The event brought a dozen active practitioners to the North Haven Campus for guided teaching, learning and mentorship sessions.

During the Gateway to Practice event held every spring, students serve as junior associates and work with the practitioners who act as partners for mock law firms. Together, these groups collaborate to take on cases for fictional clients and tackle the elements of practice in an environment that mimics true-to-life experiences.

The program provides several benefits to aspiring legal practitioners:

• First-year students learn the basics of law and legal analysis. This program shows students how lawyers use doctrine and basic legal skills to assist clients in the everyday practice of law.

• Students supplement their classroom experience with activities ordinarily not part of the first-year curriculum, including deriving facts from a client interview, brainstorming strategies with law firm colleagues, explaining options to clients and engaging clients in decision-making.

• The program integrates transactional lawyering and litigation and helps students to better understand the relationship between legal theory and practice.

• The program helps students prepare for summer employment and gives them a start in developing networking skills.

After welcoming remarks from School of Law Dean Brian Gallini, the Hon. Victor Bolden, a U.S. District judge, led a panel discussion on “What Makes a Great Lawyer,” with Stan Twardy, a partner at Day Pitney LLP; Elyssa Williams, a senior legal counsel at the Bronx Defenders; Andrea Barton Reeves, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Social Services; Natalie Elicker, assistant U.S. Attorney in the Connecticut U.S. Attorney’s Office; and Leander Dolphin, a partner at Shipman and Goodwin LLP.

Throughout the two days, there were additional discussions and videos on problem-solving, cultural competence, preparing for licensure success, mock client interviews, research projects, presentations and feedback.