Inns of Court Promote Principles in Legal Profession

Judge Randy J. Holland

Justice Randy J. Holland of the Delaware Supreme Court was recently elected to a second two-year term as President of the American Inns of Court. In 1990, Justice Holland was a founding member of the Terry-Carey American Inn of Court in Milford, Delaware, and currently serves as an officer of the Inn. He has served on the Board of Trustees of the American Inns of Court Foundation since 1992, four years as Vice President.
 
_Q:What are the American Inns of Court? What is their mission and who are its members?

_A: The American Inns of Court are modeled on the Inns of Court established in London hundreds of years ago. They’re really the creation of Chief Justice Warren Burger and the Judicial Conference of the United States. What I think appealed to Chief Justice Burger was the idea of having experienced judges and lawyers pass on, not only the best legal practices to younger lawyers, but also the culture and ethos of the legal profession. So, the American Inns of Court were designed, not only to improve practice skills, but also professionalism and ethics. To this day, on the logo of the American Inns of Court stationery and in the charters, the four principles that they’re committed to are ethics, legal excellence, civility and professionalism.

Right now there are about 25,000 active members and 50,000 alumni who have rotated through. Although the federal Judicial Conference started the American Inns of Court, it is composed of state and federal judges, lawyers, law professors and law students.

The overall concept that every Inn tries to maintain, is that there will be a division into basically thirds. Senior members, called masters of the bench, are senior lawyers and judges with 15 or more years of experience. Barristers, who are the middle group of lawyers, have about 5-15 years of experience. The last third are the people with fewer than five years, the younger lawyers who rotate out every three to five years. The idea is that it is an experience in which other people should be able to participate.

In some areas there is a waiting list to join an Inn. In other areas, Inns brainstorm and invite people in as other individuals rotate out. Of the 325 Inns, 110 of the Inns have some type of affiliation with a law school, which will suggest student members. We try to promote diversity in every way, so that we have lawyers from large and small firms, state and federal judges at all levels, as well as racial, gender and ethnic diversity.
 
_Q:Twenty years ago the Judicial Conference had a role in establishing the American Inns of Court. What relationship do Inns have with the Conference and federal judges today?
 
_A: Its not a formal relationship, but, as you know, in addition to Chief Justice Burger, the other moving forces initially were Judge A. Sherman Christensen of Utah, the Solicitor General at the time, Rex Lee, and other federal judges such as Judge Clifford Wallace in the Ninth Circuit and Judge Susan Black in the Eleventh Circuit. At the present time we have three circuit judges who are trustees: Judge Anthony Scirica from the Third Circuit, Chief Judge Deanell Tacha from the 10^th Circuit and Judge David Sentelle who is on the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. We also have federal district judge, Wiley Daniel, from Denver. In addition, throughout the country the presidents of many of our individual Inns of Court are federal judges. We have federal judges who are members in almost every American Inn in the country.

I think it is important to mention that we have a Professionalism Award program in almost every federal circuit. The awards selection committees are composed of the chief judge of the circuit, or his or her designee, and by leaders of the American Inns of Court. Those federal circuit Professionalism Awards were established when Judge Patrick Higginbotham of the 5th Circuit was the president of the Inns. The awards are normally presented at the plenary session of the judicial conference in each circuit. Frequently, the circuit justice from the United States Supreme Court will participate in the presentation of the award. I think this emphasizes the close continuing nature of the relationship between the American Inns of Court and federal judges around the country.

At the last meeting of the American Inns of Court Foundation Board, the trustees voted to realign our regions to be identical with the federal circuits. As soon as the transition is completed, there will be a trustee of the American Inns of Court from each federal circuit elected directly by the Inn members in that circuit. Each year in October, the American Inns of Court holds a celebration of excellence at the United States Supreme Court. At least one justice is always in attendance. The three highest national awards are presented during the Celebration of Excellence and all of the federal circuit professionalism award winners are recognized at a program in the courtroom.
 
_Q:The Inns promote civility among and between members of the bench and the bar. Why was that made part of your mission? How do the Inns promote civility?
 
_A: There certainly is a focus on civility and ethics. That goes back to Chief Justice Burger’s vision. He was primarily interested in promoting the best trial skills, because barristers in England are strictly trial lawyers. Now we’ve expanded that and we have many Inn members who do transactional work as opposed to trial work. But there still continues to be a focus on trial practice. At the monthly meetings, the interactive programs are designed to demonstrate the best trial practice in a setting such as a deposition, or a closing argument, while, at the same time, giving examples of how a lawyer can participate in a way that is civil and in accordance with the highest ethical standards. That theme goes through every program. It is an emphasis on the skill with an ethical component and an emphasis on civility.
 
_Q:Two distinguished jurists, Justice Anthony Kennedy and Judge Patrick Higginbotham, were awarded Inns of Courts national awards this year. Why were they selected for these honors?
 
