The Richard J. Hughes American Inn of Court was granted a charter on June 2, 1989. It was the 83rd Inn of Court to join the American Inns of Court Foundation. Servicing the Union County area, the Inn is comprised of senior members of the bench and bar in Union County who are engaged in the trial practice of law.
The Inn consists of masters, barristers, and associates. The associates are young attorneys who desire to gain expertise in the practice of trial law. Their term is for two years at which time they are graduated from the Inn. The Richard J. Hughes American Inn of Court is about to complete its fifth cycle at which time it will have graduated approximately one hundred and fifty associates.
Membership applications are accepted for all categories of members. Masters must have demonstrated superior character, ability and competence as trial or appellate advocates. Barristers must have been in active practice for at least two years prior to selection as a barrister and must have demonstrated good character and a desire to improve and refine their skills as trial and appellate advocates. Associates must be either students at an accredited law school or recent law school graduates admitted to the practice of law for not more than two years.
The purposes of the Inn are:
- to promote excellence in legal advocacy at the trial and appellate court levels;
- to foster greater understanding of and appreciation for the adversary system of dispute resolution in American law with particular emphasis on ethics and professional standards of excellence;
- to provide significant educational experience that will improve and enhance the skills of lawyers as counsellors and advocates and of judges as adjudicators and judicial administrators;
- to promote interaction among members of all categories in order to minimize misapprehensions, misconceptions, and failures of communication that obstruct the effective practice of law;
- to facilitate the development of law students and recent law school graduates and less experienced lawyers as skilled participants in the American court system;
- to build upon the genius and strengths of the common law and the English Inns of Court;
- to renew and inspire joy and zest in legal advocacy as a service worthy of constant effort and learning; and
- to promote collegiately among professionals and to transmit ethical values from one professional generation to another.