Bench & Bar July/August 2025

ENDNOTES 1 KBA members age 40 and under and all KBA members who have practiced law 10 years or less, regardless of age, are eligible to be YLD members – just be sure when you are paying your KBA dues to pay your YLD dues of $20. 2 If you are unfamiliar with the YLD’s programs, I encourage you to reach out to a YLD Executive Committee member and check out our website at https://www.kybar.org/page/YLD I THANK YOU FOR BEING “MORE THAN A LAWYER” EACH DAY. Con tinue to serve your clients and communities and be kind to one another. I am honored and humbled to serve you and see what we will accomplish this year together. I can be reached at kyle.bunnell@dinsmore.com or at (859) 425-1045. and fail others, but will remain steadfast. Because, if not them, then who? “More Than A Lawyer” pays homage to the young lawyers’ impact and importance on the Bar, as well as in their communities, homes, and families. But it is also a call to action for the young lawyer to practice and extend kindness to everyone they meet along the way - from our wonderful bench, the lawyers and staff within your firm, the clerks who process (or sometimes reject) your filings, and to our colleagues who we find on the other side of a dispute. Just because ours is an adversarial occupation, that does not mean it cannot be a collegial one. Pick up the phone to work through a discovery dispute before filing a motion to compel. Tell your law partners, paralegals and/or assistants “thank you” or that you appreciate them. Further, tell your signif icant other, your families, your friends, and all those in the orbit how important they are to you. Maybe most importantly, lawyer, love thyself – and acknowledge all the things you do and the hats you wear and give yourself grace. So what about Shakespeare’s quote? It is more than a punch line at a party. Without the young lawyer, the very bedrock of our freedoms and the institutions that we hold dear – from the Bar and beyond – would crumble.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR KYLE R. BUNNELL is the chair of the Young Lawyers Division of the KBA and a member of the KBA’s Publications Committee. He is an attor ney at Dinsmore & Shohl LLP in Lexington where he focuses his practice on commercial litigation, as well as bad faith insurance, equine law, and product liability. In addition to his bar service, he is also active in the community. He serves as a board member of the University of Kentucky College of Law Alumni Association, Children’s Law Center, and Lawyers Mutual Insurance of Kentucky (LMICK).

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