Article, a Call to Join the Am. Inns of Court from a Utah Pegasus Scholar

• Year: 2025
• Citation: Vol. 38 No. 1 Pg. 27
• Pages: 27
• Date: 01 January 2025

A Call to Join the American Inns of Court from a Utah Pegasus ScholarVol. 38 No. 1 Pg. 27Utah Bar JournalJanuary, 2025

By Meg Glasmann

I cordially invite all of you to join an American Inn of Court. As a "regular" member of the David K. Watkiss Sutherland II Inn of Court in Salt Lake City, I have had the immense luck to learn from some of Utah's best and brightest legal professionals. Recently, I had the distinct pleasure of traveling for a six-week international legal fellowship through the American Inns of Court known as the Pegasus Scholar exchange program. I've returned home with even more deeply felt appreciation for how special the American Inns of Court are, and how Utah is the place where it all started nearly fifty years ago. I'd like nothing more than seeing new Utah law students, attorneys, and judges join the ranks of the American Inns of Court.

The American Inns of Court

The American Inns of Court (AIC) is a nonpartisan organization that promotes professionalism, ethics, civility, and excellence in the United States legal profession and judiciary. See What is an American Inn of Court?, Am. Inns of Ct., https://www.innsofcourt.org/AIC/ About Us/What Is an American Inn of Court/AIC/AIC About Us/What Is An American Inn of Court.aspx?hkey=d3aa9ba2-459a—4bab-aee8-f8faca2bfa0f (last visited Nov. 26, 2024); Our Vision, Mission, and Strategic Goals, Am. Inns of Ct., https:// www.innsofcourt.org/AIC/About Us/Our Vision and Mission/ AIC/AIC About Us/Vision Mission and Goals.aspx?hkey=27d-5bcde-8492-45da-aebd-0514af4154ce (last visited Nov. 26, 2024). With over 400 chartered American Inns of Court chapters, participation from 150 accredited law schools, nearly 30,000 active members, and 150,000 alumni members, the Inns are a small but integral part of the U.S. legal community. See Frequently Asked Questions... and Answers!, Am. Inns of Ct., https://www. innsofcourt.org/AIC/FAQ/AIC/FAQ.aspx?hkey=f5c1666d-f0f8-4440-a070-bb8516420858 (last visited Nov. 26, 2024).

A number of reputable bodies have endorsed the American Inns of Court, including the Conference of Chief Justices, the Judicial Administration Division of the ABA, and the Seventh Circuit Committee on Professionalism. See id.

The Utah Inns of Court

Utah has five Inns: the A. Sherman Christensen I Inn, the David K. Watkiss Sutherland II Inn, the Aldon J. Anderson Inn, the Rex E. Lee Inn, and the David K. Winder Intellectual Property Inn. See Find an Inn, Am. Inns of Ct., https://www.innsofcourt.org/ AIC/AIC Get Involved/Find An Inn.aspx (select Utah in the State search field) (last visited Nov. 26, 2024).

Inside Temple Church. King John and the barons signed the Magna Carta here in 1215.

The English Inns of Court

In England, legal professionals fall into two categories: barristers and solicitors. While foreign to us Americans, the split legal profession is standard throughout the U.K. and much of the Commonwealth. Barristers occupy the traditional courtroom advocacy space, while solicitors are responsible for client interactions and serve more of a legal advisory role.

MEG GLASMANN is a litigation associate at Clyde Snow &Sessions. In this photo the author is posing in a barrister's robes and wig during her visit to 33 Bedford Row Chambers.

Inner Temple's Great Hall, where the author had the honor of dining at the Bench Table with several KCs from 3PB chambers.

As barristers become more senior, some apply to become recognized as King's Counsel (KC). This is a highly sought after distinction that typically is bestowed only after fifteen to twenty years of practice. Many but not all KCs will later apply to become part-time or full-time judges in the U.K.

While the predominate U.S. path to practice requires robust coursework over three years of law school and successful bar exam passage (with many obtaining exposure to legal practice as summer associates or law clerks), there is no requirement that law students regularly interact with attorneys and judges prior to becoming licensed. In contrast, such interactions are an integral part of how the English system operates. All judges, barristers, and law students are affiliated with an Inn of Court (Gray's, Lincoln's, Middle Temple, or Inner Temple) and all chambers (similar but different from law firms) are affiliated with an Inn of Court as well. One requirement of licensure in the U.K. is for aspiring legal practitioners to attend a number of formal dining events, where law students, barristers, and judges break bread together.

Westminster Abbey during the Opening of the Legal Year event. The folks in wigs are distinguished members of the judiciary.

The Origin Story

What we now know as the American Inns of Court was dreamt up in large part in a riverside cabin in the late 1970s.

In 1977, Chief Justice Warren E. Burger traveled to London to participate in the Anglo-American Legal Exchange. See The History of the American Inns of Court, Am. Inns of Ct.,...