Bridging The Gap: A New SDCBA Section Connects Lawyers Who Want Guidance With Lawyers Ready To Give It

Around a conference table at the SDCBA Bar Center, lawyers with decades of experience gathered to discuss a pressing question of how do we build better mentorship in the profession? The conversation was led by Janet Sobel, chair of the SDCBA’s Senior Advisors Section, one of the newest sections of the bar association. The section’s mission is simple but ambitious: Connect experienced attorneys who want to share their knowledge with lawyers who are looking for guidance. 

The meeting’s theme was framed as addressing isolation in the legal profession. But the discussion quickly focused on something more concrete – mentorship. Many lawyers begin their careers without a clear path to experienced guidance. Even attorneys working inside firms can struggle to find someone they feel comfortable approaching with questions. And once lawyers leave structured environments like law school or clerkships, those mentorship opportunities can become even harder to find.

The Senior Advisors Section hopes to change that. 

The idea behind the section is straightforward, bring together attorneys who have accumulated decades of practical knowledge and create opportunities for them to share it with the broader legal community. And importantly, many of those senior attorneys want to do exactly that. 

One attorney described entering what they called their “mentorship era,” saying that after decades in the profession, “this is the stage where you want to give back and help younger lawyers navigate what we’ve already gone through.”

As a relatively new attorney, licensed for less than two years, I attended the meeting on behalf of the New Lawyers Division to cover the discussion. In fact, I was the only attorney in the room at the very beginning of a legal career. 

The contrast was striking. Around the table were lawyers with decades of experience across civil litigation, family law, government work, employment law, transactional practice, and more. And yet the tone of the meeting was not one of seniority, it was one of generosity. These attorneys were not there simply to talk about their careers. They are there because they genuinely want to help other lawyers succeed. 

The section aims to make that easier by creating a structured approachable platform where attorneys can connect with mentors across practice areas. Members discussed developing systems that allow experienced lawyers to identify the kinds of help they are willing to offer, whether that means discussing strategy, sharing professional perspective, or simply serving as a sounding board. The goal is not for senior attorneys to step into someone else’s case, but to offer the kind of insight that can only come from years, or decades, of practice. 

The group also discussed future initiatives, including informal networking gathering, roundtable conversations about the realities of practicing law, and outreach to law students and newer attorneys who may be looking for guidance about their professional paths. But one message came through clearly: the section will succeed only if more lawyers participate. 

The Senior Advisors Section is not just for senior attorneys. It is designed as a resource for the entire SDCBA community – for lawyers who want mentorship, lawyers who want to mentor, and lawyers who simply want to connect with colleagues outside their immediate practice circles. 

Sobel emphasized that the section works best when lawyers across the bar participate. “We need both groups,” she said. “The lawyers who want to help, and the lawyers who are looking for help.”

For a section that is still new, the enthusiasm behind it is unmistakable. The attorneys involved are eager to build something that strengthens the profession and makes it easier for lawyers to learn from one another. And if the conversation at this meeting was any indication, there is a great deal of experience in the San Diego legal community ready to be shared. All it needs is more lawyers willing to join the conversation.