Welcome to my blog!

Hello and welcome to In at the Deep End, my new blog that will be about my experiences as a new attorney in the state of Michigan.

First a little about me. I am a recent graduate of the Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Lansing. I was awarded a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree with a certificate of concentration in litigation. I graduated in the top 25% of my class. While at Cooley I served as a Senior Associate Editor on the Thomas M. Cooley Law Review, and also participated on a Moot Court team that competed against other law schools in the State of Michigan Moot Court Competition.

Today in the mail I received a packet from the State Bar of Michigan that contained a number of items. The first was a letter notifying me that I had passed the bar exam. The second was a letter addressed "TO THE COURTS OF RECORD OF MICHIGAN" which stated that I have been found ". . . to be of full age and possessed of sufficient learning in the law, moral character and ability . . ." to practice law in Michigan. In addition to these was a form telling me that I now need to present these documents to a Michigan circuit court, where upon motion made ". . . by a licensed Michigan lawyer, the court will administer the oath of office and enter an order admitting you to the bar of the state." I then need to mail that Order of Admission, together with an application form and payment of half a year's bar dues, to the State Bar of Michigan, who will then provide me with my actual bar card. At that point, I can practice law in Michigan.

I am going to use this blog to talk about the challenges and triumphs I am sure I will be encountering as a new attorney. I am hoping folks find this of interest. If you are looking for an attorney, remember that I am not yet (as of 6/14/08) able to practice, but this should change within a couple weeks at the most. In the meantime my e-mail is paananenlaw@hotmail.com.

Thanks for reading, I hope to post again soon.