From the Yld President

• Citation: Vol. 30 No. 1 Pg. 0010
• Publication year: 2024
• Pages: 0010

From the YLD President Vol. 30 No. 1 Pg. 10 Georgia Bar Journal August 2024

The Doors of the YLD Are Open:

An Invitation to the Young Lawyers Division

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KENNETH MITCHELL JR.

YLD President State Bar of Georgia

kenneth.mitchell@cobbcounty.org

I am honored to have the opportunity to serve as the State Bar of Georgia's 78th Young Lawyers Division (YLD) president for the 2024-25 Bar year. I do not take this opportunity lightly and I am excited to lead this group and continue the legacy of service to the community.

For the last 77 years, the YLD has operated as the service arm of the Bar and provided resources to younger attorneys in the state of Georgia. The YLD is comprised of approximately 10,000 lawyers admitted to the State Bar of Georgia who are 36 years old or younger, or who have been admitted to their first bar no more than five years. The YLD consists of about 30 committees that serve the profession and public through an array of projects and programs, and we provide young attorneys with opportunities for professional advancement, community service and networking. This year, we will continue to provide those opportunities and I am extending a personal invitation to all younger lawyers in the state to get involved with the YLD.

In my humble opinion, the YLD is one of the strongest units of the State Bar of Georgia. But, as any smart leader knows, the strength of the YLD is due to the lawyers who lead the committees, serve on our YLD Board of Directors and support YLD projects and initiatives. This year, I am proud to say that we have a talented group of leaders from around the state who will maintain the YLD's strength and continue its tradition of service. With this group of leaders, we have planned an exciting year that will enable this generation of lawyers to flourish.

Service Will Be the Top Priority First, we will enable this generation of young lawyers to flourish by continuing to make service to the profession and public our top priority. As many know, the YLD motto is "working for the profession and the public," and our YLD Community Service Projects Committee, led by Merry Layman, Lyddy O'Brien and Taylor Wilson, has a great agenda for this upcoming year. We will continue to participate in the Georgia Legal Food Frenzy, a fundraising competition that benefits regional food banks in Georgia, and Build a Better Georgia, our statewide day of...