I put this resource together for the inaugural meeting of the AI Virtual American Inn of Court — the first Inn of Court in history to exist entirely in the virtual world, dedicated to the most consequential technology now reshaping the practice of law.
If you're new to the Inns of Court tradition, this page is your guide. It traces the full arc: from the medieval halls of London where the tradition was born, across the Atlantic to the American Inns of Court movement launched by Chief Justice Warren Burger, through the explosion to nearly 400 chapters nationwide — and all the way to this moment, where we gather in a virtual room to reckon with artificial intelligence.
My own connection to this tradition runs through my father, Justice Randy J. Holland of the Delaware Supreme Court — the longest-serving Justice in that court's history, former President of the American Inns of Court, and one of only three Americans ever named an Honorary Bencher of Lincoln's Inn in London. His life's work in the law is the thread that leads me here. I arrive not as a lawyer but as an AI expert, bringing what I hope is a complementary perspective to a community that has always valued the meeting of minds across disciplines.
Scroll through, explore the links, and use this as a reference before, during, or after our meetings. Welcome to the Inn.
Seven centuries of legal excellence — from medieval halls on the Thames to the world's first AI Virtual Inn of Court
AI Virtual Inn of Court · April 2026Born from a medieval collision between church authority and common law, the English Inns of Court have shaped the practice of law for more than 700 years.
The story begins in the early 13th century. Law was taught in the City of London, primarily by the clergy. But in 1218, a papal bull prohibited the clergy from teaching common law rather than canon law — and in 1234, King Henry III decreed that no legal education could take place within the City of London itself. Secular lawyers were effectively pushed out.
They migrated westward to the hamlet of Holborn, just outside the City walls and conveniently close to the law courts at Westminster Hall. This geographic accident would give birth to one of the most enduring institutions in the history of the law.
Over the following century, informal communities of lawyers — living, eating, debating, and teaching together — coalesced into formal societies. These became the Inns of Court: part residential college, part professional guild, part apprenticeship system. To practice as a barrister in England and Wales, one had to be a member of an Inn and be formally "called to the Bar" by that Inn — a tradition that continues to this day.
Junior students sat within the bar of the court, observing. Those who had completed sufficient study would stand at the bar to plead cases, coming to be known as "Utter Barristers." The phrase "called to the Bar" — still used worldwide — traces directly to this medieval practice at the Inns of Court.
The Inns served as far more than exam factories. They were communities of scholarship and sociability. Students dined together in grand halls (a requirement still in effect today), watched moots — mock trials — and absorbed the unwritten customs of the profession by proximity to their seniors. The system was profoundly relational, built on the idea that legal excellence is transmitted person-to-person, not merely page-to-student.
In 1620, a meeting of senior judges declared all four Inns equal in order of precedence. Each developed its own character, traditions, and community — yet all shared a common mission: the making of excellent lawyers.
Records trace lawyers here to 1320. Located in the former precincts of the Knights Templar. Its symbol is the Pegasus — winged horse of the Muses.
Formally established by 1346. Its magnificent Hall (completed 1572) hosted the first recorded performance of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night in 1602. Symbol: the Lamb and Flag.
The largest Inn, with official records dating to 1422. Named for Henry de Lacy, 3rd Earl of Lincoln. Famous alumni include Thomas More and Margaret Thatcher.
Written records begin in 1569, though teaching likely began in the late 14th century. Its beautiful gardens, laid out by Francis Bacon, remain a tranquil oasis in central London.
Each Inn is governed by its senior members, known as Benchers (formally "Masters of the Bench"). Benchers are the stewards of the Inn's traditions, its scholarship programs, and its calling ceremonies. They are elected from among the most distinguished members of the bar and judiciary — and in rare, exceptional cases, honorary Bencher status is conferred upon distinguished individuals from outside England.
Lincoln's Inn has conferred honorary Bencher status on only a handful of Americans in its 600-year history. Among them: U.S. Supreme Court Justices John Paul Stevens and Ruth Bader Ginsburg — and Justice Randy J. Holland of the Delaware Supreme Court. It is one of the most distinguished honors an American lawyer can receive.
In the late 1970s, a Chief Justice looked across the Atlantic and asked: what if American lawyers could learn the way English barristers do — not just from books, but from each other?
