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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 29, 2004
ILLINOIS STATE BAR ASSOCIATION TO LAUNCH
WEB-BASED MENTORING PROGRAM TO HELP NEWER ATTORNEYS

SPRINGFIELD, IL -- The Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA) will launch a Web-based mentoring program on Saturday, May 1, to serve as a resource for newer attorneys who have questions about substantive legal issues, the economics and management of a law practice, and balancing a personal and professional life.

The program will provide a way for newer lawyers to contact an experienced, qualified lawyer to obtain an answer to a single-issue question, or to develop a more formal mentoring relationship, according to ISBA President Terrence J. Lavin, a partner in the Chicago law firm of Lavin & Nisivaco, who conceived the idea for the program.

The initial program, a pilot project, "is a seed rather than a tree," Lavin said. "The program will be cost-effective to operate and user-friendly, with the flexibility to meet the law profession's growing needs."

Lavin said that most of the approximately 2,700 lawyers who pass the Illinois bar exam each year, begin practicing law almost immediately. With law firm hiring down 7 percent in 2002 and an estimated 8 percent last year (according to the Washington, D.C.-based National Association for Law Placement), many attorneys begin practicing on their own.

"These solo practitioners often have not been able to answers to their questions," Lavin said. "The new program will fill that gap."

Application forms for attorneys who want to be mentors will be available on-line at the ISBA's Web site, www.isba.org. Volunteer mentors will be listed alphabetically

and geographically, along with information about their areas of practice. A handbook is being developed for volunteer mentors that will explain how the program works, offer guidelines and suggestions for mentors, and provide guidelines for mentees. Confidentiality will be emphasized, Lavin said.

To reach out to newer lawyers, the ISBA plans to conduct mailings to recent admittees, and spread the word to its section councils, committees, and other regional and ethnic bar associations in Illinois. Newer lawyers who wish to participate will be able to gain access to attorney-mentors by registering on-line.

An implementation committee will be appointed to monitor the program's development, consider ideas such as coupling the formal program with social events, as well as creating mentoring awards to recognize outstanding mentors.

The 30,000-member Illinois State Bar Association, with offices in Springfield and Chicago, provides professional services to Illinois lawyers, and education and services to the public.