2025 Professionalism for New Attorneys Recap
From Tuesday-Wednesday, Dec. 2-3, 2025, NCBA welcomed newly licensed North Carolina attorneys into the profession with a Professionalism for New Attorneys (PNA) program. This program, offered both in person at the Bar Center and through live webcast, equipped attendees with essential tools for success to begin a legal career and prepared them to navigate the challenges and opportunities they may experience. Thank you to the North Carolina Bar Foundation Endowment for providing a grant to help support this PNA program.
NCBA and NCBF Executive Director Jason Hensley, Young Lawyers Division Chair-elect Michele Livingstone, NCBA Director of CLE Kate Leahy, NCBA Director of Communities Cheyenne Merrigan and Young Lawyers Division Chair Sheila Spence all gave welcome messages throughout the program. Continental breakfasts, lunches and breaks gave attendees quality networking time over tasty treats, some of which were sponsored by the Young Lawyers Division.
The two-day event consisted of 14 sessions from experienced practitioners and judges, many of whom are NCBA members, covering a range of topics including the attorney-client relationship, technology responsibilities, trust account management, diversity and inclusion, pro bono service, law office operations and courtroom practice.
Reflecting on this successful event, we prompted session speakers with questions to touch on key takeaways and highlights from the program as well as what excited them about being part of PNA:
Mary Beth Davis of Halvorsen Law Group PLLC and Anastasia Tramontozzi of Dummit Fradin presented “The Attorney-Client Relationship.” Their session covered how to best manage the attorney-client relationship, including tips that lead to success and pitfalls to avoid. Attendees learned about client creation and termination, fees and billing, duties of diligence and communication and the attorney-client privilege and confidentiality.
I was so excited to participate in PNA because just three years ago, I was sitting in the same chairs and learning about these same rules. PNA helped prepare me for real world practice as an attorney and helped me navigate some rule-specific situations. I think it is very important to highlight to new attorneys and already practicing attorneys that this is the practice of law and not the perfect of law. It’s okay to make a mistake but important that you own up to it. I hope attendees obtained a clear and concise understanding of the rules from a practical standpoint. I also hope they gained an understanding of their role as an attorney but also as an advisor to their client. As a new lawyer it is quite difficult to navigate the waters of counselor and attorney with a client. — Mary Beth Davis
I love being able to provide any advice or insight to attorneys and to act in any sort of mentorship role. I hope aspiring young attorneys got excited about entering into the legal world as well as informed about the rules of professionalism, maintaining a work-life balance and the importance of integrity and respecting the profession and practice of law. — Anastasia Tramontozzi
Anastasia Tramontozzi (virtual) and Mary Beth Davis
Sheila Spence of JMP Statistical Discovery LLC was the moderator for the “Inner Workings of the Law Office: Public and Private Sectors” session. Attendees learned the basics of law office operations, including budgeting, case and file management, training and supervising employees and marketing. They also obtained resources available through the NC State Bar and other organizations and discussed the importance of mentoring. Panelists explored the differences between private-sector and public-sector and public-interest firms.
What excited me most about being part of the PNA program was the chance to support attorneys at such a formative moment in their careers. It’s rare to find a space where new lawyers feel comfortable asking candid questions about the operational side of practice, and PNA creates exactly that environment. A standout moment for me was hearing our panelists share personal stories about the early challenges they faced and the mentors who helped them through. Those conversations truly highlighted why mentorship is so essential in our profession and reinforced the purpose of our session: to demystify law-office operations and empower new attorneys to build strong, ethical, well-run practices from day one. I hope attendees walked away from our session with a clearer, more confident understanding of what it takes to run an effective practice, whether they’re in the private sector, the public sector or public-interest work. From budgeting and case management to supervising employees and building a sustainable marketing plan, our goal was to give new attorneys practical tools they can apply immediately along with resources from the NCBA and other organizations to help guide them as they grow. — Sheila Spence
Pictured left to right: Katarina Wong, Ryan Collins, Samantha Gordon and Sheila Spence
Rashad Morgan of Crowell & Moring LLP was one of three speakers for the “Why Professionalism Is Important to You” session. Attendees learned ways to ensure a positive and professional reputation, reviewing basic professionalism concepts, the professionalism checklist, personal conflicts and more.