The American Inns of Court movement began with a conversation. Chief Justice of the United States Warren E. Burger was deeply concerned about the state of professionalism, civility, and ethics in American legal practice. During discussions among the United States' members of the Anglo-American Exchange of Lawyers and Judges — including Chief Judge J. Clifford Wallace of the Ninth Circuit — Burger recognized that the English Inns offered something American legal education lacked: a culture of mentorship and shared professional standards.
Burger invited Rex E. Lee and Dallin Oaks to test the idea. The result was the first American Inn of Court, founded in 1980 in the Provo/Salt Lake City area of Utah, with law students from Brigham Young University. Within three years, additional Inns had formed in Utah, Mississippi, Hawaii, New York, and Washington, D.C.
In 1985, the American Inns of Court Foundation was formally organized to promote and charter local Inns across the country.
Chief Justice Warren Burger and colleagues in the Anglo-American Exchange of Lawyers and Judges discuss adapting the English model for the United States.
The first American Inn of Court is established in Provo/Salt Lake City, Utah, in partnership with Brigham Young University Law School.
The Foundation is formally organized, providing a national infrastructure to charter, support, and connect local Inns across the United States.
Inns proliferate across the country, specializing in areas including intellectual property, family law, criminal law, and federal practice.
Justice Randy J. Holland of the Delaware Supreme Court becomes the fifth President of the American Inns of Court, serving through 2004. He receives the Lewis Powell Jr. National Award for Professionalism.
Kevin F. Brady and Richard K. Herrmann charter the Richard K. Herrmann Technology American Inn of Court in Wilmington, Delaware — the first Inn in the country dedicated entirely to the intersection of law and technology.
For the first time in history, an Inn of Court is chartered as a virtual Inn focused exclusively on Artificial Intelligence — bringing together lawyers, judges, and technologists across America and beyond.
The American Inns adopted the spirit of their English forebears — the mentor-mentee relationship, the communal dining, the emphasis on character — while adapting the model to the realities of American legal culture.
| Dimension | 🇬🇧 English Inns of Court | 🇺🇸 American Inns of Court |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 14th–15th centuries | 1980 (first Inn); 1985 (national foundation) |
| Number | Four (Inner Temple, Middle Temple, Lincoln's Inn, Gray's Inn) | Nearly 400 chartered chapters nationwide |
| Legal Power | Statutory authority to "call" barristers to the Bar — mandatory for practice | Voluntary membership; no licensing authority |
| Membership | Judges (Benchers), barristers, and student members | Judges, practicing attorneys, law professors, and law students |
| Core Method | Communal dining (mandatory "dining terms"), moots, mentorship | Monthly dinner meetings, pupilage-style programs, presentations |
| Focus | Training and credentialing barristers in advocacy | Professionalism, civility, ethics, and skill-building across all lawyers |
| Relationship | — | Declaration of Friendship signed; reciprocal visitation; Pegasus Scholarships for exchange of young lawyers |
| Governance | Benchers (Masters of the Bench) elected from judiciary and senior bar | Local officers elected by membership; national Foundation board |
The American Inns of Court adopted the traditional English model of legal apprenticeship and modified it to fit the particular needs of the American legal system — seeking a new way to help lawyers and judges rise to higher levels of excellence, professionalism, and ethical awareness.
What began as a single experimental chapter in Utah in 1980 has grown into one of the most far-reaching lawyer professionalism movements in American history.
Today, the American Inns of Court is a national association of more than 30,000 lawyers, judges, law professors, and students dedicated to advancing the rule of law through the promotion of professionalism, ethics, civility, and excellence in the legal profession.
Inns operate at every level of the legal system — federal and state, trial and appellate, general practice and highly specialized. You'll find Inns dedicated to intellectual property, criminal law, family law, bankruptcy, immigration, civil rights, and — pioneered right here in Delaware — law and technology.
The organization has also built formal bridges back to its English roots. Through the Pegasus Scholarships program, young American Inn members travel to London to train alongside English barristers, while young English barristers spend time in the American system. The Declaration of Friendship between the English and American Inns establishes reciprocal visitation rights and introductory letters of access to the English Inns.
The proliferation of specialized Inns reflects the growing complexity of legal practice. One of the most significant developments has been the emergence of technology-law Inns. The Richard K. Herrmann Technology American Inn of Court, founded in 2009 in Wilmington, Delaware, was the first Inn in the country dedicated exclusively to technology's intersection with the law. It would prove to be a direct stepping stone to what we gather for today.
For the first time in the 700-year history of the Inns of Court tradition, a chapter has been chartered to exist entirely in the virtual world — and to grapple with the most transformative technology of our age.
