Certification and Bar Membership for Practicing Labor Law

Bar membership on both the state and federal court levels is strongly recommended by all attorneys responding to the survey. Although most labor issues are settled through the negotiation or arbitration process, decisions can be appealed. In order to present these cases in court, an attorney must be licensed to practice before that court, whether it is on the state or federal level.

In some states it is possible to be certified as a specialist in a given area of the law. In the states that allow certification, there are two basic methods for being certified—testing (attorneys are tested in the specifics of labor law practice, similar to an advanced bar examination), and self designation (attorneys are allowed to state that they meet certain specific criteria, e.g., have been practicing law for five or more years and have over 50% of their practice in the area of labor).

The question of whether or not to allow certification has undergone a great deal of discussion within state bars. Existing rules are modified yearly in some states, while other states still are considering whether or not to institute such a certification process. Because changes have been occuring so rapidly, specific information concerning certification rules should be obtained directly from each state bar.

There are a number of special benefits for an attorney who is certified as a specialist in the area of labor practice. One of these benefits involves client development. Many attorneys felt that those who are listed as specialists in a particular field of law practice, and thus able to advertise (e.g., in the yellow pages of the telephone directory, or through announcement cards sent to other attorneys), are more likely to be contacted directly by clients with needs in those areas. They would also tend to receive more referrals from other attorneys. It would, therefore, be possible to build a strong client base around one particular area of the law; consequently, there would be less need to take unrelated cases. The ability to specialize would lead to increased skill development and proficiency, thus better service to clients. Many attorneys also mentioned that they felt a certain status and prestige was attached to those with the specialist label.

The standard of care to which a specialist is held by the public and the legal profession is higher than that for an attorney who is not a specialist. The same rule seems to apply whether attorneys are certified or merely hold themselves forth as having special skills. This most likely results in higher malpractice insurance liability rates, because of their greater risk of malpractice law suits. Thus, they will also be more likely to charge higher fees to clients.

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