Office of the General Counsel

• Jurisdiction: United States,Federal
• Citation: Vol. 27 No. 2 Pg. 0050
• Pages: 0050
• Publication year: 2021

Office of the General Counsel No. Vol. 27 No. 2 Pg. 50 Georgia Bar Journal October, 2021

Mentors—Have One, Be One!

BY PAULA FREDERICK.

"It's time to officially end this mentorship," you say to your junior associate. "That's the third time this week you've corrected me about a legal matter!"

"The tables have turned!" your associate responds gleefully. "But don't feel bad—no one your age realizes the Bar changed Rule 4.4 a couple of years ago. Everyone who gets a misdirected email thinks they have to send it back without reading it."

"I still think that's the professional thing to do," you grumble. "My point is that you have become a good lawyer. You're teaching me as much as I'm teaching you—you don't really need me anymore!"

Marcia relied heavily on you in her first few years of practice. Lately your conversations are more of a give-and-take as you debate changes in the law and commiserate over occasional setbacks.

You still serve a valuable role in Marcia's professional life. She bounces ideas off you and knows you will give her advice honed over 40 years of practice. She's there for you, too, as a constant reminder that "that's the way we've always done it" isn't a good reason to continue doing the same thing in the same way.

And perhaps most importantly, when Marcia got a grievance from an unhappy former client, you were there for her.

Lawyers who have mentors receive fewer grievances than those who don't. A mentor can provide advice about responding to a grievance and keep the respondent lawyer focused on its resolution. Lawyers who practice in isolation and who don't retain a lawyer when they get a grievance are more likely to lash out at their former client and the Bar in their response rather than addressing the substance of the complaint.

Recognizing the value of mentorship, the State...