Page 325 - 2024 Orientation Manual

professionalism hypotheticals. There are overview speeches by the LSBA President and a Supreme
Court Justice in a plenary session before the breakout groups.

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Character & Fitness Programs lL Prosrams
The Committee also conducts programs to educate students about the bar admissions
process at all four law schools. These programs, which started in approximately 2009 are held in
the Spring are designed to give law students information on the bar admissions process. Graduating
from an A.B.A. accredited law school and passing the Louisiana Bar Exam isjust part ofthe
process for being admiued into the Louisiana State Bar Association. Applicants must also pass a
rigorous character and fitness evaluations as well. Louisiana is a leader in this area and is the only
state to conduct such programs. The LSBA received the prestigious American Bar Association E.
Smythe Gambrell professionalism award in 2009 for this admission education initiative.

2L Character & Fitness Ouestion and Answer
The Committee also does a Question and Answer follow up program to the Character &
Fitness Programs in the Fall. Focus is on the bar application process. This program is done in
conjunction with the Committee on Bar Admissions.

3L Programs
Due to the success ofthe freshman orientation programs, 3L professionalism programs for
senior law students are now being conducted at the law schools by the Commi$ee on the Profession.
These programs involve the use ofvideo vignettes that set fort professionalism issues. It is a very
interactive program and there are 3-4 Committee volunteers, usually including one judge.

Table Talk
These are programs under consideration at all four law schools allowing students, lawyers
and judges to meet on an informal basis.

Law School Debt
The committee has done programming addressing law school debt. Planning is underway to
expand programming in this area.

Mentorins/TIP Prosram
The Louisiana State Bar's new admittee mentoring program, Transition Into Practice
("TIP") was approved by the Louisiana Supreme Court and the program was implemented in
January 2015 in New Orleans, Baton Rouge and Shreveport. By order dated February 23,2017, the
Court expanded the program to all areas ofthe State.
The program has been a resounding success. Feedback about the program has been
extremely positive.
The TIP program is part of the LSBA's continued commitment to establish
professionalism programs with the goal ofreaching lawyers and those seeking to become
lawyers as early in their legal careers as possible. Through the Committee on the Profession
("COTP) such professionalism programs have been established in all four of the State's law
schools and all are very well accepted by the law schools and students alike. This includes
the LSBA's two part character and fitness program to assist students with their admission
process into the bar. That program eamed the LSBA the ABA Smythe Gambrell
Professionalism Award, the first ABA award received by the LSBA.
With the law school programs firmly in place. the COTP tumed its attention to
continuing its professionalism efforts to those who are newly admitted to the bar. As such,
the focus was placed on these new admittees. Specific concems were apparent and the
COTP sought to address them with this program. lnitially, many newly admitted attomeys