_A: The award Justice Kennedy received was the Lewis F. Powell, Jr. Award for Professionalism and Ethics. Justice Powell was a strong supporter of the American Inns of Court and the award was established in his honor. It is designed to recognize exemplary service and professionalism and ethics. In the past, winners have included Justice William Brennan, and many federal judges, such as Judge John Minor Wisdom, Judge Robert Merhige, and last year, it was Judge Shirley Hufstedler. For that award in particular we’re looking for role models. If you want to see professionalism and ethics in action, a good role model is Justice Kennedy, or Justice Lewis Powell, or Judge Shirley Hufstedler.

Judge Higginbotham received the A. Sherman Christensen Award. It is named for the founder of the first American Inn of Court in 1980. The Christensen Award recognizes someone who, at a local or national level, has done outstanding work to further the American Inns of Court movement. Clearly Judge Higgin-botham did that in Texas and as a trustee of the American Inns of Courts Foundation and in four years as its president. He was also instrumental in starting the professionalism awards in each federal circuit throughout the country.

If you look at the people who get the awards in the circuits, they really are the stars of the circuit. It is a wonderful connection between what the American Inns of Court would like to do and the people in the circuit who are doing it.
 
_Q:The American Inns of Court awards a number of scholarships each year. Can you tell us about them?
 
_A: The Temple Bar scholarships are part of our effort to get young lawyers, who will be the leaders of the profession in the future, interested in the Inns of Court early on. The Temple Bar Scholarships are only available to individuals who clerk for the United States Supreme Court or a judge on a federal court of appeals. Our Temple Bar scholars have clerked for Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, and Justices Stephen Breyer, Clarence Thomas, Anthony Kennedy, Antonin Scalia, John Paul Stevens, Sandra Day O’Connor, David Souter and Ruth Bader Ginsburg. In addition, we also have had clerks from the chambers of Judges Scirica, Higginbotham, Wald and other federal appeals judges.

The Temple Bar Scholarship gives scholars an opportunity to go to London for one month. They spend two weeks in barristers’ chambers going to court every day with the barristers. For the last two years they have spent their last week with the Law Lords, who are the equivalent of U.S. Supreme Court justices. Judges in England traditionally do not have law clerks. But as a result of the Temple Bar Scholars Program, the judges in England are becoming increasingly interested in the concept of law clerks. This year, for example, the Law Lords have hired young barristers for the first time.

The first week is an amazing experience for the Temple Bar Scholars. I go to London with Admiral Don Stumbaugh, our executive director. We introduce the scholars to the Lord Chancellor, the Lord Chief Justice, who heads up the criminal system; the Master of the Rolls, who heads up the civil system; and the Senior Law Lord, who is the equivalent of Chief Justice Rehnquist. The Chair of the Bar Council, the supervisory and disciplinary body for all barristers in Great Britain, personally provides an introduction to the work of the Council. We have lunch at each of the four Inns of Court in London. We go to the opening of the law courts at Westminster Abbey and have a reception hosted by the United States Embassy.

The Commercial Bar Association, which goes by the acronym COMBAR, places the young scholars in the chambers of the top barristers for two weeks. The Lord Chancellor arranges assignments for each scholar with a law lord for one week. The premiere lecture of the Commercial Bar each year is called the COMBAR Lecture. Justice Kennedy gave the lecture two years ago. Senior law lords and other senior judges in England have given it in the past. This year, I was asked, in my capacity as president of the American Inns of Court, to give the lecture.

In addition to the Temple Bar program, we work with the Pegasus Trust in London on an exchange of young lawyers between the two countries. Young American lawyers visit London for approximately three months to work with barristers and judges to learn first-hand about the British legal system. Young barristers travel to the United States for a like period of time and are placed with a host Inn of Court, which arranges for the scholar to spend time with various types of law firms, corporate legal departments, courts, and a law school, if available. The goal is to provide a broad and thorough exposure to the American legal system.
 
_Q:Are there Inns of Court programs outside the U.S.?
 
_A: We have a very close and productive relationship with the four Inns in London, the Bar Council, the Commercial Bar Association and leading barristers and judges. Chief Justice Burger signed a declaration of friendship with the four Inns in London in 1988, and that has been our historic international connection. I signed a similar agreement of friendship with The Kings Inns in Dublin at the United States Supreme Court in October. Chief Justice Ronan Keane of Ireland signed on behalf of The Kings Inns.
 
_Q:Last summer, Admiral Don Stumbaugh represented the Inns of Court at the first national meeting of the country’s 22 largest law-related education organizations, hosted by the Judicial Branch Committee’s Subcommittee on Civic Education. How did the American Inns of Court become involved in this meeting and how will the Inns participate in the future?
 
_A: There was general interest after September 11, 2001 in civic education and helping the public to understand the fundamental values that preserve liberty. It seemed a good thing to get judges involved. Chief Judge Tacha of the Tenth Circuit chairs the Judicial Conference Committee on the Judicial Branch and she is a trustee of the American Inns of Court. It seemed natural to see if the members of the American Inns of Court would like to participate. Our board thought there would be a great benefit to our nation and to the rule of law in promoting enhanced civic education in our schools. We decided to encourage the Inns, individually, to consider getting involved to promote civic education in their communities.