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Noreen Kelly-Najah was 31-years old when she tried her first case as lead counsel - an opportunity that she would not have gotten for years to come if it hadn't been for her firm's policy of giving young lawyers valuable trial experience through pro bono work.

While helping clients in need, the program also gives young attorneys like Kelly-Najah experience in all aspects of the litigation process, including negotiations and practice with direct client contact in a leadership role, said Amos Hartston, who manages the pro bono program at Latham & Watkins, where Kelly-Najah is now a senior associate in the New York office.

Kelly-Najah defended a Chinese man accused of participating in a smuggling ring that brought people from China to the U.S. illegally.

"Our defense was that our client had no knowledge that what was going on behind the scenes was illegal," said Kelly-Najah.

During a suppression hearing prior to trial, she argued that her client was interrogated improperly because Miranda warnings were never translated into Chinese.

Although she won the motion, her client was eventually convicted. But in the process, Kelly-Najah gained a substantial amount of trial experience.

"I did both jury addresses, all the crosses and all of the preparation," she said. "It was an amazing experience, front to back."

Kelly-Najah said the exercise was rewarding not only for the trial training it gave her, but also for the "human element," which is largely lacking in her corporate, commercial practice.

It was also the first trial she had ever taken charge of herself - an experience she wouldn't have had were it not for the firm's pro bono focus.

Gain experience by doing good

In a legal world where the increase in settlements has significantly reduced the number of trials, Kelly-Najah in Lancaster, Pa., who recently wrote a book on the subject.

"Most of these firms have a commitment to pro bono to start with, and they are desperately trying to get associates trial experience, so the two things fold together," he said.

At Podhurst Orseck, a 12-lawyer firm in Miami, partner Katherine Ezell agrees that providing free legal services is a fine way for newer attorneys to gain valuable experience.

"I see this as an area where young lawyers who need courtroom experience can easily get that," she said. "In commercial work, you don't get into the courtroom as much as I would like and cases often settle on the courthouse steps."

For example, one of the firm's younger litigators, Stephen Rosenthal, served as a guardian ad litem in a divorce case that involved a paternity dispute.

"To get more and faster exposure to the 11th Circuit, Steve also accepted an appointment to represent a litigant in an appeal of a deportation order," said partner Victor Diaz. "The work is intellectually stimulating and allows lawyers to learn about areas of the law they never would have learned about."

Kelly-Najah said her pro bono experience has allowed her to learn in action.

"As a litigator, this experience applies to anything I do, including other appearances before a judge, working through the nuances of the rules of evidence and addressing the jury," she said. No matter how much training a lawyer has, "until you really get up and do it, it's difficult to understand how a trial fits together," she added.

This article originally was published in Lawyers USA, Minnesota Lawyer's national sister publication.