Cedarburg attorney Collin Schaefer signed up for the State Bar's Ready.Set.Practice mentoring program to learn a new practice area.

Oct. 19, 2016 – Last year, Collin Schaefer sought to delve into a new practice area – immigration law. As a Spanish speaker, he'd been interested in the area even before entering law school.

He was practicing in civil litigation, and received "great mentorship" at Madden Vanderloop, S.C. in Mayville – but no one there practiced in immigration law.

"It is a very complicated area," said Schaefer, who practices now as a solo attorney in Cedarburg.

That's when he saw his chance – and signed up as a mentee with Ready.Set.Practice.

The State Bar of Wisconsin's new mentoring program, Ready.Set.Practice, matches a lawyer having six years or more of experience within the legal profession with new lawyers practicing for five years or fewer. Mentors and mentees agree to a one-year commitment to the program.

Schaefer and his mentor, Cain Oulahan of Milwaukee, are one of 20 mentor/mentee pairs currently in the program.

Ready.Set.Practice is now accepting applicants for mentees and mentors for its second year.

Schaefer, now entering his third year of practice, was paired with Cain Oulahan of Milwaukee, an immigration attorney at Straub Immigration, Milwaukee. As an attorney who concentrates in family-based immigration, deportation defense, naturalization, and post-conviction relief, Oulahan was the perfect mentor for Schaefer.

"What an awesome opportunity the State Bar has provided me with – someone willing to work with me," Schaefer said.

Fluent in Spanish, Oulahan worked with immigrants – including in such programs as Head Start – well before becoming a lawyer five years ago, and delved into the practice area once he had his degree. "I was lucky to have a mentor right away," he said. "Most new attorneys don't have that opportunity."

Milwaukee attorney Cain Oulahan joined the program as a mentor for Collin Schaefer, to help him learn immigration law.

Oulahan, who earned his law degree in 2011, was a new attorney not so long ago. "I said I'd give it a shot."

Ready.Set.Practice facilitates forming and maintaining a close relationship between mentor and mentee. It allows the mentee to ask for the mentor's commitment of time, making it easier to ask for help. "Let's face it – everyone is really busy," Schaefer said.

"Without a formal program, it's harder to ask for help," Oulahan said.  "When it's formalized, it's more comfortable going to a mentor when you have doubts or need help."

They meet infrequently, but when they do, Schaefer usually has a cache of 10 to 15 questions for Oulahan. The sessions are very rewarding.

With their year-long commitment to the program ending in December, Oulahan and Schaefer plan to stay in touch.  "It's been a great experience for us," Schaefer said. "We see the awesome advantage this program can bring to both of us."

"As an attorney who specializes in immigration and is located in the city, it was really interesting to be paired with someone who has a more general practice and works in small towns and rural areas," Oulahan said. "It has given me a new and fresh perspective from a different point of view."

With the complexity and high stakes of immigration law – where a mistake might result in a client being deported – Oulahan was happy to see Schaefer's dedication. "I'm always glad to see committed practitioners willing to work hard," Oulahan said.

Oulahan encourages lawyers to sign up as mentors in the program. "Mentorship is something that's been lacking in general for attorneys," he said. "It is important as a Bar that we ourselves work to change that. I would definitely participate in this program again."