I was most excited about engaging with our new attorneys and to give back to them as others gave back to me when I was in their shoes. NCBA is at its best when we build a community, and PNA is a great way to make sure our newest lawyers have a strong foundation to build their careers upon. The PNA program takes a commitment. To take two days out of a busy schedule is not easy for any of us but especially those that are just starting out. Yet, I was highly impressed with the level of engagement the attendees showed in the program. Each session was well done and I was excited to be a part of it. I hope that the attendees gained a greater understanding about the importance of professionalism and how the rules help shape our profession. We are service providers and making sure that we’re serving our clients professionally, competently and ethically is a responsibility we should not take lightly. — Rashad Morgan
Robert DiDomenico III of Hiltzheimer Law Office PLLC was one of two speakers for the “Dealing With the Courts” session, a highly engaging session where attendees examined Rule 3.3 and Rule 11, courtroom decorum and setting realistic goals for their practice, receiving pointers to positively influence their presence in the courts.
I feel like I was a new attorney just yesterday. I still feel like a new attorney. It was a very full circle moment to now be part of the program as a speaker. I ran into a new attorney that I had met when she was still an intern in a county DA’s office. It was so nice to see she had passed the bar and was practicing now. It’s easy for us to forget the initial excitement of being a new attorney. The longer we practice, the further removed we become from the agony of law school and bar prep and the ecstasy of passing and being sworn in. Working with new attorneys is a reminder of that excitement and a great opportunity to remember why we went into this line of work in the first place. I hope the attendees left with practical skills they can use in their practice and a new perspective on the importance of collegiality in our profession. — Robert DiDomenico III
NCBA Director of the Center for Practice Management Catherine Sanders Reach led a session on “Technology and Your Responsibility to Your Clients,” giving attendees an overview of the technology necessary to build a law office support system, best and worst practices and technology’s impact on ethical responsibilities, including ethical considerations of social media, conflict controls and risk of spoliation of evidence.
I love to get to speak with the new members and hear about the start of their career trajectories. I appreciated how inquisitive and thoughtful the attendees were and I look forward to watching their success. I hope that the attendees learned that while technology is a powerful tool for lawyers, even mundane tasks like email can become dangerous without taking time to be careful and conscious of possible ways to run afoul of ethical responsibilities. — Catherine Sanders Reach
NCBF Senior Director Kim Bart Mullikin and NCBF Director of Programs Alex Rogers covered a “Pro Bono Service in N.C.” session. Attendees learned how to get involved through their local and state bar associations to give back to the community as well as a crash course on Rule 6.1 and their obligation for pro bono service.
I love talking with attorneys about pro bono volunteer opportunities. There are so many ways for lawyers to get involved in pro bono practice — from brief advice and counsel clinics to extended representation by taking a pro bono case referral from an N.C. legal services organization. There are lots of programs and people throughout the state who look forward to working with newer attorneys to help make pro bono engagement easy, worthwhile and personally fulfilling. As a CLE speaker, my favorite thing is getting questions from the audience. We saw a lot of engagement in person and online after our session on N.C. Pro Bono Practice. I hope that PNA attendees came away feeling inspired and more prepared for practice and optimistic about joining the community of N.C. legal professionals. — Kim Bart Mullikin
Thank you to all our 2025 attendees and our amazing speakers and staff who made yet another PNA program a reality. We hit 243 total participants between our in-person and virtual attendees!
NCBA values flexibility when helping you reach your required CLE credits, offering countless live webcasts, rebroadcasts, on-demand options and more. We want our CLEs to fit your schedule and give you the easiest educational experience possible. “Don’t Be Afraid: The State Bar Grievance Process Doesn’t Have to Be Scary” session speaker Joshua Walthall of Boerema Blackton LLP can vouch for this flexibility:
I was sick the morning of the CLE because my children shared their stomach bug with me. Thus, the NCBA had to play an old video of me giving the same CLE a year ago. Hopefully I was better looking in that video than in real life and that attendees left under the impression that I’m funny and intelligent…and also that they shouldn’t violate the Bar Rules. — Joshua Walthall
Interested in attending more NCBA CLE programs? View our catalog and register today.