Saturday, April 25, 2009

What Would Lincoln Do?

[Usually we only post lectures and other events that are open to the public or some demonstrably interested subset thereof. That's not this one, but it landed in my inbox--I'm an (inactive) member of the Illinois bar--and I thought some readers would be interested in and/or amused by the program.]

Learn how Lincoln did it and earn 4 hours APPROVED PMCLE credit! Lessons in Professional Responsibility Learned from the Illinois Law Practice of Abraham Lincoln. Presented by the Illinois State Bar Association

Thursday, May 7th
Bloomington Normal – Illinois State University Alumni Center 8:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Friday, June 5th
Carbondale - Southern Illinois University School of Law 12:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. (Co-Sponsored by the Southern Illinois University School of Law)

Friday, June 26th
Fontana, WI - 133rd ISBA Annual Meeting at The Abbey Resort Time TBD

Learn about professional responsibility from the law practice of one of Illinois’ greatest lawyers, Abraham Lincoln. You will hear the words of Lincoln and his law partner, William Herndon, through re-enactments of their recollections of cases, letters, speeches and stories. The presentations are based upon historic research provided by John Lupton, Associate Director/Associate Editor of The Papers of Abraham Lincoln. The historic settings of the re-enactments, the Lincoln-Herndon Law Office and the Old State Capitol in Springfield, were provided courtesy of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency.

After each recollection, you will also hear from some of the top bar leaders of today on how these issues impact the practice of law in the 21st century. Topics include reverence for the law; conflicts of interest & solicitation; fees & retainer agreements; pro bono legal work; sale of a practice/file management; managing client concerns and expectations; the lawyer as an advocate; the lawyer as peacemaker/frivolous lawsuits; zealous advocacy; the lawyer’s duty to the court; competency; mental health; mentoring; and diversity.

Image credit.