Fewer lawyers than ever are joining bar associations and participating in bar-sponsored events. Across the country, membership in non-mandatory associations has been in steady decline for over 10 years, despite the unflagging increase in the number of lawyers available to join. Many associations that can accomplish noble goals are limited by the declining number of attorneys who participate in their programs.

A recent experience prompted this column. Since early this century, the Essex County Bar Association offered meet-and-greet breakfasts at local venues called “The Bar Goes Local.” Open to all attorneys at a modest fee, this is always a special event. Superior Court judges, appellate judges and Workers’ Compensation judges all come out in numbers. The local municipalities who host these events send many of their officials to make our acquaintance. Typically, they send the judge, court administrator, prosecutor, public defender, some council members, and perhaps the police chief or mayor. It is a networking opportunity of the first order. The same is true of many NJSBA events, such as retirement luncheons and awards dinners, where networking is done with attorneys and judges who would otherwise be far less accessible.