Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge LLP actively supports attorney professional development at every level of practice. Beginning with our new associate orientation, and continuing throughout each attorney’s career with the firm, we offer a range of training and professional development opportunities designed to ensure that every attorney is equipped with the tools to become a successful, seasoned practitioner.

New Associates
New Associate Orientation: New associates are welcomed to the firm with a supportive, informative orientation program that includes both general information about getting started with the firm and concrete advice on how to succeed in the early years of large-firm practice. Partners, associates and senior administrators take an active role in first-year orientation, presenting valuable sessions, such as “What I Wish I Had Known in My First Year of Practice,” “Creating a Team with Your Secretary,” and “The Ethics of Practice.”

Throughout the first year, new associates continue to meet for periodic training sessions covering topics such as Effective Legal Writing and Introduction to Business Development. Our Professional Development team evaluates programs for their effectiveness and adds new programs, or modifies existing ones, to meet the evolving career needs of our associates.

Practice Area Trainings: Every department offers a training series to its new associates. Departments organize and present their own substantive, in-house training series with a focus on how EAPD attorneys approach a particular problem or situation. These sessions are led by partners and senior associates. In addition, new associates attend introductory training programs offered by leading organizations, such as Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) and the American Law Institute of the American Bar Association (ALI-ABA). For example, every year new Business Law associates in our Boston office attend MCLE’s Corporate Basics Plus, an eight-week program that introduces the fundamentals of corporate practice. Similarly, new Public Finance attorneys attend the National Association of Bond Lawyers program, The Fundamentals of Municipal Bond Law, a highly-regarded training program as well as an excellent networking opportunity.

Mentoring: New associates are assigned to a mentor, typically a senior or mid-level attorney. Mentors always make themselves accessible to answer questions, provide practical advice and help new associates integrate into the firm.

Beyond the First Year at EAPD
Conferences, Seminars and Webcasts: Access to training does not end after the first year. Indeed, attorneys of all levels at Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge regularly participate in seminars and programs designed to deepen their substantive knowledge and practical skills. Through subscriptions to major national vendors such as PLI, ALI-ABA, and CorporateCounsel.net, the firm offers live web casts of key programs, either in conference rooms or at attorney desktops. In addition, the Professional Development Department regularly publicizes, and encourages attorneys to attend, external CLE programs.

Practice Group and Department Meetings: All firm departments and practice areas hold regular luncheons, where attorneys gather and share information of common interest. Frequently, these meetings contain a training component highlighting a new legal development or explaining the intricacies of a recent case or deal.

In-House Programs: The firm regularly brings in outside presenters on a range of general and practice-specific topics of interest. Recent examples include a training series on Advanced Licensing Matters for our Intellectual Property attorneys and a four-part workshop on Business Development Skills designed especially for mid-level and senior associates.

Individual Skill Development/One-on-One Coaching: The firm also supports individual attorneys as they seek to improve or refine specific practice-related skills. Attorneys have benefited from personal coaching in areas such as Presentation Skills, Advanced Writing Skills, and Time Management. Our Professional Development team is available to discuss personal coaching options and arrange individualized sessions when appropriate.

Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge is proud of its tradition of promoting and embracing training and professional development. For more information, please contact Rina Mayman, Director of Professional Development, at rmayman@eapdlaw.com.