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The newest batch of Texas lawyers was officially sworn in Monday at the New Lawyers Induction Ceremony.

Friends and family of the new attorneys and representatives from the State Bar of Texas and the state’s 10 law schools watched the festivities at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, as the Texas Supreme Court and Court of Criminal Appeals justices presided over the event.

IMG_6302“I know this may not be the most important day of your life, but it is the most important day in your professional life as an officer of the court,” State Bar President Allan K. DuBois said at the ceremony, before speaking about the importance of integrity.

Texas Young Lawyers Association President C. Barrett Thomas encouraged the 806 new lawyers who passed the February bar exam to give back during their careers.

“You should take pride in being not only a lawyer but a Texas lawyer,” Thomas said. IMG_6304

The high scorer on the exam, Jeremy Wallace Dunbar of South Texas College of Law, spoke to his new fellow attorneys before they took their oath.

“As we begin our journey as attorneys, let’s remember our duty to serve, to seek justice, and to give back,” Dunbar said.

When he got the call from Texas Supreme Court Justice Don Willett that he was the high scorer, Dunbar told the Texas Bar Blog he was shocked and felt blessed.

“I went from being legitimately worried I failed, to finding out (my girlfriend and I) both passed,” Dunbar said. “It was over the top.”

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His advice for future bar exam-takers? Work hard. Dunbar treated studying for the bar like a job.

After administering the oath Monday morning, Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Nathan L. Hecht left the new lawyers with lasting parting words:

“From this day forward, you are the voice and instrument for the rule of law.”

View more photos of the event at the State Bar of Texas Flickr page.