Our 2016 Mentoring Program will be starting soon, and we can’t wait to welcome this year’s mentors and mentees. Mentees are paired with an experienced lawyer mentor and meet with that mentor two to three times throughout the year. We also hold six additional mentoring events, including panels on setting career goals and succeeding as a new lawyer and happy hours with local public-interest lawyers. The combination of individual meetings and group programs provides answers to questions about life as a new lawyer and a variety of tips and perspectives that can help lawyers throughout their careers.

If you’re an experienced lawyer who’d like to be a mentor, we hope that you’ll apply to participate in this year’s program. We are still accepting applications for mentors.

The application period for mentees to participate in the program this year has now closed. If you are a new(ish) attorney interested in pro bono and public interest work, we invite you to join WCL, get involved in our programs, and apply to participate in the Mentoring Program next year!

If you have questions, please email our mentoring co-chairs, Emily Peeler and Hannah-Alise Rogers, at mentoring@wclawyers.org.

Mentors

For our mentors, we’re looking for lawyers with five or more years of experience who are from public-interest organizations, government agencies, or law firms.

As a mentor, you’ll meet with your mentee at least three times during the program year. We’ll also ask you to attend three other events: (1) speed mentoring (tentatively scheduled for November); (2) a lunch (tentatively scheduled for February) where you’ll discuss setting short-term and long-term career goals; and (3) our closing event (tentatively scheduled for May), where all the mentees and mentors can talk informally.

To sign up, please fill out this short form. We’ll use this information to help us match you with a mentee, and we will share your biography with other program participants unless you ask us not to.

Mentees

Mentees should have less than three years of legal experience and be committed to public-interest law. Law students are not eligible to participate in the Mentoring Program.

Mentees may come from any sector of the legal community—nonprofit organizations, government agencies, law firms, and those still looking for a job—as long as you are committed to being an active part of the public interest community.

Finally, mentees must also be dues-paying members of Washington Council of Lawyers. If you are not already a member, join today.

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Thanks for reading. We can’t wait to get this year’s mentoring program under way!