What Does Board Certification Mean?
Board certification is a designation and an honor conferred upon lawyers who reach a certain high level of achievement and accomplishment in their specialty area. It is much like the way a doctor becomes a specialist. For example, a doctor specializing in heart-related medicine is usually board certified in internal medicine and/or cardiology. A doctor specializing in mental health may be board certified in psychiatry and/or neurology.
Likewise, a lawyer specializing in civil trials could be board certified in civil trial law. A lawyer specializing in criminal trials would thus be a “certified criminal trial lawyer.” Only a handful of states allow their lawyers to become board certified. In those states without board certification, the public must choose its lawyers based on a variety of criteria - reputation, word-of-mouth, or advertising, to name of few.
When you select a board certified attorney, however, you are choosing a lawyer who not only passed the bar examination when he began practicing law, but who later passed a specialty board certification examination after many years of experience. To become board certified is difficult. While many lawyers' only claim to fame is that they advertise in the Yellow Pages or on the internet, a board certified lawyer can proudly state that he has the endorsement of his state Supreme Court or of some other nationally recognized certifying organization.
To become certified, a lawyer must prove that he has completed a certain number of additional law courses after becoming a lawyer. These courses are presented in the form of seminars and educational programs in the lawyer's specialty area. In addition, certification requires that a lawyer have a certain number of years of experience, and particular experience handling trials and cases in his area of specialization. Board certification requires that a lawyer receive favorable recommendations by judges and other lawyers, including often lawyers who have been his adversaries in previous court cases. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, to become certified, a lawyer must pass the grueling board certification examination.
Only a small percentage of lawyers qualify for board certification. For example, in New Jersey, as of December 31, 2002, there were 56,446 active lawyers in the state, but only 1,554 of them were certified. In Florida, where there are over 76,000 lawyers who are members of the bar, only 30 of them are board certified in international law.
Mark S. Guralnick is board certified in international law in Florida; certified in civil trial law in New Jersey, certified in matrimonial law in New Jersey, and certified as a court guardian in New York. Nationally, Mark S. Guralnick is a board certified family law trial advocate; he is a board certified diplomate in medical malpractice law (by the American Board of Professional Liability Attorneys), and he is certified in forensics by the American Board of Forensic Examination. For a full list of Mark S. Guralnick's board certifications, click here.