Colorado’s Trial Attorney Mentoring Program: Experiential Mentoring for the Next Generation of Lawyers, 0916 COBJ, Vol. 45, No. 9 Pg. 81

AuthorJohn Baker , J. Ryann Peyton, J.

45 Colo.Law. 81

Colorado’s Trial Attorney Mentoring Program: Experiential Mentoring for the Next Generation of Lawyers

Vol. 45, No. 9 [Page 81]

The Colorado Lawyer

September, 2016

John Baker , J. Ryann Peyton, J.

Colorado Attorney Mentoring Program

Colorado’s Trial Attorney Mentoring Program: Experiential Mentoring for the Next Generation of Lawyers J. Ryann Peyton is coordinating editor for this series on the Colorado Supreme Court’s Colorado Attorney Mentoring Program. CAMP provides mentoring programs throughout the state to increase professionalism and competence in the legal profession while strengthening relationships between the bar, courts, clients, law schools, and members of the public. To get involved with CAMP, contact Peyton at (303) 928-7750 or r.peyton@csc.state.co.us, or visit coloradomentoring.org for more information.

The Colorado Attorney Mentoring Program (CAMP), in partnership with the Colorado Defense Lawyers Association (CDLA), recently launched an innovative experiential mentoring program for emerging trial attorneys in Colorado. The Colorado Trial Attorney Mentoring Program began as a pilot program in 2015 after CDLA identified a need to bring practical trial skills to new attorneys seeking to build a trial practice. Now formally implemented as an official CAMP mentoring curriculum, the program provides experiential mentoring to Colorado attorneys by offering first chair co-counseling opportunities with seasoned mentor litigators on actual fee-for-service and pro bono cases.

Traditional Mentoring and the CAMP Model

The legal profession throughout the United States and in Colorado has been evolving rapidly for the past two decades. Law firms are changing, bar organizations are changing, and lawyer demographics are changing. One thing that has not changed, however, is the importance of mentoring and the vital role that mentors play in helping new lawyers become competent attorneys. Unfortunately, economics and busy work agendas have reduced the time and resources for traditional, organic mentoring in law offices and bar associations.

The Colorado Supreme Court established CAMP in 2013 to supplement the informal mentoring taking place in law offices, bar associations, Inns of Court, and other legal settings in Colorado with a more formal system of mentoring.1 Since February 2013, CAMP has grown from four pilot project programs to 29 co-sponsored or CAMP-style programs, in addition to dozens of individual matchings. CAMP co-sponsors mentoring programming with specialty and local bar associations, Inns of Court, law firms, government law offices, and other legal organizations.2

CAMP programs match new attorneys with carefully chosen and experienced mentors to help with career choices and networking. Pursuant to Rule 255 of the Colorado Rules of Civil Procedure (CRCP), some of the co-sponsoring organizations have adopted the CAMP “12-month CLE Credit Structure,” which suggests activities and discussion points for the mentor and mentee. CAMP participants who complete the 12-month curriculum earn 15 CLE credits, including two ethics credits.

CAMP’s Mentoring Agreement

Young attorneys and experienced mentors working on cases together has been a cornerstone of mentoring in the past. Most CAMP mentoring pairs are attorneys from different law offices, which raises confidentiality and conflict of interest issues. These mentors and mentees are urged to sign CAMP’s mentoring agreement, which lists program objectives and establishes rules for preserving client confidences and checking for potential conflicts of interest. For example, the agreement asks mentors and mentees to acknowledge and abide by the following rules:

1.No confidential relationship is formed between the mentor and the mentee as a result of participation...

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