The AI Virtual American Inn of Court represents a natural culmination of the tradition. Just as the original Inns emerged in response to a radical disruption in how law was taught and practiced, the AI Virtual Inn emerges in response to artificial intelligence — a technology that is reshaping every dimension of legal work: research, drafting, discovery, advocacy, judicial decision-making, and access to justice.
The virtual format itself is radical in the Inn tradition. Where every previous Inn has been rooted in a place — a city, a courthouse, a law school — the AI Virtual Inn exists wherever its members are. This is not a limitation; it is a feature. The practice of law in the age of AI knows no geographic boundary, and neither does this Inn.
Ethics of AI in legal practice · Judicial use of AI tools · Deepfakes and evidence · AI and access to justice · Bias in algorithmic decision-making · The future of legal education · Generative AI and attorney competence obligations · Regulatory frameworks for AI in court systems
The AI Virtual Inn of Court didn't appear from nowhere. It is the product of people whose entire careers trace the arc from the English Inns to this moment — each arriving here through a different but deeply connected path.
Richard K. Herrmann has practiced complex litigation for more than 40 years and began teaching technology-related courses at Delaware Law School in 1993.
In 2009, alongside Kevin Brady, Herrmann co-founded the Richard K. Herrmann Technology American Inn of Court in Wilmington, Delaware — the first Inn in the country dedicated entirely to the intersection of technology and law.
Together, Herrmann and Brady also helped establish the Delaware Supreme Court's Commission on Law and Technology in 2013 — the first such commission in the United States.
Kevin F. Brady is Of Counsel at Redgrave LLP in Washington, D.C., and one of the most recognized voices in American legal technology. He served as the inaugural President of the Richard K. Herrmann Technology American Inn of Court.
Brady's work bridges litigation, e-discovery, and technology policy. His participation in the American Inns of Court national dialogue on technology reflects a career-long commitment to ensuring the profession keeps pace with the technology reshaping it.
Ethan Holland's connection to the Inns of Court is both intimate and intergenerational. He is the son of Justice Randy J. Holland — the longest-serving Justice of the Delaware Supreme Court and one of the most distinguished figures in the history of the American Inns of Court.
Ethan's path to the AI Virtual Inn is through artificial intelligence. As an AI expert, he brings the perspective lawyers and judges need most: a deep understanding of how these systems work, what they can and cannot do, and what questions the legal profession must ask of them.
His presence in this Inn honors his father's legacy and extends it into the future.
Justice Holland was one of only three Americans to be named as an Honorary Master of the Bench of Lincoln's Inn in London — alongside U.S. Supreme Court Justices John Paul Stevens and Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
To understand Ethan Holland's connection to the Inns of Court, you must first understand his father.
Justice Randy J. Holland was appointed to the Delaware Supreme Court in 1986 by Governor Mike Castle, becoming — at the time — the youngest person ever to serve as a Delaware Supreme Court Justice. He would go on to serve for more than 30 years, becoming the longest-serving Justice in the Court's history before retiring in 2017.
His influence extended far beyond Delaware. In 2000, he became the fifth President of the American Inns of Court, serving through 2004 and receiving the Lewis Powell Jr. National Award for Professionalism.
In 2004, Justice Holland was elected an Honorary Master of the Bench of Lincoln's Inn in London — placing him in the company of only two other Americans: Justices John Paul Stevens and Ruth Bader Ginsburg of the United States Supreme Court. For a Justice from the small state of Delaware to be honored by one of the world's oldest legal institutions alongside two giants of the U.S. Supreme Court speaks to the singular depth of his contribution to the law.
The Randy J. Holland Delaware Workers' Compensation American Inn of Court was named in his honor. Justice Holland passed away in 2022, survived by his wife of 50 years, Dr. Ilona Holland, his son Ethan, daughter-in-law Jen, and granddaughters Rori and Chloe.
From the medieval lanes of Holborn, where secular lawyers were exiled from the City of London and built communities of excellence in their place... to the Salt Lake City classroom where Warren Burger's vision first took root in America... to the Wilmington conference rooms where Kevin Brady and Richard Herrmann dared to build an Inn around technology... to the virtual room we are in together today — the Inns of Court tradition has always been about one thing: excellent lawyers shaping excellent lawyers.
Artificial intelligence does not break that thread. It extends it — into the most consequential questions the legal profession has ever faced. Welcome to the AI Virtual Inn of Court. Welcome to the next chapter.