This comprehensive guide offers a wealth of practical information about all aspects of professional development, including performance evaluations, training, mentoring, work assignments, and much, much more. Click here to view the Table of Contents.

This book is written for legal employers, managers, professional development directors, training partners, and everyone interested or involved in lawyers' learning and development. It is intended to be a complete reference for those who are starting, expanding, revising, or restructuring professional development activities. Whether you are new to the field or have extensive experience, this book will be an invaluable resource.

Review of Lawyers' Professional Development

"... a virtual encyclopedia of professional development for the 21st century."
- Libby Saypol, The ALI-ABA Insider

"... the most important book on the subject to date ... a must read for those who manage law firms or corporate or governmental legal departments."
- Bryn R. Vaaler and Nancy O. Fraser, Law Firm Partnership & Benefits Report

"Ida Abbott's latest book is a prodigious gift indeed! ... More than a gift, this book is a milestone. The first book of its kind, it marks the emergence of law office professional development as a profession in itself."
- Gaye Mara, Professional Development Quarterly

Available from amazon.com and from NALP
Paperback – 423 pages (December 5, 2002); ISBN: 1557330336

NALP: www.nalp.org
202-835-1001; 1025 Connecticut Ave NW, Suite 1110, Washington DC 20036-5413

The rapid growth of law firms and fierce competition for top legal talent have combined to convince successful law firms of the need for increased emhasis on attorney professional development. This compilation of articles by Ida Abbott addresses key facets of professional development. Numerous examples of innovative "best practices" complement the author's analyses of attorney professional development needs in law firms today.

As associates leave their firms in record numbers, one of the most frequently cited reasons for departures is perceived lack of opportunity for professional development. The practices suggested in Developing Legal Talent can not only prepare associates to better meet their clients' needs but also help stem the tide of attrition. Click here to view the Table of Contents.

Available from NALP
Paperback – 251 pages (2001); ISBN: 1557330301

NALP: www.nalp.org
202-835-1001; 1025 Connecticut Ave NW, Suite 1110, Washington DC 20036-5413

The Lawyer's Guide to Mentoring is directed to every lawyer interested in being a mentor or having a mentor – and to every law office wishing to make mentoring available in the workplace. It unlocks the secrets to finding multiple mentoring relationships that support professional development and success at all stages of a career. The Lawyer's Guide to Mentoring takes readers step by step through the benefits and dynamics of a successful mentoring relationship, explaining how to start and maintain a mentoring program – and how an individual lawyer can start and maintain a mentoring friendship.

The Lawyer's Guide to Mentoring was sponsored by the New York Women's Bar Association Foundation.

Reviews of The Lawyer's Guide to Mentoring

"The Guide is a valuable book — informative, sensibly organized, and well-written — on a subject that's vital to lawyers, law firms and legal departments. I consider it must reading for anyone interested in mentoring."
- James C. Freund, New York Law Journal

"Although this book was written for the legal profession, the checklists provided, the clarity of the ideas as well as the scope of the topics make this book applicable to a much wider audience. If you are considering establishing an effective mentoring program in a professional firm such as engineering, accounting, insurance, finance, science, medicine, or technology, this book can easily be the only reference you will need."
- From Peer Resources

"This book is 'a bible' for those committed to mentoring for women and minority attorneys."
- James P. Hargarten, San Francisco Attorney Magazine

"All in all, The Lawyer’s Guide to Mentoring is a must read for any firm looking for new ways to increase associate retention and strengthen the law firm."
- Hazel Johnson, Law Practice Management

"It would be difficult to come away from reading this book without a deep appreciation of the interconnectedness of professional success and personal fulfillment that are fostered by the mentoring process. The Lawyer’s Guide to Mentoring should be required reading in every legal workplace by lawyers and managers alike."
- Norma Piatt, The Bottom Line

Available from amazon.com and from NALP
Paperback – 171 pages (2000); ISBN: 1557330204

NALP: www.nalp.org
202-835-1001; 1025 Connecticut Ave NW, Suite 1110, Washington DC 20036-5413

These booklets offer easy and practical suggestions for a successful mentoring experience. Filled with sensible ideas and steps that can be implemented immediately, they are indispensable resources for effective mentoring relationships.

These booklets are available from NALP:
Being an Effective Mentor
Working with a Mentor

NALP: www.nalp.org
202-835-1001; 1025 Connecticut Ave NW, Suite 1110, Washington DC 20036-5413

Studies of the legal profession consistently show that one of the significant barriers to the advancement of women and minority lawyers is the inability of these lawyers to find mentors. This study, conducted by Ida Abbott and Dr. Rita Boags for the Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA), looked at women and minority lawyers in law firms and corporate law departments who had successful mentoring relationships. We wanted to learn how these lawyers found, formed, and sustained meaningful mentoring relationships across gender and race. The study results have significant implications for law firm diversity efforts and for individual lawyers of both genders and all races.

Here are a few of our key findings:

• Women and minority lawyers who understood the value of mentoring and actively sought mentors were able to find mentors to meet various needs and goals throughout their careers.
• While lawyers preferred informal mentoring, 90% of participants who were matched in formal mentoring programs were satisfied with their mentoring experience.
• Mentors viewed their time and energy as expensive assets and the mentoring process as an investment of those assets. They invested in lawyers who they believed would produce a high return, i.e., those whom they saw as "winners" or "keepers."
• Many women and minority lawyers were not aware of what potential mentors expected from them. This lack of knowledge may be one of the key reasons why women and minority lawyers do not experience mentoring to the same degree as white men.
• Mentoring programs and diversity initiatives helped create an environment that fostered cross-gender and cross-race mentoring. However, participants felt that firms did not provide adequate guidelines, training, or coordination of these programs and initiatives.

In addition to discussing the study's findings and their implications, Mentoring Across Differences presents practical recommendations for lawyers who wish to have mentors; for mentors of women and minority lawyers; and for legal employers who wish to promote mentoring in their organizations. The study is receiving national attention and was mentioned in the New York Times at http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/18/jobs/18exli.html.

The Minority Corporate Counsel Association, which sponsored the study as part of its Creating Pathways to Diversity^® series, has not only published our report, it has also made the report available in PDF format. You can request a copy of Mentoring Across Differences from MCCA at (202) 371-5908 or via email.