DETROIT (Aug. 11, 2010) - Wayne State University Law School first-year students soon will have the opportunity to discuss the importance of workplace civility and ethics with more than 50 prominent Detroit-area attorneys and judges. Part of orientation week, Wayne Law's inaugural Professionalism in Action program will be held at 3 - 6 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 27, 2010, at the Detroit Athletic Club.
The Professionalism in Action program was introduced by State Bar of Michigan past President Ed Pappas in 2009 and has been endorsed by the State Bar. It serves as a model for Michigan's law schools desiring to provide an opportunity for interaction between first-year law students and veteran lawyers and judges. The program emphasizes the importance of professionalism using a series of pre-selected hypothetical situations, which are discussed in small-group sessions composed of law students, lawyers and members of the judiciary.
Wayne Law's program will begin with briefing sessions for small-group leaders and will include a welcome by Wayne Law Dean Robert M. Ackerman. State Bar of Michigan President Charles Toy and Chief U.S. District Judge Gerald E. Rosen will provide remarks prior to group sessions and evaluations. The event will conclude with a reception.
Group sessions will cover issues such as duties to the profession, duties to the public, honesty and the effect of substance abuse.
"We view this program as a unique opportunity to help students begin their law school careers with a firm understanding of professional ethics," said Professor Anne M. Burr, Wayne Law director of Legal Research and Writing. "Ethics and professionalism should be central to our legal culture."
For more information about the Wayne Law Professionalism in Action program, contact Marilyn Vaughan at ak1557@wayne.edu or (313) 577-4822. Visit http://www.law.wayne.edu/2010orientation.php for a complete schedule of orientation week events.
Wayne State University is a premier urban research university offering more than 400 academic programs through 13 schools and colleges to nearly 32,000 students.
For more information about Wayne State University Law School, visit law.wayne.edu.