Welcome to the Bar! Out of a personal belief that our new lawyers deserve to spend the whole weekend celebrating the commendable achievement of being called to the bar, I've held these few words until now. For some of them, tomorrow is their first working day as lawyers; for others, that day will come later. Whatever the case may be, welcome to the bar. May prosperity locate you in the noblest of ways. I've picked up a few lessons over the years that may be helpful. Here you go: 1. Beware of generic advice. If advice isn't bespoke to you, endure it, but by no means be bound by it. "Go and do an LLM." "Work in a big law firm." "Do litigation for a few years before you decide what to specialize in." You'll hear these from well-meaning people trying to help you grow. Appreciate their selflessness, but after at least five years of study for your professional credentials, you have earned the right to decide how your career is shaped. That something worked for a senior lawyer 20 years ago doesn't mean it will work for you, especially in a completely different legal market. Value such exhortations for what they are, but chart your own path, intentionally. 2. Guard your professional reputation with all your might. Hear me out. Don't worry about the flimsy things people think of you. Not everyone will like you, and expecting otherwise will leave you hurt every day. People may have reservations about your life and your choices, but make them respect your professional worth. Give them no choice. In the professional world, nothing should be personal except what you bring to the table. How? I won't fall into the trap of giving generic advice. Whatever route you choose, make sure the substance of your law is never in question. The law doesn't stop growing because you've become a lawyer; it may not even know you've arrived. It changes, it grows, and it demands constant attention. 3. Extend grace to clients. A long time ago, someone told me that doctors and lawyers do exactly the same thing in different places. Anyone with a legal problem is like a sick person: until you treat the ailment, the itch won't go away. Remember that. 4. Touch lives, in your own little way. I now teach law in a program that deliberately emphasizes the public policy underpinnings of the law. It gives me great joy, because I know we're producing a unique crop of lawyers who are responsive to the unspoken ethos behind the black letter of the law. After all is said and done, law is a means to an end. Prosperity isn't the end; it's merely a necessary companion on the journey. Welcome to the bar, and may the bar continue to prosper. PS: Every new lawyer needs to read Alan Dershowitz’s ‘Letters to a Young Lawyer’.