Bench & Bar January/February 2026

In my very first jury trial as a young lawyer, the judge presiding over the case went above and beyond his duty. The judge called me to the bench after one of the final pre-trial hearings and told me to contact an older lawyer in the area he said he would be happy to discuss my case. The older lawyer had just tried a similar case and the judge thought he would be willing to help me. I did reach out to the lawyer, and he was so gracious. He spent an entire day with me helping me learn how to tell a story and teaching me strategies to employ at trial. I have never forgotten that lawyer and now anytime a younger lawyer reaches out to me, I make time for him or her. The key lesson here is that it is our responsibility to keep the “well” full and help prepare the next generation of lawyers.

We fill the well by practicing with integ rity, by extending grace when it’s easier to be sharp, by listening more than we speak. For young lawyers just beginning to lower their buckets into this water, I offer this: stay curious, stay humble, and stay human. The law will test you, teach you, and, if you let it, shape you into something steadier and kinder than when you began. That is the true wisdom from the well — not what we know, but what we learn, share, and leave behind for the next to draw. My hope for you is that the LAW is your vocation, not just your occupation.

long after the verdicts are forgotten. Reputa tion, once earned, becomes both shield and compass; it precedes you into every court room and lingers long after you’ve left it. The older lawyers understand this: success is built not on sharp elbows, but on steady hands and a good name. The key lesson here is to make your word, your bond and treat everyone with respect. DRAWING DEEPER FROM THE WELL There comes a point in every lawyer’s journey when the well you’ve drawn from becomes one you’re called to fill. After years of learning from mentors, judges, and even adversaries, you begin to see that wisdom isn’t meant to be hoarded — it’s meant to be handed down. The stories, the scars, the shortcuts, and the small acts of grace that once steadied you can now steady someone else. A young lawyer doesn’t need a lecture as much as they need a listener — someone who remembers how hard those first years were and who can offer both guidance and perspective without judgment. Mentorship isn’t a formal role; it’s a way of practicing gratitude. When we take time to teach, to explain, to forgive a mistake instead of con demning it, we repay a debt to those who once did the same for us. In that exchange, the profession renews itself. The well deep ens, and wisdom continues to flow.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

MARK A. OGLE is a family lawyer with Bricker Gray don Wyatt, LLP, with a reputation of treating his

CONCLUSION — WHAT THE OLD LAWYER KNOWS

clients with compassion. He has been an integral part of shaping domestic relations law for the Commonwealth of Kentucky. His appellate practice has set in place new law as it pertains to non-biological third party rights to children where the biolog ical parent failed to act timely to assert his/her rights, and he helped to establish a clearer definition for parties, attorneys, and judges regarding the complicated area of subject-matter jurisdiction and modi fication of custody under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Enforcement Act. Ogle has a growing Family Law Media tion practice that has expanded throughout the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He is a past president of the Kentucky Chapter of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers and is currently the acting del egate from the Kentucky Chapter on the AAML National House of Governors. He is a member of the Family Law Sections of the American Bar Association, Kentucky Bar Association, Northern Kentucky Bar Association, and is a frequent speaker, at both national and local bar association events. He is a certified family mediator and general civil mediator by the Kentucky Administrative Office of the Courts. Ogle is a graduate of Centre College, where he earned All-Conference honors in basketball and baseball, and the Northern Kentucky University Salmon P. Chase College of Law.

After almost 40 years of practicing law, I see that every meaningful lesson in this profes sion has come from the well — the deep, collective reservoir of experience shared by those who cared enough to teach. I’ve drawn from it in moments of doubt, exhaustion, and victory. And with each passing year, I’ve realized that wisdom isn’t a destination; it’s a continuous act of drawing and giving back.

17 bench & bar