August 16, 2017
Contact: Kate Coscarelli
Associate Executive Director, Communications
732-937-7548
Orientation ceremonies at NJ law schools kick off semester
NEW BRUNSWICK – The New Jersey State Bar Association is going back to school this week.
President Robert B. Hille is welcoming the hundreds of students who make up this year’s class of incoming students at the law schools of Rutgers University and Seton Hall University.
Though it has been many years since he showed up to his first day of law school, Hille says he vividly remembers the feeling of nervous anticipation and excitement about starting a legal career.
“Today you are commencing the same journey that all lawyers, including those giants in the law, also made. For some of you it may have been the result of a recent decision, for others it is the culmination of a desire that began much earlier in life…You seek to apply your talents and skills for service to others and to preserve a system that is ruled by law, equally applied through reason, not passion or political motivation. This is a most noble purpose.”
Hille is speaking at Rutgers Newark today and will address students at Seton Hall tomorrow, and Rutgers Camden students on Sunday, as the universities hold orientation events for new students.
While the start of law school may be intimidating, Hille tells students that they have support among the over 18,000 attorneys and legal professionals who belong to the NJSBA.
“They know the pressures you will feel from your family and those close to you who provide support during your studies. They understand the pressure you will put on yourself to succeed,” says Hille.
The orientation ceremonies are also an opportunity to remind the future lawyers that a career in the law comes with significant responsibilities, including following a path to honesty, fairness, integrity, courage and independence at all times.
To emphasize those ideals, Hille will administer an oath to the students. The Lawyer’s Pledge focuses on the ideals of the profession and was created by the New Jersey Commission on Professionalism in the Law.
The students will swear to strive to “always work with care and with a whole heart and with good faith…and to be, at all times, even at personal sacrifice, a champion of fairness and due process for all.”
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Hille welcomes state’s law students to the profession
Contact: NJSBA Communications Department
Tel: 732-937-7527
Email: [email protected]