Robert H. Edmunds, Jr., Associate Justice of the N.C. Supreme Court, administered Campbell Law School’s pledge of professionalism to a first year class of 154 students on August 11 as part of student orientation.

Each first year student at Campbell Law School must pledge to live by the following professional creed:

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I, (State Your Name), as a student entering Campbell Law School, understand that I am both joining an academic community and embarking on a professional career.  I acknowledge the privileges inherent in becoming a lawyer and willingly accept the responsibilities that accompany those privileges.

I promise to do my utmost to live up to the high ideals of the legal profession and to uphold the highest standards of academic honesty and ethical practice throughout my legal training and the remainder of my professional life.  I will always remember that my actions reflect not only upon myself, but also upon Campbell Law School and the legal profession.

I will always conduct myself with dignity and civility and will treat all of my colleagues -- students, staff, and faculty -- with courtesy and respect. 

I vow to be a person of principle, compassion, strength and courage.  I will recognize my weaknesses and strengths and strive to develop the character that is demanded of a lawyer.

I commit to conduct my academic, professional, and personal life to honor the values and standards that are expressed in the Campbell Law School Code of Honor and Professional Responsibility and shared by the legal profession.

This pledge I take freely and upon my honor.

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“Campbell Law School puts tremendous emphasis on professionalism, personal integrity, and ethics throughout the entire law school experience,” said Keith Faulkner, Vice Dean of Campbell Law School. “Taking the pledge of professionalism is one of the very first things all incoming students perform when they arrive. It was an honor to have an individual as distinguished as Justice Bob Edmunds administer this important oath to our students.”

Justice Edmunds has served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of North Carolina since January 2001. Prior to his service on North Carolina’s top court, Justice Edmunds served as a member of the North Carolina Court of Appeals from 1999 - January 2001. He held a variety of public and private positions from 1979 - 1999.

About Campbell Law School: Since its founding in 1976, the Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law at Campbell University has developed lawyers who possess moral conviction, social compassion and professional competence, and who view the law as a calling to serve others and create a more just society. The School has been recognized by the American Bar Association (ABA) as having the nation’s top Professionalism Program and by the American College of Trial Lawyers for having the nation’s best Trial Advocacy Program. In 2008, the Law School’s Moot Court Program was ranked 17th nationally among 196 ABA accredited law schools. Campbell Law boasts more than 3,000 alumni, including 2,000 who reside and work in North Carolina as well as the highest average overall passage rate on the July N.C. Bar Exam for the past 17 years. For more information, visit law.campbell.edu.