The Court is committed to supporting the development of our next generation of trial lawyers. Judge Jantz therefore encourages counsel and parties to staff their matters with diverse and junior attorneys, and to provide these attorneys with meaningful roles in important aspects of the case—including status and motion hearings, depositions, trial, and/or settlement conferences. The active inclusion of diverse and junior attorneys adds value; these attorneys often bring fresh perspectives to the case, leading to more effective litigation strategies and more creative dispute resolutions. Lead counsel and parties should also consider the optics, for example, of appearing at a complex hearing, settlement conference, or trial with a large non-diverse team of lawyers despite the legal market’s growing diversity.

Including diverse and/or junior attorneys on a case, and giving them meaningful experience, yields other benefits too—including the development of additional experienced and effective counsel who are available to service long-term clients, particularly in an era in which clients are often expecting greater leveraging of their invoices and greater inclusion of diverse attorneys. In cases in which clients may not be able or willing to pay the cost of adding another lawyer to a particular task, the Court encourages lead counsel to consider including these lawyers without charge to the client, for the purpose of fostering their colleagues’ professional development. 

Judge Jantz has no way of enforcing this request. Instead, these observations are offered for the good of the bar in general. Passing on knowledge and skill to other attorneys is one of the most important (and fun!) contributions that senior attorneys can make to the development of our profession.