Contra Costa Lawyer - Contra Costa County Bar Association

president’s message
by Ron Mullin
Across the board, attorneys report some
of the highest levels of burnout amongst
any profession. However, practicing
with, for, and against attorneys who are
social and reasonable can help deal with
the problem of burnout. Fortunately,
Contra Costa County has a community
of attorneys who are both social and reasonable.
Even more fortunate, there is a place
where the community comes together,
along with a focus on continuing education:
The Robert G. McGrath American
Inns of Court. Inns of Court are designed
to meld the professionalism and talents
of the bench and the bar. The McGrath
Inn is no different. It meets once every
month at the Lafayette Park Hotel to
help attorneys and judges learn more
about the ever changing landscape of
the law.
At the meetings, attorneys learn to
become better advocates for their clients,
concentrating especially on ethics.
Members get the opportunity to learn
alongside judges. Each judge is assigned
a Pupilage Group, which consists of approximately
ten attorneys ranging in experience
from law students to legal masters.
At an Inns event, a judge and his or
her Pupilage Group put on an entertaining
performance about a legal topic of
their choice. This program is a great way
to provide MCLE credit, including difficult-to-obtain
credits such as Prevention
and Detection of Substance Abuse and
Elimination of Bias in the legal profession.
Pupilage Groups frequently present
their programs with funny skits or in
a game show-style manner.
The programs generally last about
an hour. Afterwards, all members enjoy
a dinner catered by the Lafayette Park
Hotel. During dinner, members make
new acquaintances, reconnect with old
friends, and help mentor less experienced
practitioners. The dinners provide
everyone with a relaxed atmosphere in
which the Inn members can better get
to know each other. Few other counties
provide as many opportunities as Contra
Costa does to get to know not just the
local judges better, but members of the
First District Court of Appeals as well.
For solo practitioners and those who
work in small to mid-size firms, the Inns
of Court provide great networking and
business opportunities. The days of the
general practitioner are long gone, even
in this county. Attorneys skilled in personal
injury defense could never manage
a probate, while a business attorney
would be lost trying to handle a divorce
matter. In these days of hyper-specialization,
meeting attorneys outside your
practice field is a great opportunity provided
by the Inns of Court. The juvenile
dependency attorney sitting next to the
IP attorney never knows when he or she
might find themselves with an IP case to
refer and vice versa.
Any level of experience is welcome at
the Inns. Legal masters and judges are
encouraged to provide mentoring to
younger attorneys. They can view the
Inns as a way to impart their knowledge
to a new generation of attorneys.
Younger attorneys can view the Inns as
a way to gain expert insight not only
into the inner workings of the legal profession,
but also the inner workings of
Contra Costa County itself. After a few
meetings, they might find themselves
easily striking up a conversation with
any and all judges and master attorneys.
We are fortunate to practice in such a
congenial county with so many intelligent
professionals. To take advantage of
the opportunities provided by the Inns,
please contact the Inns of Court President
David Pearson at (925) 287-0051
or attorney@mac.com. u
— Ron Mullin, a lawyer in this county for over
30 years, dedicates his practice to estate planning,
wills and trusts, conservatorships/guardianships,
business and commercial law, real property, and
business formation. He also acts as mediator and
arbitrator for disputed cases.
6 September 2010