At the New Jersey Judiciary's first virtual swearing-in ceremony last week, New Jersey Supreme Court Chief Justice Stuart Rabner and U.S. District Court Chief Judge Freda Wolfson told newly admitted attorneys to ­persevere during these challenging times.

The ceremony was livestreamed on the New Jersey courts website because of social distancing measures required due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

New Jersey State Bar President Kimberly A. Yonta and Edward T. Kole, president of the Association of the Federal Bar of New Jersey, each presented a motion to admit the new attorneys to their respective courts.

Wolfson said while the public health, economic and social justice crises the country is facing will have a "trickledown effect on everyone in the profession," the new attorneys should "stay the course."

She said the legal profession "rebounded ever stronger" after it suffered a severe setback more than a decade ago, "because ours is a durable profession that offers intellectual and personal benefits and you will see yourself the beneficiary of those in the long haul."

Rabner promised the new attorneys that although the nation is in the midst of a pandemic with challenges that seem unsurmountable, made all the more challenging by a tighter legal job market, "there is not only a place for you in a practice of law, but a real need for your skills and talent."

He told them to envision a day, "hopefully soon, when the pandemic ends, you'll stand in front of judges and juries in courtrooms. You'll advocate for clients and you'll make a notable contribution to the cause of justice in our state and in our society at a time that we desperately need to see justice done, to see the cause of justice served. You'll find that this journey, with all of its challenges, was well worth it."