Basic steps for good peer review.

• Author: Tanner, Michael G.
• Position: Florida

The Florida Bar's certification program has now passed the 25-year mark and is stronger than ever. The 24 certification areas now boast a total of 4,293 certified lawyers, and the first testing cycle for 2010 saw the largest number of new applications in many years.

Certainly we hope all of those new applicants can become board certified lawyers. That would mean they meet the rigorous standards of knowledge of their substantive area of law and have the "character, ethics, and reputation for professionalism" necessary to achieve certification.

But past experience has shown that many applicants will not achieve certification for a reason that will catch them by surprise: negative peer review.

To become board certified in Florida, a lawyer must have practiced law for a minimum of five years, show substantial involvement in his or her area of practice, pass an area examination, and pass peer review. (1)

Peer review is just what it sounds like; it is the sum total of commentary about an applicant's level of competence and "character, ethics, and reputation for professionalism" drawn from the applicant's "peers": his or her colleagues, adversaries, and judges before whom the applicant has appeared. Peer review is obtained from persons identified by the applicant, and from other sources sought out by the area certification committee. These peer review responses can be a bitter pill because some applicants--although having demonstrated substantial involvement in their substantive area--are denied the opportunity to sit for the exam (and ultimately for certification) because their colleagues just don't have good things to say about how they practice law.

Unfortunately, this often happens with younger lawyers, folks who have picked up bad habits either because they have not been mentored or because they have had the wrong kind of mentoring from people who still think gratuitous incivility and sharp practice advance the interests of their clients or are in keeping with their professional obligations.

So how does one get good peer review? Most of us know the fundamentals. We know not to lie to the court or our adversaries, hide evidence, or fail to cite controlling law. But good or bad peer review often arises from behavior more subtle than that.

Below are four suggestions to help ensure that those who deal with you will say that while you may be a tough adversary, you are ethical and professional.

Be Responsive

If another lawyer, especially your...