLE LETTER TO MENTOR AT BEGINNING
OF PROGRAM PERIOD
[South Carolina Commission on the Profession Letterhead]
Dear _______________,
This letter confirms your agreement to participate in the pilot South Carolina Lawyer Mentoring Program as a mentor for ______________________. Your active participation is vital to the success of the program and the fulfillment of its goal of improving the transition of new lawyers into the profession, with a stronger understanding of the accompanying ethical and professional expectations. At the end of the one-year mentoring period, your comments and recommendations regarding this pilot program will be vital to subsequent evaluation of the program and a decision by the Supreme Court as to whether the program should be made permanent.
As a mentor, you will have available to you materials designed to assist you in carrying out your responsibilities as a mentor.
Enclosed with this letter is a copy of the reporting form that you will be required to submit at the end of the mentoring period. During the mentoring period, you will be expected to assist the lawyer being mentored in achieving each of the objectives of the mentoring program. Those objectives are set forth in the Uniform Mentoring Plan, attached to that form. If any activities are not completed, you will be asked to explain the omission of those elements. A purpose of the pilot program is to ascertain which activities are feasible and appropriate to require and your explanations will be important in that determination. Fulfillment of your mentoring obligations will also qualify for 4 hours of South Carolina MCLE credit in the year in which the mentoring is completed.
We thank for your participation as a mentor.
Sincerely,
ATTACHMENT E
(PDF Version)
CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETION
SOUTH CAROLINA UNIFORM MENTORING PLAN
Name of Lawyer Being Mentored (Print):
____________________________________
For the Mentoring Period beginning _____________, 20__ and ending
____________________, 20__.
The undersigned participants in the South Carolina Lawyer Mentoring Program certify that, with the exceptions noted below, if any, they have completed their agreed upon mentoring plan, consistent with either the Uniform Mentoring Plan or a mentoring plan approved as compliant with the requirements of the South Carolina Lawyer Mentoring Program.
The following parts of the mentoring plan were not completed: _______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________.
Any recommendations or suggestions of the participants for changes in the Uniform Mentoring Plan or other aspects of the mentoring program are attached as Attachment C (Recommendations by Mentor) and/or Attachment D (Recommendations by Lawyer Being Mentored).
The undersigned Mentor (___does/ ___does not) work in the same office or firm as the undersigned Lawyer Being Mentored.
MENTOR Print Name: ______________________ S.C. Bar Membership Number: _______ Date: ____________________________ |
LAWYER BEING MENTORED Signature: ________________________ Print Name: ______________________ S.C. Bar Membership Number: _______ Date: ____________________________ |
Submit Completed Form within 30 days after the end of the mentoring period to:
Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization
Post Office Box 2138
Columbia, South Carolina 29202
ATTACHMENT F
(PDF Version)
RECOMMENDATIONS AND COMMENTS BY MENTOR
(This form may be used by the Mentor to provide recommendations or comments to those evaluating the pilot mentoring program. Of particular interest to the evaluators are recommendations regarding the deletion or addition of elements in the Uniform Mentoring Plan.)
ATTACHMENT G
(PDF Version)
RECOMMENDATIONS AND COMMENTS BY NEW LAWYER
(This form may be used by the New Lawyer to provide recommendations or comments to those evaluating the pilot mentoring program. Of particular interest to the evaluators are recommendations regarding the deletion or addition of elements in the Uniform Mentoring Plan.)